When I first discovered Firefly it was almost a bitter-sweet experience.
Sweet because it was fourteen episodes of pure television gold and bitter because it was only 14 episodes of television gold!
Of course I’ve since come to the conclusion that it was all for the best, I guess. Even though I would have loved to see more of a weekly series but the 14 episodes we’ve got are so good already that maybe more episodes might dilute the magic.
I was lucky too because when I first watched Firefly, the film Serenity had already been announced, filmed and was showing up in cinemas all over the world. I didn’t have to wait to have the story continued onto the big screen.
Why Serenity didn’t do well at the cinema has me completely beat.
When I went and saw the film it was a great experience, the whole cinema was full of really excited Browncoats who reacted really well.
Serenity works because the characters are the soul of the film. Even though the ‘Serenity’ spaceship scenes (especially the end) are fantastic especially on such a tight budget the real driving force is that I care about these characters. There are heartbreaking sequences that are only so because it’s happening to these characters, in other films it wouldn’t have the same impact.
In fairness, this more than likely has been passed on from the television series but the same could easily have been said of any of the Star Trek films.
I’ve also made my peace with the fact that I sincerely doubt a sequel will ever be made, not impossible of course but it seems about as likely as a Spike series or an Angel film at this stage (for those not versed in the Whedon’verse this is all VERY unlikely).
I could go on with how great the music is, the visuals etc but I won’t because if it’s on this list then you can assume that I think that everything going on in the film is pretty gorram good. I must admit though I’m surprised that this made it into the final five and not a Star Trek film (gasp!).
PS – I’ll announce who gets some Shatner book love at the end of the five days!
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18 Responses to “Film number 5 from my top 5 films: Serenity”
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Damnit, I should have guessed.
Ahh… good choice. Not sure I'd go to top 5 of all time, but yeah, pretty close at least.
My only problem with the film is that it may not work as well as a stand-alone, ignoring the Firefly series. It's still good that way, but I think it is vastly helped by having watched the series and building a rapport with these characters.
Of course a larger problem I have is that years of revelations through the TV series were replaced with one 2 hour movie. I remember walking out of the film thinking how sweet it would have been to have all the buildup of a multi-year story to that same basic ending. That still bothers me, quite a bit.
I'm with Jeff on the stand alone part.
A great movie nonetheless! And a great theme!
Did anyone guess this one being in your top5?
Serenity was pretty good, but I really preferred the pace of the show. The movie knew it was only going to have one shot at attracting the masses and it became a little overwhelming at times.
You have great taste Lee, lol. I have the series and movie on DVD and it is well watched here.
I admit the second time I saw it I did consider how I felt about the retconning of certain elements and back story but given the circumstances I don't know if they could have produced a better output.
I think I prefer the movie to the series, which is of course like saying a like shiny gold over regular gold, I'm pretty damn happy with either.
I admit the second time I saw it I did consider how I felt about the retconning of certain elements and back story but given the circumstances I don't know if they could have produced a better output.
I think I prefer the movie to the series, which is of course like saying a like shiny gold over regular gold, I'm pretty damn happy with either.
No one picked Serenity actually or the next film. The next film was more of a surprise to myself that I regard it so highly.
LOL I probably liked it because of the overwhelming 'epic' nature of the movie
Still when given the option of watching the show or the movie it really is a win win situation!
Part of deciding the final five was simple watchability which is a very personal thing in my opinion. What I am happy to watch over and over again is different to what over people like or think.
I'm not trying to set up a list of technically great films.
I'm so glad you, and a few other tweeps, convinced me to watch Firefly and then Serenity. What a fantastic series and movie.
Would you believe on the night I stumbled upon your blog I was a quarter of the way through re-watching Firefly, after deciding a few nights earlier that it was time to revisit. I loved it so much when I first watched it when it came out on DVD, that I didn't want to potentially spoil it with a too-hasty re-watch. So here I am, relishing the sheer Shiny-ness of it all, and looking forward to only my second viewing of Serenity!
You have me doubly psyched now! (and wondering what your 3,2, and 1 are!)
Blood Sucking Amazon Women from Mars 3 (with the Scratch 'N Sniff card) HAS to rate in the top three, surely!
Everyone should be exposed to the wonder of 'verse
LOL Blood Sucking Amazon Women from Mars 3 would obviously be in the top ten, I don't know about the top five
That's pretty cool only watching Serenity for the second time – the wonder doesn't disappear for the next 17 times
Would you believe on the night I stumbled upon your blog I was a quarter of the way through re-watching Firefly, after deciding a few nights earlier that it was time to revisit. I loved it so much when I first watched it when it came out on DVD, that I didn't want to potentially spoil it with a too-hasty re-watch. So here I am, relishing the sheer Shiny-ness of it all, and looking forward to only my second viewing of Serenity!
You have me doubly psyched now! (and wondering what your 3,2, and 1 are!)
Blood Sucking Amazon Women from Mars 3 (with the Scratch 'N Sniff card) HAS to rate in the top three, surely!
Everyone should be exposed to the wonder of 'verse
LOL Blood Sucking Amazon Women from Mars 3 would obviously be in the top ten, I don't know about the top five
That's pretty cool only watching Serenity for the second time – the wonder doesn't disappear for the next 17 times