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Orson Scott Card's ENDER'S GAME has a director and a studio
Hey folks, Harry here... Got a call today from my spy inside Warner Brothers. Seems that besides being terrified of the mega-bomb SCOOBY DOO, which the studio has marketed to perfection, but unlike SPIDER-MAN will drop the ball completely upon delivery. Beside telling me a retarded bit about how in the Wonder Woman movie coming, Wonder Woman dies at the beginning and some inky creepy power thing seeks out her long lost daughter to magically transform her into the next Wonder Woman, and upon exhibiting these skills her fly girlfriend says, "You are some sort of WONDER... WOMAN!" UGH... Well amongst the bad news and hands being held over their heads screaming with clumps of their own human hair about the insanity that is Warner Brothers... BTW... The next HARRY POTTER will kick ass and EIGHT LEGGED FREAKS delivers the goods... Well my spy tells me that Orson Scott Card's long languishing in pitch hell adaptation of ENDER'S GAME will finally be finding a home with Warner Brothers. Not only that, but the director of THE NEVERENDING STORY and DAS BOOT will be directing. That's right, Wolfgang Petersen has signed on to direct this epic of science fiction cool! Can't imagine a better director for this film personally. He is brutal and human and great with kids. This could be a great film if they nail the script. I'm gonna dig for more details and see if I can get Wolfgang or Orson or Lorenzo on the horn to comment on whatever it is they are going to be doing with this. But ya know what... They got the right director, now all they have to do is have a great script and make a great movie. Simple. heheheh...
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Though I'm not a huge fan of all of his films, I think he could pull it off, though my first choice would be Spielberg (as if it would ever happen...).
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This looks gay. Just kidding. Just read the DAREDEVIL costume talkback and "dare" I say (hahahahaha) it looks wicked.
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Have't read it for years but memory says that there was some uber-cool game played in zero gravity. anyone want to refresh my memory
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Petersen is a suberb craftsman who had even a bit of visionary abilities in his german films. But hey, the guys does very good work even in his worst films. The scripts might sometimes fail him, but you can never blame the direction in any of his movies. So yes, a very good choice for Ender. However, the book is very difficult to translate to screen. *** ENDER SPOILER *** How are they gonna pull off the hologram combats in an interesting manner? How are they going to reveal the true nature of those combats? Maybe they will show audiences more than they show Ender, so that we are gonna get to see some epic space battles instead of tiny hologram simulator. I hope they nail it, the book was great.
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You all should thank yer lucky stars that Jake Loyld is now too old to play Ender...originally he read the part of Ender with Mr. Card when he first started to adapt his book to a screenplay. Yes lots of zero grav war games fun, hopefully they won't cheese on that.
Go to Mr. Card's site he's been writing about his ordeal in getting the movie made for a long time now...http://www.hatrack.com -
and Satoshi"perfect blue"KON directing it...
I think this adaptation needs a high psychological aspect...with some weird dreams...
Petersen can be allright,but it looks like Ender will become another blockbuster...
I wish it could be an experimental film...
I'm french,that's the problem. -
I've always felt that Ender's Game was one of those great books that couldn't translate well to the screen. It's a bunch of kids with their own society and their own rules--- the stuff with Bone-So, Rose de Nose, Petra and Alai was awesome. But for me, just like in the film adaptations to "Lord of the Flies", reading about a pre-teen society is more compelling than watching it on screen. I just don't identify with their characters on screen nor do I take their brutal worldview as seriously as I do in the book. I just am not looking forward to a bunch of ten year olds playing mind games with each other. Giant's Drink is a cinematic part of the book, but the key is the interaction between the players and the violence of Peter, Stilson, and Bernard. Maybe other people think that "Lord of the Flies" was adapted well, but for me the pre-teen violence is a hard sell when you can't get into the heads of the characters. Anyway, it is a great book so even a sucky movie would give it more publicity.
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Bosola, the book is about a child prodigy, Ender, who is chosen for military training because the humans are at war with a race of bugs. Most of the book centers around the zero-gravity training battles at this pre-teen military school. All the kids are chosen for their exceptional abilities but what the adults are really looking for is--- The One who can lead them into battle in real life. The training is psychological not just tactics. Great book.
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Harry! You used to say that Ron Howard was the dream director for this movie. Why did you change your mind?
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May 17, 2002 2:19:00 PM CDT
Awesome awesome choice, but Alex Proyas would have been great, t
by lenny nero
Neverending Story is the bomb, yo.
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May 17, 2002 2:19:10 PM CDT
Awesome awesome choice, but Alex Proyas would have been great, t
by lenny nero
Neverending Story is the bomb, yo.
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Thanks you! Thank you God and whatever patron saint of filmmaking who has chosen to bless we undeserving fans? I love this book and I hope they do it justice. Petersen is a great choice.
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Wolfgang Peterson?! WOO-HOO!! I have been worried that the Ender's Game movie was going to be stuck in development hell for eternity, and when it did finally emerge, it would be helmed by some loopy hack who cut his filmmaking teeth on music videos. OSC has reserved the right for the script since day one, so I wasn't worried about that, but for a movie like this to work WELL, the director and the writer have to both have a vision for the final product - there HAS to be heart. Lots and lots of heart. I think the Peterson and OSC can make this a fan-freaking-tastic movie. I hope it turns out as well as it can - and I hope they can preserve as much of the books tension and ending as possible.
Remember - the enemy's gate is down. -
I love Card's books. But it will be hard to make it 'exciting' and visual for a film. I hope, I hope. Notice to all screenwriters! Tiger! Tiger! by Alfred Bester, an old SF classic, would make an excellent film!
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May 18, 2002 1:53:43 AM CDT
Yea Cool....But that sould not combine Enders Game and Enders Sh
by duty
Thay will suck like that. Why do it?? Enders Shadow will totaly take away from the power of Enders Game. Film the 2 at the same time but dont make them both into 1 movie!!!! God!! What? will you overlap them?? or will half be Game and the other Half Shadow?? LAME!!!!! -Duty
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Ender's is not a big event type story. It needs a director capable of subtlety and a less is more approach...which are filmmaking techniques that neither Wolfgang nor Speilberg (which someone suggested) indulge in. This could be a great movie, but it seems like it's off on the wrong foot.
And from what I've read, Card needs to be removed from the equation. -
while it is nearly every fanboy/marvelgirls dream to have their fav book/comic developed into a movie, sometimes it shouldn't be done. usually because the story is too rich to adapt, even into a miniseries (both versions of Dune were let-downs IMO).
Zelazny's Amber Chronicles (tho SCIFI will try), Heinlein's "Stranger in a Strange Land", Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, as with many other great books are just too layered to translate well...I think "Ender's Game" falls into this category. I've read the different changes OSC has been toying with: the fusion of "Game" and "Shadow"; and I have been scared and disappointed. F/X just aren't there yet; with the level of acting required for the role no kid is gonna be able to BE Ender (thank you Jesus that Jake Lloyd is too old-he was horrid in TPM); so much happens and in so many years there is just no way to put it all in a movie and not have it feel rushed and/or choppy.
As much as I love "Ender's Game", maybe Card should try adapting "Treason" or "The Worthing Chronicle" instead ? -
"treason" was pretty weird so it might make a good movie in a surreal kind of way. I never read "the worthing chronicals" so I don't know, but I definitely agree there is a problem adapting "ender's game". If they want to take out the brutal psychological training to make it a PG "action-adventure" movie, that's cool. I understand the need to adapt the book, but they need to have a clear idea of what audience they want. Personally, I would like the R-rated, dark as hell version of "ender's game" but I don't think that's the direction they are going.
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But I don't think OSC is one of them.
Yes, there are going to be big problems getting the script right, the right actors...but one of the biggest problems was getting a good director who's willing to work with OSC and deal with the books respectfully. Peterson's got the talent, I think, and the self-awareness to make himself stretch. He'll give the film a shot at being a good film.
But as far as OSC is concerned, I don't think we're going to have issues. He's held out on offers before because he wants the movie to be *good* - he doesn't just want to take the money and run. He's been concerned with this from the start (check out the Ender Movie updates he's been doing on www.hatrack.com), and he's held onto the rights to do the script.
No, gents, this is not a bad thing. OSC got his start on writing in college, writing and directing plays. He understands, at least in part, the visual aspects of his work, blocking and use of scenery. Given a co-operative director, I'm confident that he'll be able to write a good script. It may not be the book(s), but it'll be a good treatment of the books. And ya know? The books'll still be there when the movie's over. :) I'm hoping this will be a good movie, but it doesn't feel like it's a long shot. -
He's certainly got the acting ability, especially when it comes to playing prodigies who are tormented by their peers. I think he's one of very few young actors who an audience will actually connect with. Personally, I think this needs to concentrate on Ender's innocence being torn away from him and the real danger of being hurt or killed by the older combatants. Suspense works better than action for those kinds of bits.
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This is the perfect movie for M. Night to do...it centers around kids, exceptional kids at that, the story caters to his very visual, yet subtle style of story telling, and it's got the twist at the end (although I've read that Card has changed that to give it away in the beginning)...M. Night has the abilty to show us so much without having the actors TELL us anything. This movie CAN be done, but it shouldn't be about the FX, or the battle simulations, or the Sci-Fi. It's about a little boy... And about Card being involved...I've read about some of the changes he's made...his insistance on staying in control of the story seems less about protecting its integrity and more about just being in control. His problem is he THINKS he's Ender...
As long as the script is solid, Bryan Singer or Darren Aronofsky could also work. -
I suspect what Peterson will do with the "hologram problem" is to incorporate the idea of computer-generated images approaching realism. Ender sits down in the simulator, and is presented with a projected 3D world - sexiest computer game ever. It looks real, only tiny, and with overlayed displays of info. When Peterson wants to jack it up for the audience, he can makes the ships appear real size. As long as the first image of the ships - tiny, from Ender's perspective - matches up with the big ships, and the commands given by Ender & co. result in more or less direct actions on the larger scale, the audience'll buy it, and be set up wonderfully to get slapped alongside Ender. --- Peterson should do well with this. I admired "Neverending Story" as a kid, not because it was a particularly compelling story or even that near to look at, but because that boy was beaten within an inch of his little life. He got hurt, frequently and badly, and you felt it. This is exactly the kind of savagery that made "Ender's Game" better than the average "boy saves world" books.
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With Wolfgang Peterson on board, this sounds terrific. But I still would like to see someone take a shot at RIVERWORLD. Or RINGWORLD. And what the hell ever happened to the idea of a film version of RENEDVOUSE WITH RAMA?
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for about 17 years.......thank the lord they have the right director for the job....if they can manage to keep just a little of the background valentine and peter story, i'll be happy....as much as i loved the battle school stuff, i also enjoyed the brother and sister taking over the world thing....
and yeah, haley joel osment in my opinion would have been freaking perfect if they could have had him about 3-5 years ago...and as long as i'm dreaming about the perfect casting, i always pictured the older brother from 'the wonder years' as peter... -
Or, if not bitch, at least doubt. Card is writting, has written and is re-writting the script. The man who knows the story, who made the story, who is in on enough angles of the story to write a 2nd version of it is OBVIOUSLY the guy to write the script..........By writing "Ender's Shadow" he fleshed out his main supporting character and gave himself a lot of deep insights into the story. It will be a story of two amazing prodigy youths who are destined to collide but instead work together and kill a species. It will be amazing if they only find child actors, THAT is the biggest problem. Card also is smart enough to know that his books aren't sacred text and will want a great movie more than he wants a faithful translation of his holy text. Can't hardly wait. Only the Daredevil movie excites me more and Lord Of The Rings of course.
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PRAISE THE LORD that that gay little kid from episode one will not play ender! YAYAYAYAYAYAYAAYYY!
That was one of the worst child actors ive ever seen..,.BTW there are a lot of great unknown child actors out there who might be perfect... -
Excitement aside, seeing as you can't see me smiling ear to ear, i have one issue to raise.
Enders Game is a dynamicly colored story ie. there are light areas and, more importantly, dark areas. This is not a children's story even if it is a story about children. I fear that this distinction could be easly lost. I simply hope that the true feeling, themes and color of the story are not lost. not to mention the psychology, dark blinding manipulation, the look in to enders thoughts, how his character changes, etc, etc, etc... (smiling resumes) -
Combining the stories actually makes a lot of sense. Consider that they both have a lot of internal and psychological elements (tough to translate on screen) but when combined, they'll have plenty of action.
Imagine cutting back and forth between Ender's early bullied childhood and Bean's street urchin life. Then when Ender's getting his mind screwed up at the Battle School, Bean's crawling around in ducts and making deals with the adults.
It should work out great, as long as they *cast* the right people. (Please, no Rosie O'Donnell.)
For everyone whistful over Haley Joel Osment, remember that he was "discovered" at a very young age. (He was 6 in Forrest Gump. Of course, his first break came as an infant on Murphy Brown, but we found out the kid could *act* as a Gumpkin) We can all hold out hope that they find two incredible tots for the roles of Ender and Bean. -
Since it is going to be a few years before the movie comes out there will be time to see new child actors that might be good for parts like Ender and Bean. SInce the movie is going to be a mix of Enders game and Enders Shadow, Bean will be important. In a few years i think that kid from Big Daddy will be a good person to play Ender and who knows for bean. The kid will have to be pretty short :)
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Movies can work without established stars you know. Harry Potter did just great and no one knew who that kid was.
And don't credit that Star Wars kid because Star Wars made money. The losers who bought the toys and dressed in costumes and slept on sidewalks just wanted to jerk off to more Star Wars.
And Haley Joel whatever...can anyone say "Minute 9 1/2 of 15"? Remember the Jerry Maguire kid? Or Mac? Or either Corey?
The only thing I think this movie REALLY needs is Peter. I haven't heard any word on casting for Peter or his plot relevance. He is more important to the whole story that...Christ even Ender.
I said if they ever make a movie out of this (and I'm still doubtful) 3 things have to happen for me to see it 1) Don't cast that Star Wars dweeb to try and get warsies in the seats 2) Don't try and cash in on Sixth Sense to get that other loser 3) Have Peter
2/3 so far... -
its too bad that kid who played rufio in hook couldn't play bonzo madrid
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(even though thats only 10 years)I've been waiting for a movie i have never found another book as good as this. sept for enders shadow. I think the casting shouldn't bee too hard, i know the script should be awesome cause OSC is writin it. There has been many great movies with child actors that had never been heard of... E.T's elliot, The Jurrasic park kids, The child actors in hook... they were decent and there was a handful of em, course those are all spielberg, maybe OSC needs to talk to dream works and steal their child actor reserves cause man somany spielberg child movies have been entertaining for all ages... WHats crazy is i'm not a sci fi freak or anything like that i ride dirtbikes go to paries have a band but ive had some of my freinds read this book and they like it so much they give it to their freinds its a great story it should make a great movie
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