The novel "Ender's Game" by Orson Scott Card was published for the first time in 1985. It's the first book in the Ender's Game series. It won the Hugo and Nebula Awards as the best novel of the year.
Andrew "Ender" Wiggin is a so-called Third, meaning that he's the third child of his parents. His birth is an exception to laws that impose a limit of two children for any family and was approved in the search for humanity's next leader against the Formics, the aliens that were already repelled in two invasion attempts.
Ender is only six years old when he's admitted to the Battle School, the first phase of training for the next commanders of the International Fleet, after reacting brutally to the aggression of a group of bullies. Ender is subjected to tremendous pressure and manipulation by Colonel Hyrum Graff, the School director. Will he be able to resist to lead humanity's fleet or will he be broken?
Ender's Shadow is a series about some really powerful Slytherins with strong national pride who fight against each other in order to rule the world. It gets so bad that Colonel Graff's had to, quite literally, send them away in order to let a less powerful, however charming, fellow Slytherin unite the world under one government.
An absolutely impossible task with about 10 Power-hungry, ambitious Slytherins who are extremely smart and would want to help their homeland get stronger (and obviously at some point rule the world) after so many years in space with lack of this feeling of "National Pride" we all share in one way or another in our very own homeland.
‘So the whole war is because we can’t talk to each other.’
‘If the other fellow can’t tell you his story, you can never be sure he isn’t trying to kill you.’
‘What if we just left them alone?’
‘Ender, we didn’t go to them first, they came to us. If they were going to leave us alone, they could have done it a hundred years ago, before the First Invasion.’
‘Maybe they didn’t know we were intelligent life. Maybe-‘
‘Ender, believe me, there’s a century of discussion on this very subject. Nobody knows the answer. When it comes down to it, though, the real decision is inevitable: If one of us has to be destroyed, let’s make *** sure we’re the ones alive at the end.’
The director of X-Men Origins: Wolverine also directed Ender’s Game. That's a stunner. Then again, Gavin Hood also directed Tsotsi so really, it's the comic book movie that's the outlier. While this picture failed to make bank at the box office, that only means it's ready to be discovered by audiences at home. This is a thought-provoking, exciting and intelligent science fiction film, the kind we wish we'd see more often.
Set decades after an alien attack in 2114, it's only a matter of time before the Formics return. The International Fleet recruits gifted children (whose minds are better at grasping the complex mathematics involved in space travel) to lead a pre-emptive strike. Colonel Hyrum Graff (Harrison Ford) believes young Andrew “Ender” Wiggin (Asa Butterfield) will make the perfect commander.
When Ender’s Game was released in theatres, many called for its boycott. If you have the misfortune of glimpsing author Orson Scott Card’s homophobia, you'll understand why, but here’s the thing: Card isn’t making money off of the box office. He IS from book sales, however. If you’re intrigued by the story (and you should be), forget the book. Go for the movie. In some ways, I like it better anyway.
Most films about alien invaders are about the big battle, the desire to crush the enemy, and seeing the space bug's homeworld reduced to ruins. Ender's Game is about something deeper. It’s about a boy pushed to become a killer when he doesn’t want to be. It asks legitimate questions about the morality of sending soldiers to war. It is wrong to rip him and his fellow students away from a normal life on Earth, but after the war, they don't have the luxury of being children either. It's immoral, but what's more important in the end; your principles, or survival? The training at the academy pushes the children to think differently than they would. The way Ender strategizes during the many exercises, the way he navigates among his peers, his family, and his superiors prove he is the perfect candidate Colonel Graff wanted. What you wonder is whether he's "perfect" because he's young enough to be molded into a mindless war machine or because he's not old enough to have his independence snuffed out. You’ll want to hit pause and think about these ideas before the plot moves onto the next one, but that would mean interrupting its flow.
The screenplay by Gavin Hood delicately balances character development, moral conundrums, and action. The bulk of the film is set not on the battlefield, but in a special school where Ender learns to strategize and learn about his enemies. The training exercises are skilfully directed, exciting, and satisfying. When was the last time you heard that about classes?
Unfortunately, Ender’s Game ends on a note that hints at a sequel that will never come. The story nonetheless feels complete. It features complex characters whose actions you’ll love debating and analyzing. It boasts an impressive cast (Ben Kingsley, Hailee Steinfeld, Abigail Breslin, Viola Davis, and many other talents join Butterfield and Ford), exciting action sequences, and a killer climax. It may not have the emotional depth of the novel (how could it when it only lasts 114 minutes?), but it comes close and it’s a lot more interesting to see people flying through the air shooting at each other than it is reading about it. (On Blu-ray, February 10, 2017)
Il romanzo "Il gioco di Ender" ("Ender's Game") di Orson Scott Card è stato pubblicato per la prima volta nel 1985. È il primo libro del ciclo di Ender. Ha vinto i premi Hugo e Nebula come miglior romanzo dell'anno. In Italia è stato pubblicato dall'Editrice Nord nel n. 87 di "Cosmo Oro" e nel n. 4 di "Cosmo Biblioteca" e da Mondadori nel n. 43 di "Urania Jumbo", in tutti i casi nella traduzione di Gianluigi Zuddas.
Andrew "Ender" Wiggin è un cosiddetto Terzo, nel senso che è il terzo figlio dei suoi genitori. La sua nascita è un'eccezione alle leggi che impongono un limite di due soli figli per ogni famiglia ed è stata approvata nella ricerca del prossimo leader dell'umanità contro gli Scorpioni, gli alieni dei quali sono già stati respinti due tentativi di invasione.
Ender ha soli sei anni quando viene ammesso alla Scuola di Guerra, la prima fase di addestramento dei prossimi comandanti della Flotta Internazionale, dopo aver reagito in modo brutale all'aggressione di un gruppo di bulli. Ender viene sottoposto a pressioni fortissime e alle manipolazioni del Colonnello Hyrum Graff, il direttore della Scuola. Riuscirà a resistere per guidare la flotta dell'umanità o verrà spezzato?
En un futuro cercano, una raza alienígena llamada Insectores ha atacado la Tierra. De no ser por un héroe legendario, el comandante de la Flota Internacional, Mazer Rackham, todo se habría perdido. Preparándose para el próximo ataque, el estricto coronel Hyrum Graff y el Ejército Internacional entrenan sólo a los mejores jóvenes para encontrar al futuro Mazer. Entre estos jóvenes está Ender…