Serenity Review
by samseescinema (sammeriam AT comcast DOT net)October 8th, 2005
Serenity
reviewed by Sam Osborn of www.samseescinema.com
rating:3.5 out of 4
Serenity isn't looking to mimic Star Wars, which might be why it works so well. Director/Writer Joss Whedon doesn't strive for sweeping, momentous epically told storylines or aim to begin a legacy of boring science-fiction sequels (as Pitch Black has). In fact, Serenity is actually a sort of closure for the vision he had several years ago when he launched the FOX television series "Firefly", which met its cancellation date quite quickly. The film aims higher (or lower, as some would scathe) for an Indiana Jones-esque approach, striving for wry humored adventure in exchange for the heavy, catastrophic sci-fi films we've traversed lately (think, 28 Days Later). Serenity is a much-needed breath of fresh air, in my opinion. There's great intelligence behind the snappy one-liners, and certainly some depth to the plot if anyone were to slice past the surface, but Whedon disguises all this nicely, deciding to please his audiences first. Leave it to his massive following to dissect the film later when it's released to DVD. I never gave "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (Whedon's most successful outing) a fair chance, and didn't latch onto "Firefly" before it was cancelled. But now I can understand Whedon's God-like status as a cult classic
storyteller.
The film opens with an escape. Simon (Sean Maher) is breaking his mysterious little sister, River (Summer Glau), from the tightly held grips of the shady government body titled The Alliance. He decides to hide the girl on a rickety, old outlaw's craft, owned and operated by Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan FIllion) and his faithful crew of four, Wash (Alan Tudyk), the pilot, Kaylee (Jewel Staite), the mechanic, Jayne (Adam Baldwin), the muscle, and Zoe (Gina Torres), the co-pilot. River was being held by The Alliance because of a meaty secret she heard while listening in on the thoughts of some of The Alliance's top officials. You see, River's a psychic. The Alliance, not fully aware of her talents but nonetheless intrigued by them, made the mistake of putting her in the same room with a flock of high-ranking officials. And since The Alliance is bound to hold some deep, dark secrets, River became witness to all of them, resulting in her imprisonment. So, as we'd expect, The Alliance is none to pleased to have River on the loose, and soon put top assassin The Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) on Serenity's tail. There's some backstory relating to a past war between an army of freedom fighters (Malcolm and his band included) and The Alliance, with the government army obviously making it out on top. Realizing River as his last chance to do some serious damage to The Alliance, Malcolm decides to tap River's secret and exploit it, leading them across the galaxy in search of River's lost memory.
Oftentimes, sci-fi flicks bog themselves down with a storyline so long and deep that it would take at least three succeeding films to finish their tale. Take The Matrix, for example. The original, although brilliant in its own rite, merely set up the world the next two films would inhabit, failing to really form a self-contained plot. Chronicles of Riddick would have done the same, had it not flopped last year at the box office. Serenity thankfully takes a more contained approach, smartly opting for a single storyline that could be resolved in a two-hour running length. The film does have the advantage of a rich backstory from a season's worth of 44-minute episodes, but Whedon doesn't use it to alienate those who didn't watch the series. He fills us in on most of the elements of his world well enough. However, I do believe the plot would feel more involving had I watched the network series. As it is, the plot feels a tad thin. Without giving away the details, the secret River holds is probably more effective for veterans of the "Firefly" series because it involves some of the lore of Whedon's universe. Whedon could have made up for this with some extra backstory, but I can understand wanting to keep his film at the two-hour limit. Anything longer might have worn out Serenity's stay.
As it is, Serenity is a smart and exhilarating science-fiction romp with a wonderfully wry sense of humor. And even among such an impressive line-up of films at the theatres right now (A History of Violence, The Constant Gardener, Lord of War, Corpse Bride), I don't think it'll have a problem standing out.
-www.samseescinema.com
Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
