Exploring the nature of the pre-emptive strike

Rating: 8/10 (11 December 2013)

This is a movie based on a best selling book by Orson Scott Card, and it is interesting that when this particular author is mentioned there is always an outcry against his position on homosexuality. While I am tolerant of homosexuality and will tend not to make statements as controversial as Card may have done, I do feel that the same tolerance that I am showing to the LGBT community is the same form of tolerance that is shown towards Card. In fact it sounds as if the producers of this movie deliberately kept Card away from its production due to a potential backlash from certain groups who are threatened by his views, and this is a man who is a self proclaimed Democrat, communitarian (I note that he does not use the term communist, but his description makes it sound like a less Stalinist version). While I may not agree with his Mormon beliefs, I do not find him anywhere near as objectionable as some people claim him to be (and I assure you that there are worse people out there than Card).
As for the movie, I thought it was brilliant. Earth has been attacked by a race of aliens known as the Formic, and by a bit of luck, were beaten off. However, the people of Earth have decided that they need to act to prevent another such tragedy, and begin a rigorous training program to find a general that will lead them to victory against the Formic and they do this by recruiting children and testing them through the use of games which become progressively harder, and more realistic.
The movie follows the life of a boy named Ender, and the military minds who are watching his progress. It is clear that Ender has an exceptional tactical mind, but it is also clear that he is not a warrior and does not have the mentality of a warrior, which makes it difficult for the military to use him to meet their objectives – which is why they end up disguising the operations as games and military exercises, and why they also work exceptionally hard to hide the truth about his actions from him.
The key to this is the idea where at the beginning of the movie he knocks down a bully, and then proceeds to continue to kick him not to exact vengeance or uncontrolled anger on him, but to prevent him from getting up again. This is an aspect of violence that many people do not understand. When you win a fight, you do not necessarily defeat your opponent, but rather you end up angering your opponent who then looks for the opportunity to seek revenge against you. It is an endless cycle that ends up going nowhere.
However, despite the attitude of Ender in that he only fights to defend himself, it is clear that the Earth military are seeking vengeance. In the final battle Ender notices that the enemy are not attacking, and they only attack when he makes the first move. There are a number of instances in the film where he makes the first move in a simulated battle, however it is clear that this is simulated and the first movie needs to be made. However, in the real battle (which is disguised as a game) this is not the case, however because he believes that it is a simulation he believes that this is a case where the first move needs to be made.
This is a film which is about battle and about military tactics, however it also questions the need for a pre-emptive strike. While Ender does make some strikes in this film, it is clear that it is in a battle situation, however there is a different situation where, as is clear in the final scene, or at least revealed in the final scene, that this is not a battle in a war, but it is a final strike against an enemy who has already fallen and is not willing to get up again. This is why Ender is so sickened at the outcome at the end because he is not kicking him to prevent him from getting up again, but taking out vengeance against an opponent that has already been defeated.