The Movie Makes No Sense Unless You Have Read The Book

Rating: 7/10 (30 January 2014)

I wrote my original review a year and a half ago. You can see it below. What's different? My daughter gave me a copy of the book. This movie never made any sense until I read the book. If you are a sci-fi fan, maybe you are familiar with Dune. That was another great book made into a good (not great) movie. If you saw the movie Dune without reading the book, all the nuance was gone. Same with Ender's Game. If you like sci-fi, read the book by Orson Scott Card first. The movie doesn't work unless you've read the book. Otherwise, I stand by my review below.
I ignored the bad reviews. How bad could a movie starring Harrison Ford and Ben Kingsley be? The answer is...barely watchable.
I haven't read the books. However, if you are going to have young children star in a movie with violence, you need more adult supervision. I hope this isn't a spoiler, but by putting kids in total control of a planetary defense system during an intergalactic war you strain the boundaries of credibility. The kids are all interesting, but not that much. There are literally dozens of moments that don't feel right, are unbelievable or insult your intelligence so much that you cannot give yourself to the storyline. Harry Potter always had adults guiding him. They didn't make Harry the headmaster of Hogwarts when he was 11 years old.
The special effects are good. There are many plot devices that almost work. Harrison Ford and Ben Kingsley are outstanding as always. You keep hoping that the movie will become intelligent and redeem itself. Unfortunately, the ending goes in the opposite direction. How many good movies end with the audience thinking "Bullshit!"? You'll end up wondering why they spent $110,000,000 without putting it in front of a focus group.
If you can watch it for free and lower your expectations to ground level, there are many good moments in this film. Just prepare to be disappointed at the end.