media review: Ender's Game

New in theaters this week is Ender's Game, based on the Orson Scott Card book of the same name, winner of both Hugo and Nebula awards when it was first published in 1985. It follows the childhood life of Andrew "Ender" Wiggin, born into a world living in fear of the Formics, a race of bug-like aliens who almost wiped out life on Earth 50 years prior. Convinced that only adolescent brains have the acuity and flexibility to develop the strategies needed to fight the next war, society has developed a program to send the best and brightest children to battle school to become the next generation of military commanders. Though it is technically a sci-fi tale, at its heart it is a story about the choices we make when it appears that the only way to defeat our enemies is to become aggressors ourselves.

The book was not originally targeted towards young adults, but it quickly found popularity among children and teens, who are drawn in by Card's compelling portrayal of what it feels like both to be bullied and bullying, outcast and hero. With the current popularity of teenage characters in dystopian settings (The Hunger Games: Catching Fire will be released later this month), the story's 30-year incubation period from page to screen will probably turn out to be well-timed. Today's teens seem to relish tales like these, where a character their age is faced with insurmountable odds and a mission that no one else can accomplish. Throughout the story, the adults attempt to keep Ender isolated in hopes of molding him into a visionary leader, but friendships still manage to grow, and teamwork becomes key as the conclusion nears.

In the conversion from page to film, the timeline is compressed down to one year of Ender's life, and the story suffers a little loss of depth because of that. Still, it captures the spirit of the book well, and it raises the same pressing questions at the end. It is also a visual feast, worthy of the cost to see it on the big screen (and even in IMAX) - and its PG-13 rating may allow it to be fun for the whole family, depending on the maturity level of your children. Find more information about specific content and themes at http://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/enders-game and http://www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews/enders-game. In my opinion, the movie is suitable for a slightly younger audience than the book. The more violent moments of the story feel less intense when you are viewing them as an outsider rather than experiencing the emotions inside Ender's head. The movie also does a good job of showing the friendships and family relationships that keep Ender centered at times when it seems the adult leaders might prefer him to follow a path that is morally ambiguous.

Susannah