Captain Cattle is a cool as hell spyname. Obviously someone that moves whole steam ahead when moo-ving information through the block. Anyway, this project has been around for a bit, let's see where it's at for now...
Captain Cattle here. I've been going to your site for as long as I can remember (which isn't saying much, since I can't remember last week), but this is the first time I've reported in.
Yesterday I found myself surfing the net, trying to find information on Orson Scott Card and his novel, Ender's Game. Subsequently, I happened upon the Fresco Pictures webpage. For those who don't know, Fresco Pictures is the production company who is making the film version of Ender's Game, also written by Card (who is one of the company's vice-presidents, no less!) At the site there was an excerpt of the script, and having nothing else better to do, I read it.
For those who have never read Ender's Game, the story revolves around a small kid genius who is taken to an outerspace battle school to conduct a series of games, which are the basis of military training. Ender is the hope of Earth, and is being trained to stop the dreaded "Third Invasion" by the alien Buggers. All along, the reader and Ender believe that the Invasion will be an invasion of Earth, but at the end, the admirals inform Ender that the Invasion is an attack on the Bugger homeworlds by human ships, and, what's more, Ender has been commanding the fleet through his games. It's one of those endings that makes you put down the book and say "Holy F**k!"
Unfortunately, that is not the case with the movie. The opening sequence of the film is a space battle during the Second Invasion, with young Mazer Rackham destroying the alien queen by a fluke victory (if you've read the book, you'll know what I mean). Mazer is promoted to admiral and sent out to command the fleets heading to the bugger homeworlds. But in the middle of the flight, Mazer is called back, because they want him to train a child who would command the fleets by remote control through a series of games. It seems that in the first ten minutes the coolest secrets of the story are revealed.
The website also had an e-mail address to Orson Scott Card, encouraging all readers to send comments. Their wish was my command, and I told them my misgivings about the script (which really isn't bad, but it reveals everything!!). Not expecting any reply, I recieved an e-mail from the man himself, Card. He said that it would have been impossible to keep the secrets and the great ending in the film, because it would have been too complicated and would have compromised the story. The story is from the adult point of view, not from Ender's, and the audience will know what Ender does not. Card said, "You get more suspense from knowing than not knowing."
Well, there is my report. Do with it what you will.
Your humble slave,
Captain Cattle
