Battalion of Youth

I have several friends who have read "Ender's Game", and I read it because I knew that the film was going to be released soon.  Usually, I wait until after the movie is out if I haven't read a book yet, but a friend's daughter has a fan site about this book and movie, so I wanted to get excited with her.  I thought the book was quite interesting, and looked forward to the movie.  I saw it on opening day in IMAX Experience (not 3D).

• Aside from the kids being older on film than they were in the book, I thought that they looked like about what I imagined them all to be.  I had not pictured the adults like they were in the movie, though.  
• I really liked the visual effects, which were how I kind of pictured them when I read the book.  I especially liked the battle arena.
• I couldn't really picture the formations in the battles very well, so I'm glad the film did that for me.
• Asa Butterfield did a good job portraying his guilt over various events.  His eyes watered a lot, but with a kind of strength of what Ender should possess.
• The relationship between Petra and Ender seemed even closer than I had imagined.  Maybe it's because they're older, because that would bring in a different dynamic.
• Bonzo was a lot shorter than I thought he'd be.
• While I watched the movie, I wondered how I would have felt had I not read the book already.  Would I understand the ending, or would I understand the characters less?
• I liked that Viola Davis brought the moral questions to light, but I kind of wish that the part had been played by a man, to show that a male could be sensitive, too.
• I wish that there had been more character development, like showing how the kids would follow Ender, but I understand that more character development = longer movie.
• Trying not to look at the film as someone who read the book, I believe that it is still enjoyable, and still brings forth the same message.