First Trailer for ENDER'S GAME

There are still nearly six months that separate us from the release of one of the more highly anticipated sci-fi films of the year, but today we get our first real glimpse at the film adaptation of Orson Scott Card's 1985 science fiction novel Ender's Game. Usually it might not be worth stating that a film is one of the "more highly anticipated sci-fi films" of a particular year, but there are a fair amount of big budget sci-fi flicks opening in 2013, several of which have a good amount of positive buzz around them. Granted, most of these will be opening during the summer movie season while if the trailer is any indication you'd think Ender's Game  was starting its awards season bids already. Opening in early November and putting on full display its prestigious cast which sees Asa Butterfield (Hugo) as the lead protagonist and hero alongside the likes of Harrison Ford, Ben Kingsley, Viola Davis, Abigail Breslin, and Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit). I have yet to read the source novel from which this film will be based (which I'm ashamed of as I consider myself a pretty big fan of science fiction) but I have already picked up a copy and plan on reading it as soon as I finish World War Z which is currently on the nightstand. This debut teaser trailer looks promising while only giving away enough of the story to be intriguing while relying heavily on name recognition and grand visuals to also draw viewers in. The only real concern I have here is that director Gavin Hood is at the helm of the project as well as doing the work of adapting the novel into a screenplay. I've only seen two of Hood's previous films (neither of which he wrote) but one of them was the widely panned X-Men Origins: Wolverine film. I wasn't a big fan of the film and the reasons why might not have all been Hood's fault, but the fact he couldn't seem to handle a large scale potential blockbuster doesn't bode well for the initial optimism around this one. Still, I like the genre and have heard nothing but great things about the source material, so we shall wait and see. Hit the jump to check out the trailer and let me know what you think. Ender’s Game opens on November 1st.

Synopsis: In the near future, a hostile alien race (called the Formics) have attacked Earth. If not for the legendary heroics of International Fleet Commander, Mazer Rackham (Ben Kingsley), all would have been lost. In preparation for the next attack, the highly esteemed Colonel Graff (Harrison Ford) and the International Military are training only the best young children to find the future Mazer. Ender Wiggin (Asa Butterfield), a shy, but strategically brilliant boy is pulled out of his school to join the elite. 

Arriving at Battle School, Ender quickly and easily masters increasingly difficult war games, distinguishing himself and winning respect amongst his peers. Ender is soon ordained by Graff as the military’s next great hope, resulting in his promotion to Command School. Once there, he’s trained by Mazer Rackham, himself, to lead his fellow soldiers into an epic battle that will determine the future of Earth and save the human race.