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Serenity (2005)

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Overall Rating 75%
Overall Rating
Ranked #621
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Connections: Firefly

When the renegade crew of Serenity agrees to hide a fugitive on their ship, they find themselves in an action-packed battle between the relentless military might of a totalitarian regime who will destroy anything - or anyone - to get the girl back and the bloodthirsty creatures who roam the uncharted areas of space. But... the greatest danger of all may be on their ship. --TMDb
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Review by bluemeanie
Added: October 4, 2005
This review is going to be a little bias, let me go ahead and get that out of the way right now. I loved the series "Firefly", and like many, was devastated when it was canceled. I have been on pins and needles for the film version since I first heard it was in development. However, I was skeptical. As much as I love Joss Whedon and have faith in his talents, there was always this notion that maybe this film was what many would call 'a bad idea'. After all, the series was not so popular that it did not get canceled. I also had reservations about the special effects and how Joss could translate the feel and mood of "Firefly" to the big screen. If you want to go ahead and scroll down, you will see that I have given this film a score of 10/10, and you might realize that 10/10 is the highest score I can give a film. Yes, I loved this film that much. Does that mean you will love it as much as I did? No. If you were not a junkie of the show, you will like it, but probably not as much as us who cried at candlelight vigils the night we heard the series was being pulled. This is a film that crams every amount of action and entertainment into two hours that is allowed by the laws of physics. "Serenity" is a marvel of a film, the best science fiction film I have seen since "Star Trek: First Contact", and the absolute best film I have seen all year long. 10/10. Not even "Jackass: The Movie" got that.

This film centers around the ragtag crew of the Serenity, a ship that goes on all kinds of missions in order to do bad things for bad people. These are mercenaries who accidentally take aboard a young girl who is a little tricky to handle. She and her brother are on the run from the Alliance and the crew of the Serenity take them under their protection...sort of. While on the chase, they are ruthlessly pursued by an assassin simply known as 'The Operative'. We see early on how dangerous the man is and he will stop at nothing to kill the girl they are carrying. But, why does the Alliance want her dead? No one knows. Not the crew of the Serenity. Not even the assassin who is tracking her down to kill her. The film spirals through gun fights, space chases, romantic interludes, and the expected "Firefly" sense of humor, all the way up to the adrenaline charged ending. This is the "Firefly" movie every single fan of the show was wanting Joss Whedon to make...he did not disappoint. I don't think there is any way this film could have been any better. We get resolutions to all the questions left unanswered with the series, we get the same feel and tone of the series, as well as a neat little bow on the entire cinematic package.

This is typically the paragraph where I mentioned all of the things I liked about the film. Everything. From the cocky swagger of Nathan Fillion to the weird banjo and mandolin music that played throughout; from the sadistic scenes involving the Reevers to the scene when Kaylee talks about her 'nether regions'. The special effects were not perfect, but far better than I had expected. I was amazed at how well the whole Joss Whedon universe was able to explode on screen. This is a totally unique version of the future and this was a totally unique science fiction experience. But, do not be worried about having never watched the series. This film was made for all of you out there who don't know what the hell "Firefly" is, or was. You can just as easily pick up with this film and still manage to enjoy the hell out of it. Very few out there actually watched the show, which is why it was canceled. I guess that is why I loved the film so much -- the fact that Joss Whedon would make a film for all of us in the minority that did love the film. That is dedication to your fans.

Hmmmm...what else to say? There is this one really cool scene where the assassin is walking around and says something like, "Let's settle this like gentlemen. I an unarmed...", and then Mal says "Good" and pulls out his gun and shoots the guy right in the chest. That was cool. And then there is this one scene where they are in this bar and, all of a sudden, the girl they are carrying starts going all Neo on all the people in the bar and she almost kills some of the Serenity crew. That was cool too. Oh, and I forgot about that one scene where __________ dies. HA! That is right...someone dies, but I am not going to tell you who. That would ruin the film for you and I am not in the spoiler business. But, if you are just dying to know who dies, you can always e-mail me and I will send you an electronic bitch slap for not having the patience to go to the movies and find out for yourself. And, this film needs the help -- it did not do so great opening weekend. The same amount of people who watched the show came out to see the movie, which does not bode well.

In closing, "Serenity" was the best film I have seen all year long and it is now at the top of my end of the year list. There was nothing this film did not offer. It had drama, action, comedy, and some scares. It made me laugh, cry, jump, and even sweat. How many films have the ability to do that? "Serenity" was a labor of love from a multi-talented director to his fans. Joss Whedon is one of the most talented directors out there, and certainly one of the most sought after. His work is all adrenaline inducing entertainment and that is what going to the movies is all about -- non-stop excitement. "A History of Violence" made you think. "Serenity" makes you think too, but primarily about how awesome the previous scene just was. It was the best of the year, and a fine initial outing from Mr. Whedon, the great.

10/10.
Griffinheart #1: Griffinheart - added September 28, 2007 at 3:40pm
I really enjoyed this movie but did have a few problems with it. The movie was made specifically for the fans which hurt its mass appeal. I was also a bit bothered by Mal's attitude early on in the movie. Some of his actions seemed out of character without sufficient explanation on why he was out of form. Still everything after 10-15 minutes in was excellent. I'd give the movie somewhere around an 8/10.
BuryMeAlive #2: BuryMeAlive - added December 4, 2008 at 6:12pm
Never seen the series, thought the movie was dull as fuck... 3/10
Griffinheart #3: Griffinheart - added December 5, 2008 at 3:17am
I will admit the movie was made more for fans of the series than for the average person (though the average person will love Firefly, given a chance), but your statement is akin to starting with the seventh Harry Potter book and declaring the series crap.
Ginose #4: Ginose - added December 5, 2008 at 5:46am
No, it was akin to reading the seventh Harry Potter book, admitting that you haven't read the others, but still declaring the seventh crap...
...no opinion of mine, but that makes more sense.
bluemeanie #5: bluemeanie - added December 5, 2008 at 11:28am
I am still stuck on the adjective 'dull'. Doesn't compute.
Tristan #6: Tristan - added December 5, 2008 at 3:32pm
This movie was bad-fucking-ass. Just as good as the rest of the series. Fuck anyone who thinks different.

10/10
bluemeanie #7: bluemeanie - added December 5, 2008 at 4:23pm
Ditto. Fuck anyone. 10/10.
Ginose #8: Ginose - added December 6, 2008 at 9:11am
Alright, this movie was good. Not quite as good as the rest of the series. Fuck anyone who could honestly try to ignore the fact that there are several scenes that drag on and claim that this movie was "bad-fucking-ass".

7/10
Lucid Dreams #9: Lucid Dreams - added July 11, 2010 at 2:20am
The movie was good, but I will admit with Ginose that some scenes dragged on. However, I will agree that Rainn needs to pull his head out of his ass because this movie was dull. 8/10
AttnDefDis #10: AttnDefDis - added August 4, 2010 at 11:04pm
I love Joss Whedon and every series he's done aside from "Firefly". I was dragged to this movie and I to was bored to tears. Although, Alan Tudyk is always entertaining. Yarr.
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