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| Serenity (2005)
 
Starring: Nathan Fillion, Gina Torres, Alan Tudyk, Morena Baccarin, Adam Baldwin, Jewel Staite, Summer Glau, Sean Maher, Chiwetel EjioforDirector: Joss Whedon Rating: PG-13 Category: Sci-Fi  |
The tale of the prematurely-cancelled network series is one that has become more frequent over the past few years. And now, passionate fans who had once overlooked the possibility of a rebirth have gathered together through the power of the Internet in a desperate attempt to persuade the studios to reconsider. The return of “Family Guy” is perhaps the most prominent example of a canned show brought back to life, but who can forget about the original “Star Trek” series? A ratings nightmare during its first season on the air, fans of the show protested its cancellation and a feature-length film was produced. Five more films followed, the show returned to television for two more seasons, and, well, the rest is history.
Now it appears to be happening again, this time with Joss Whedon’s brilliant sci-fi western “Firefly,” which bumbling Fox execs cancelled midway into the first season. Despite its formidable fan base, only eleven of the fourteen episodes actually made it to air (and out of chronological order, no less), but when sales of the DVD landed the series in the Top 10, Universal saw the opportunity to turn a healthy profit by relocating the story to the big screen. Whedon returns as the film’s writer and director in this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to revive his epic space tale, and as the first feature film in a possibly expanding franchise, “Serenity” is without a doubt one of the best fan thank yous to ever be realized.
The story picks up six months after the events of the final episode, with the crew of Serenity still fugitives on the run from the governmental Alliance. Whedon is smart to make quick reference as to how this all transpired in the opening moments of the film, but he does it in a manner that also offers new truths to fans of the series as well. Long story short, after a brilliant doctor (Sean Maher) rescues his sister River (Summer Glau) from a government experiment that has turned her into a psychic as well as a skilled assassin, the two find refuge aboard Serenity, a small Firefly-class freighter ship captained by Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion). When an Alliance assassin, simply known as The Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor), is sent to track down River by any means necessary, the crew of Serenity discover that the seemingly harmless girl is actually carrying a secret that could affect the entire universe.
There’s no denying Whedon’s talent for dialogue, and for once, it feels less like scripted dialogue and more like real conversation. He’s also does a commendable job of making moviegoers who haven’t experienced the charm of the series feel welcome in what fans would refer to as the Whedonverse, though the script did rush supporting characters in and out of the story without explaining much. One of my biggest complaints would have to be with the character of Shepard Book (Ron Glass), a prominent cast member in the series who doesn’t even receive a proper introduction and is then reduced to a short Obi-Wan-like appearance in the film.
Other major players from the series also show up as mere background in a majority of the scenes, but at least their absence is explained. The rest of the cast, mostly unknowns with the possible exception of Alan Tudyk, make wonderful transitions to the big screen, which is only further evidence of Whedon’s spot-on casting. Fillion and Glau are arguably the stars of the film, since a majority of the time is spent further exploring their characters, but Adam Baldwin remains the standout performer of the cast as the comic relief and muscle of the group, Jayne.
In fact, the only major problem with “Serenity” is that many of the unanswered questions from the series aren’t wrapped up, but instead, are put on the back burner while a whole new can of worms is opened for many of the characters. A decision like this may have bigger repercussions for Whedon further down the road, but if anything, it should help to einsure a sequel. And just what does the future hold for fans of “Firefly”? Will more films sprout up if the debut feature is a success? Or better yet, a resurrection of the TV series? Whatever the result, at least fans will finally have a little bit of serenity of their own.
Collector's Edition DVD Review:
As one of the better films of 2005, I expected a lot more from the single-disc release of “Serenity.” Of course, I also mentioned in my previous review that with its strong cult following, a special edition was imminent, and though it took longer than I anticipated, the two-disc collector’s edition has finally arrived looking shiny as ever. Featuring all of the bonus material from the original release – including the Joss Whedon audio commentary, deleted scenes, outtakes and production featurettes – as well as never-before-seen extras included specifically for the new edition, this is one of those rare exceptions where a double-dip is perfectly acceptable.
For starters, the brand-new audio commentary featuring writer/director Joss Whedon and cast members Nathan Fillion, Adam Baldwin, Summer Glau and Ron Glass will certainly quench the thirst of those jonesing for more “Firefly.” It’s not exactly new episodic content, but just listening to the cast joking around is enough to quell diehard fans. Also included is a much-needed making-of featurette (“A Filmmaker’s Journey”), another behind-the-scenes doc that’s more promotional than informational (“Sci-Fi Inside: Serenity”), and the collection of internet promos for the film titled “The River Tam Sessions.” Rounding out the disc are four more extended scenes, a tour of the ship (“Take a Walk on Serenity”), a profile on cinematographer Jack Green (“The Green Clan”), and the full Fruity Oaty commercial prefaced by a short making-of.
~Jason Zingale
jzingale@bullz-eye.com