Thursday, November 09, 2023

Of all the failed attempts to start young adult franchises, one dystopian sci-fi, "Ender's Game", showed particular promise

Harrison Ford and a classic sci-fi novel. What could go wrong?

Of all the microtrends Hollywood has been through, one of the most memorable and fascinating was the 2010s’ wave of dystopian chosen one adaptations. In the wake of Harry Potter and the sudden success of The Hunger Games, reams of movies attempted to replicate the formula of a young child plucked from obscurity to save the world. The Giver, The Maze Runner, and Divergent all tried to replicate the magic of their predecessors... and they all failed.

But one movie brought a fresh twist to this subgenre by moving it to the world of hard science fiction. It remains a great watch a decade later, even if it didn’t earn the legacy it deserved.

Ender’s Game, based on the book by Orson Scott Card, follows young cadet Ender Wiggen (Asa Butterfield) as he catches the attention of Colonel Hyram Graff (Harrison Ford). In a world where all children must attend military school, Ender’s cool and calm demeanor, paired with his willingness to employ startling aggression when called for, sees him brought to an advanced training school where he quickly climbs the ranks. And, in an institution full of swaggering machismo, it soon becomes apparent that Ender’s greatest strength is his empathy. READ MORE FROM INVERSE

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