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Off-Topic Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: Kamikaze on September 30, 2005, 08:51:09 pm

Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Kamikaze on September 30, 2005, 08:51:09 pm
Just got back from a 16:10 showing of Serenity. It was worth every cent of the $6 for the ticket.

I haven't seen a movie that isn't comedy get so much laughter from the audience. Every gag in that movie was intelligently done. It's also a great movie for non Firefly fans too. My GF went to watch it with me and she enjoyed it despite of the fact that she's never seen the series.

Oh, and the special effects are amazingly well done. Star Wars is absolutely no competition.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: WMCoolmon on September 30, 2005, 08:52:05 pm
AGH NO NOW I KNOW ITS FUNNY

ZOMG SPOILERZ!!1111 :eek:

..although I already knew that from the previews.

"I don't wanna explode!"
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Liberator on September 30, 2005, 09:00:58 pm
So i'm still curious about one thing about one thing:

I was led to believe that there was something special about the ship beyond the pecularities of her crew, did I get it wrong again?
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Ford Prefect on September 30, 2005, 09:04:48 pm
I don't think there's anything unusual about the ship. In fact, the show tends to focus on how lovably crappy the Serenity is-- similar to the Millennium Falcon, except with no weapons.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Kamikaze on September 30, 2005, 09:11:09 pm
The Serenity's an ancient transport with no weapons. What makes her special is that it's Mal and his crew's ship.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Jetmech Jr. on September 30, 2005, 09:13:52 pm
Just saw it. Absolutely BRILLIANT. Totally worthy of the Series. And the end just opens itself right up to a new season. Heres hoping.

My only gripe is that
Spoiler:
my 2 favorite characters died. Poor book. Poor Wash. That was no way for such a great character to die. The 'sudden giant spike of death' is reserved for second class characters, no poor, poor Washburne.


The Reaver/Alliance Battle Opening was the stuff of dreams.
Spoiler:
The Alliance Fleet expects to ambush Serenity. They come right out of the nebula thingy, and 10 seconds later, and gigantic Reaver Fleet comes popping out on their tails. PWNed.


I loved the Reaver twist.

And yes, Star Wars has nothing on Serenity.

Spoiler:
River=The Anti-Reaver.


The assassin guy was great. He was Psychotic, yeah, but he was incredibly likeable. I liked his accent, for some reason.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: LtNarol on September 30, 2005, 11:05:10 pm
Quote
Originally posted by Jetmech Jr.
My only gripe is that
Spoiler:
my 2 favorite characters died. Poor book. Poor Wash. That was no way for such a great character to die. The 'sudden giant spike of death' is reserved for second class characters, no poor, poor Washburne.
[/b]

I concur.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Mefustae on October 01, 2005, 01:14:22 am
...Just got back from seeing it, and that is one well done movie, although to get a lot more out of it, at least see (download?) the first two episodes/pilot of the series, it'll give you some background that will go a long way. But it works just as well as a standalone movie...
Quote
Originally posted by Jetmech Jr.
My only gripe is that
Spoiler:
my 2 favorite characters died. Poor book. Poor Wash. That was no way for such a great character to die. The 'sudden giant spike of death' is reserved for second class characters, no poor, poor Washburne.
[/B]
I couldn't agree more...

...Honestly, my absolute favorite part of the movie...
Spoiler:
when River absolutely goes to town on several dozen Reavers with nothing but an Axe & Scimitar, and then  standing there with blood dripping of her weapons as the Alliance breaks down the wall...well, that and the Alliance/Reaver Battle of Endor...


My advice, if you haven't seen it yet...go now...
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Liberator on October 01, 2005, 01:35:28 am
going Sunday afternoon
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: WMCoolmon on October 01, 2005, 03:22:17 am
Spoiler:
I loved it. I don't see what you guys are complaining about. It fit the film perfectly.

Perhaps what I was most disappointed with (but very slightly) was that Innarra(sp?) didn't really have a point in being there. Firefly has always been pretty good about giving each character some kind of distinct role...in the movie they seemed blurred a bit.

But there was a lot of stuff to put in there.

Wash dying the way he did was, well, brilliant. Whether people have seen the series or not, I think it was definitely something that made you feel. You don't expect it. It's final. It's painful. And it's not cliche'd. For me, at least, it helped set the tone of the rest of the movie.

The entire deal with the Reavers, though...very nice. Flying through the nebula, even though you know they're coming, they still jump out. Right before it happens, there's this "This is gonna be grand" feeling.

And the audience clapped, which is very rare for the movies I've seen. Nice to know that it's not just people who've watched the series that love it.


Definitely going to see it again. :nod: :nod: :nod:

Edit: OH! And something else I totally forgot about
Spoiler:
is the shot inside Serenity that lasts for a long time. You know, the night before, I was watching the 'Serenity - the 10th character' special and had heard that things were all one big set...and I couldn't help but wonder why they hadn't done something like that yet.

And the blend of the 'Universal' logo into the opening shot. And the way the credits were handled. And the opening shots of Serenity. Hell, from a filmmaking perspective, IMHO it was brilliant too. :nervous:


Edit 2:
Spoiler:
One other small thing I didn't like: Mr.Universe being in the end scene with Wash and Book. It just didn't sit right with me.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: IceFire on October 01, 2005, 11:17:51 am
I'm going this afternoon...comments to follow.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Ashrak on October 01, 2005, 12:41:50 pm
I WANT TO GO TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! :(
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Kazan on October 01, 2005, 07:19:00 pm
A+++++ for concept
F--------- for execution
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: IceFire on October 01, 2005, 09:02:31 pm
Quote
Originally posted by Kazan
A+++++ for concept
F--------- for execution

I like reasons...
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: IceFire on October 01, 2005, 09:11:27 pm
So I saw it.  My review follows (minor slight spoliers but nothing that you wouldn't already know from the trailer).

Let me say first that I thought it was excellent.  Of the movies I've seen this year so far, this is probably the best non-comedy that I've seen.

The story and characters are definately what drives this thing.  I do feel that parts of that felt rushed, but what I suspect has happened is they wanted to bring to conclusion a story arc that really should have been seasons long and not tied up so quickly.  That said, the movie pulls things off excellently.  It was fast, very fast, but not stupid and it didn't spend time explaining things that shouldn't need to be explained (as many movies waste time doing).  Everything was important to the plot.  A few of the characters were a bit left out...this seems to happen in ensemble movies.  Kaylee and Mal are my favorites and while Mal got plenty of screen time, Kaylee got less.  But that happens.

CGI was flawless.  Excellently executed and the space battle I think was even better than this years Star Wars foray into that area.  Although the battle was short, and we didn't get to see nearly as much as I wanted, it was still fantastically done.  What I do miss is the track, pan, and zoom effect that was present in the shows CGI (and also in BSG).  I think this may not have worked as well on the film as it may have made people motion sick so I think I'll forgive that...

Best parts was that it was fun.  I've had a really bad couple of days and I still laughed through a good number of parts and I was overall entertained.

ALSO...the villan...best I've seen in a while.  You can actually identify with why he is doing what he's doing.  He's not just The Bad Guy(TM).
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Kazan on October 02, 2005, 09:33:37 am
the movie had an episodic feeling to it, it presumed that everyone had seen the series, it didn't tie up loose ends, Mr Universe felt like a gratitous character, etc
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Mefustae on October 02, 2005, 09:55:21 am
Quote
Originally posted by Kazan
the movie had an episodic feeling to it, it presumed that everyone had seen the series, it didn't tie up loose ends, Mr Universe felt like a gratitous character, etc
I'll agree, Mr. Universe was a character created - somewhat obviously - out of neccessity, but the ends were supposed to be loose, as it's going to either lead to a Sequel or a return of the Series (...Yay). Also, many of my friends are not Sci-Fi fans and had never previously heard of a series called 'Firefly', and they loved the movie and kept up with the story and characters as well as I did. Hell, i've seen a good chunk of the series, and I came out of the movie feeling like it had explained a lot more about the universe Serenity takes place in than had been explained in the Series (ie. the whole colonisation of a different system, the history behind the Alliance, the War Mal fought it, and the Reavers)...
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Kazan on October 02, 2005, 09:59:19 am
mefustae movies are supposed to tie up loose ends - only one or two are supposed to be left for sequals - not 90
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: IceFire on October 02, 2005, 10:39:59 am
Quote
Originally posted by Kazan
mefustae movies are supposed to tie up loose ends - only one or two are supposed to be left for sequals - not 90

I'd have to say most of the loose ends were tied up.  A few left to go but I wouldn't exagerate on 90 loose ends :)

There are a few.  Like the story may continue in our imaginations or as  another movie or TV series.

There's lots of people who haven't seen the series (I had a few friends with me who hadn't seen it) and they liked it just as much as I did so it must have made sense.  It just makes more sense if you've seen the show.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Kazan on October 02, 2005, 10:45:56 am
i saw two episodes of the show and it made enough sense for me to enough it, and i like the conept a lot

i just dislike the execution
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Trivial Psychic on October 02, 2005, 10:54:54 am
I'm not sure if any of you stayed through the credits, but if you did, you heard the "Firefly" themesong, but unfortunately it was instrimental only.  Also, I was hoping that they'd play the Mutant Enemy Inc. logo at the end.  "Grr... Arg!" :lol:  Perhaps it'll be on the DVD.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: IceFire on October 02, 2005, 10:57:47 am
Quote
Originally posted by Kazan
i saw two episodes of the show and it made enough sense for me to enough it, and i like the conept a lot

i just dislike the execution

Fair enough...I have a few misgivings about that myself.  But I feel that those misgivings are largely because of what happens when you have to make a movie of it...its just the movie format that causes certain changes.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: LtNarol on October 02, 2005, 12:14:42 pm
There wasn't so much a western feel, methinks, and Mal's new suspenders look a bit too futuristic for my tastes, but I think it still captured the spirit of the series rather well.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Ashrak on October 02, 2005, 01:01:25 pm
hope this leads to a continuation of the series :D
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: MicroPsycho on October 02, 2005, 04:12:46 pm
Spoiler:
As much as I'd like to see the series come back, it just wouldn't be the same without Washburne...


Edited by IceFire: Spoiler tags are a good thing when you say stuff like that....
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Kamikaze on October 02, 2005, 04:40:41 pm
MicroPsycho, you really need to put that in spoiler tags. :p
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Inquisitor on October 03, 2005, 09:27:30 am
I'll say this for Whedon, he doesn't much care for "formula."

Wife and I enjoyed it, even if it was bittersweet and imperfect.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Ashrak on October 03, 2005, 10:38:30 am
In TV they can always
Spoiler:
resurrect someone who has died
:p
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: MicroPsycho on October 03, 2005, 02:52:11 pm
sorry about the spoiler tags. better put a spoilers around Ashrak's post lest ye be considered a hypocrite...
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: NegspectahDek on October 03, 2005, 05:42:21 pm
will the movie spoil anything i havent seen in the tv show since i didnt catch Firefly during its first run?
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: IceFire on October 03, 2005, 07:29:15 pm
Take some responsibility folks...use the spolier tags.  Ashrak that means you....

Works like this:

[ spoiler] Type your spoiler here [/ spolier]
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Kamikaze on October 03, 2005, 08:30:42 pm
Quote
Originally posted by NegspectahDek
will the movie spoil anything i havent seen in the tv show since i didnt catch Firefly during its first run?


It could spoil some minor things, but it probably won't be an issue. You may not even notice the spoilers because the dialogue is not very explicit about things.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: BlackDove on October 03, 2005, 08:46:56 pm
So, I have no jack idea what Firefly is about, never heard of it, never seen it.

Is there much point in me wasting hour + to see this?
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Mefustae on October 03, 2005, 09:36:53 pm
Yes! It's a fine extension of Firefly, but it's also a good stand-alone move. All in all, it's one of the best Sci-Fi movies this year. So, just go see it.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: BlackDove on October 03, 2005, 09:40:05 pm
If you lied to me, I will come back to purge you.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Mefustae on October 03, 2005, 11:21:00 pm
My official customer poilicy is; if you are in any way, shape or form unsatified by the product in question...I hate you...
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Martinus on October 11, 2005, 06:33:33 pm
[color=66ff00]Seen this movie yesterday and I thought it was excellent. I definately think you should see the series first to appreciate the characters more but it is an excellent movie in its own right.

As for the loose ends question, it not only leaves loose ends but a massive potential for Mal and his cohorts to partake in many more interesting adventures. It's not supposed to be the end, it's supposed to get enough interest to re-energise Firefly.

Bloody great IMHO. :yes:
[/color]
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Grey Wolf on October 11, 2005, 08:01:59 pm
I saw it without seeing more of the series than a half episode, and I thought it was thouroughly enjoyable. Best SF movie I've seen in a while.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Ace on October 11, 2005, 08:12:16 pm
Never watched the series but liked it. I assumed that Mr. Universe was in the show, but based on the comments here it sounds like he wasn't.

The Agent was... wow... one nasty piece of work.

...and poor Kaylee... but she was finally getting the guy in the end.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Grey Wolf on October 11, 2005, 08:17:17 pm
I thought the Operative was an intriguing character.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: redmenace on October 12, 2005, 01:14:49 am
Best Episode ever was when they went to Jaynestown and they were sing that song.
"The hero of Canton, the man they call Jayne"
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Ransom on October 12, 2005, 01:57:42 am
I didn't really like the first half very much.
Spoiler:
In particular I really hated the part near the beginning when they're being chased by the Reavers. It just felt so silly and cheesy.


On the other hand the second half was excellent.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: IceFire on October 12, 2005, 04:08:49 pm
Quote
Originally posted by Ransom Arceihn
I didn't really like the first half very much.
Spoiler:
In particular I really hated the part near the beginning when they're being chased by the Reavers. It just felt so silly and cheesy.


On the other hand the second half was excellent. [/B]


Yes but....

Spoiler:

The Reaver chase and presence sets up for non-show viewers what the Reavers are all about.  Seeing as they aren't about much except raping and pillaging it becomes quite clear what sort of group they are.  So while it was sort of unnecessary I think it was needed to illustrate a point.


BD...the show makes the movie better but I understand it stands on its own quite well.  Its funny at times, deadly serious at others, there is lots of character emphasis (mostly on a few characters and some of the ensemble quality is lost but that happens in movies).

And yes...Kaylee...awesome.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Ransom on October 12, 2005, 04:38:01 pm
Quote
Originally posted by IceFire
Yes but....

Spoiler:

The Reaver chase and presence sets up for non-show viewers what the Reavers are all about.  Seeing as they aren't about much except raping and pillaging it becomes quite clear what sort of group they are.  So while it was sort of unnecessary I think it was needed to illustrate a point.
[/B]

I understand the reason for it being there, I just thought that bit was very poorly executed.
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: ChronoReverse on October 12, 2005, 05:44:02 pm
Quote
Originally posted by IceFire


Yes but....

Spoiler:

The Reaver chase and presence sets up for non-show viewers what the Reavers are all about.  Seeing as they aren't about much except raping and pillaging it becomes quite clear what sort of group they are.  So while it was sort of unnecessary I think it was needed to illustrate a point.


BD...the show makes the movie better but I understand it stands on its own quite well.  Its funny at times, deadly serious at others, there is lots of character emphasis (mostly on a few characters and some of the ensemble quality is lost but that happens in movies).

And yes...Kaylee...awesome. [/B]



I think so too.  I have only heard of Firefly before in the most abstract sense (i.e., "Scifi show that was canceled fast" is literally all I knew).  While for those who already knew, the scene in question might have been a bit redundant, it QUICKLY set me up as to what the situation is like.  Plus the bit in the classroom helps too if you catch it.

Ultimately, I was able to figure out much of what I needed to know to enjoy the movie.  I wouldn't place it as a Great Movie(TM), but it was definitely a Good Movie(TM) and Worth My Money and Time(TM)
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: WMCoolmon on October 12, 2005, 06:58:09 pm
Still, I love Mal's speech in the security people's base.

"Y'all wanna be looking very intently at your own bellybuttons. If heads begin to rise, violence will ensue."
Title: Serenity FTW!
Post by: Unknown Target on October 12, 2005, 07:22:00 pm
Best. Movie. Ever. I seriously loved it, one of the best sci fi movies I've seen yet :D