Serenity- Joss Whedon

I watched the whole Firefly series a couple of years ago, but had never gotten around to watching Serenity. Firefly is available to me free (for no additional cost) on Netflix and Amazon Prime, but Serenity isn’t as accessible. Yes, the backwoods of the internet were an option, but since I could use the viewing experience for class it was worth the three bucks on Amazon. Silly, that a couple dollars actually deters people, myself included.

I really liked the way the film built on the series. I was pleased that all of the same actors were included. It was nice to see them together again. It expanded past the series but also went delving into backstory. I imagine most films would have had trouble doing both.

I noticed that this is another scifi centered around political conspiracy. I wasn’t in class, so I’m not sure this is so prevalent in all scifi, but I think it is in a lot. I had this completely concocted theory that most fantasy is inherently optimistic and most scifi is inherently pessimistic. Most fantasy tells me, “with all the magic in the world anything can happen and everything will be ok.” Most scifi tells me, “do what you can to spin the hamster wheel, but everything is bigger than you.” I completely made this up, but its what I think anyway. I think the Firefly/Serenity world is so amazing for the blend of scifi and optimism. Its all about the family they have formed. They will always be at risk and suffer loss, but together, and only together, they can be ok.

In film a good way to break down a movie is to put it in an outline. Story theorists have different opinions about what the steps are and how many there should be for the most successful stories  It kind of like looking for the stages of the hero’s journey. It helps identify the story structure, so a writer you can understand good work and apply it to your own endeavors. I did one with 12 steps (the terms I use will probably give away plot spoilers): Research escape. The operative. Heist. Rivers freakout. Consort trap. Destroyed friends. Reaver ship costume. Miranda. Show down- battle, rough landing, bottle neck. Message broadcast-stand down. Rebuild.

I also want to mention the majesty that is Joss Whedon’s writer-director’s vision. It is such a well-developed world! My first few episodes of Firefly I wasn’t sure about the language or performance style, personally. However, I decided it was fantastic because of how specific and well-executed those decisions were. The whole world has a very unique use of language, and I don’t just mean the intermixing of old southern and sporadic Chinese. Each character is unique and has a voice. I’m completely impressed by the creativity! I hope to imagine something like this of my own one day and have the skills to develop it half as well.