* SPOILERS * Will There Be Sequels and Will Non-fans Understand *SPOILERS*
POSTED BY: Litwolf689
UPDATED: Sunday, October 9, 2005 01:06
VIEWED: 12998
PAGE 4 of 5
Quote:
Originally posted by bikisdad:
OooooH. Cannon and canon from Book. Nice thought. I like that.
Apathy on the Rise. No One Cares.
Word!!
Department of Redundancy Department
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Quote:A-Haaaaaa! I was right!
Originally posted by Noocyte:
It seems River got to become Serenity after all. I look forward to seeing our girl perform the whimsical, adroitly balletic feats which she will coax from her.
Is there gonna be another screening in LA?
---------------
"Reality is whatever doesn't go away when you stop believing in it."
--Philip K. Dick
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This long post contains a brief summary of my Las Vegas experience and also a Very Spoilery Movie Review
VEGAS REVIEW
Vegas: Crazy! I went down with my old pal Maniac. Within minutes of arriving at the Gold Coast hotel, we got into the elevator at the same time as two hot Asian girls. One of them asked me if I wanted a massage and handed me her business card.
I got out of the elevator and in about 30 seconds a fat old guy came up to me. “Oh, I thought your shirt said SECURITY,” he said, laughing and patting me on the back. He continued, “It says SERENITY. Well, you better hope no one thinks it says Security and decides to shoot you.” Then he walked away laughing while I stared in bewilderment at Maniac. I was wearing my official Browncoat T-shirt from the Serenity Movie store. I swear this really happened, it was very strange.
We walked across the street to the theater and waited in line for 2 ½ hours. I met several nice folk but I am terrible with names. Such nice people. I think I met Meek and Pete the Crazy Mexican, but I know that’s not right. There was a pretty gal dressed like Zoe and I enjoyed watching her walk around. There was also a gorgeous Inara nearby in line. She was with this cool guy with good vibes so out of respect I tried hard not to stare.
Maniac and I took turns buying drinks and gambling while the other waited in line, and time went by fast.
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MOVIE REVIEW – EXTREME SPOILERS!!
I sure have mixed emotions about the movie. It was exhilarating and disappointing at the same time. I left the theater totally drained and speechless, feeling like crap.
I didn’t like how I felt. Maniac and I walked back to our hotel, too stunned and saddened to join the other Browncoats at the Irish pub in Las Vegas.
Reluctantly, I muttered to Maniac, “I don’t think this movie is going to do so well.” I hated saying it. But I don’t think mainstream society likes to walk out of a movie feeling like crap.
Mr. Universe: Cheesy. When Wash says, “We’re in trouble! We better call Mr. Universe!” I was thinking, WTF?
“Can’t Stop the Signal”: Cheesy. I never really connected with it and I don’t understand why Universal is making this the tagline for their marketing.
“I aim to misbehave”: Cheesy. Mal is so naughty!
The Operative: Not as scary or eloquent as Jubal Early.
Book: He is my favorite character, and I can’t begin to express my frustration over his part. He had just a brief scene, practically no lines. We never learn his secret and he dies in a huge fight that we never get to see. My only thought when Book died was that Ron Glass must have told Joss that he didn’t want to do it anymore. It was too quick, too shallow, and a huge disappointment to me.
Wash’s death scene shocked and saddened me, but at least he goes out with a bang, saving the crew by being a “leaf on the wind.” Such a great scene. His death comes as a huge surprise. I also like the idea of River becoming the new badass pilot; it will be interesting to see what she can do behind the wheel. It gives her something to do on Serenity, and it ties in nicely to Objects in Space, when River “becomes” Serenity.
Maybe I missed it, but I don’t recall it being very clear that Wash and Zoe are married. I know Zoe is a professional soldier, but I would have liked more reaction from Zoe when Wash was killed.
Again, maybe I missed it, but the movie also never describes Inara’s profession. Newbies to the ‘verse will not even know she’s a prostitute. That must have been done on purpose to please the masses. ??? It’s too bad that Shohreh Aghdashloo had her scenes removed; I was looking forward to her role in the Companion palace. I was hoping she would play Inara’s mother.
Other changes to the ‘verse I didn’t mind at all. The new Serenity looks great, especially when disguised as a Reaver ship. I like the mechanical feet that pop out when she lands. The hovering Mule was a lot of
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Quote:
Originally posted by Litwolf689:
We believe that, though Joss did his best to make the movie enjoyable to non-fans as well as fans, they will still be kinda confused and not might stick around for the ride. They wont understand the emotional rollercoaster us Browncoats were on when we watched this movie. Sure, they will laugh at the humor, and there is humor, but I dont think they will truly understand and appreciate what Firefly was and Serenity is.
Personally I don't think it is absolutely necessary for everyone in the theater to 'get' the emotional ride the true Firefly fans are on...
people who never watched the TV show will see an exciting interesting (and funny) movie which will hint at a lot of back story, which they will (hopefully) be curious about...
but I don't think they'll feel lost, like they can't follow the film.
And if there are subsequent movies (please God, let there be more movies!) then maybe it will be harder and harder to follow without seeing what went before...
but that was true of LotR - I don't think Return of the King would mean much if you hadn't read the books and/or seen the first two films.
it is definitely true of Harry Potter, they no longer even introduce the characters...you are expected to know them.
So I think Joss gave enough (barely) introduction to the Firefly world for new viewers to follow and enjoy the movie...but after a certain point it either gathers a larger fandom or it doesn't.
Of course I hope it does.
And why is everyone so down on the name Mr. Universe? Isn't it obvious that this was a name he game himself...like the blogger who calls himself Hercules, it is clearly over-the-top silliness...after all, this guy ALSO married his Buffybot!
And personally I found the Operative WAY scarier than Jubal Early....River actually had little trouble manipulating Early, but the Operative was a true believer who was ready to give his life for his vision of a 'better world', one without sin....
which I find to be a very scary kind of person.
PS to Succatash:
I understand the feelings of loss and mourning, I really agreed with that pain.
But I came to feel that the movie had touched me more deeply and profoundly because of that pain.
For days after seeing 'Serenity' I found it hard to think about anything else...
and I was longing to see it again
(it was even better the second time around!).
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Quote:
I think Wash's will work on the level of shock and surprise, even if it won't churn their guts the way it did mine. Hell, after that, I felt like maybe the sequel talk was a smokescreen and everybody was going to die. It amped the gravity of the situation to ten for me. But, for the casual viewer, maybe it'll be seen as just one of the expected casualties of a genre picture, just the usual sidekick death, I don't know.
I have to agree with you. For a time there I swore Serenity herself was permanantly OOC and actually believed they were going to kill the cast one by one by one... I kept whispering to myself, "But I thought they were signed for two more...
"The two people I went with in Boston on 5/26 were both fans of the series before seeing the BDM, so I don't know for sure how non-fans will react, but I have to be hopefull. This was just a
great movie.Captain Pete
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Quote:
Originally posted by shambleau:
Whether it'll be a blockbuster or not, I can't say. I kind of doubt it. But I think it'll do well enough for a sequel, especially given DVD sales. There have been a lot of articles and books lately on the changing economics of movies. A movie like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which did diddly in the theaters, can be a bigger money-maker for the studios than some film which did 250 mil in box office, but which had to pay for massive marketing and mega-star salaries. If Serenity sold over a million copies of the DVDs, at 40 bucks a pop, say, it would make back the cost of filming right there. It'll sell a lot more than that, IMO, especially as word spreads. So, I'm not worried about if we're getting sequels, just when.
One thing to keep in mind, the DVD sales went to FOX.
The movie rights are Universal, so they don't see anything from the DVDs until Serenity comes out in that format next (I'm guessing) Spring.
Captain Pete
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Quote:
Originally posted by Stillshiny:
Now continuing on my thoughts. So what did we accomplish??? I don't know. I've been wrestling with the whole "signal" thing. I understand, it's a movie. not as intimate as the series. But the whole idea of uploading the signal so the verse knows that the alliance is bad, just seemed very out of place from the whole find a crew, find a job, keep flying idea. But I guess you need the more world impacting heroic moment of "revealing the truth, sending the signal" for the sake of the big screen. What do you all think?
The basic plot of the entire movie makes sense if you look at it from the series prespective. In the series the Alliance did not even want to acknowledge the existance of the Reavers. They were a myth to be ignored. Now here we are finding out not only does the Alliance know about the Reavers, they MADE them to begin with! And I can see Mal wanting to get this out there, dispelling more of the propaganda that undoubtably went along with what caused the war against the Independants to begin with. It's just the latest symptom of a larger disease.
Captain Pete
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Quote:
Originally posted by HotForKaylee:
The movie needed a slight polish but was very well done. My only problem (as a fan) was some of the relationships didn't seem right as far as what we have seen, especially Mal and Simon. It seemed like some of the story between the crew had taken a few steps back while a couple of others had moved on to where they were headed.
I have to agree there. In the series it seemed as if Mal was most stand-off-ish with Book and wary yet appreciative of Simon and his talents. Yet in the movie it seemed as if Mal had grown very close to Book and was constantly butting heads with Simon.
Perhaps something happened to effect a change in the 'family' in the six months we did not see? Room perhaps for a novel or two?
Also, for all of you following this thread, I apologize for all the seperate posts, but I am catching up on it and reaching my own conclusions with each passing piece of the thread. I'll try and not take up too much more of your valuable time and computer memory space.
Captain Pete
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Quote:
Originally posted by lissa:
i agree. also, i would like to point out that joss does things like this to make us, the fans, feel. it really is similar to tara's death in that way. some of us are angry and some of us are just sad, but we're all feeling something strong. joss doesn't give us what we want, he gives us what we need. we needed wash's death (and also book's) to give us that intense rush of emotion that is such a part of the whedon package. plus, this is joss we're talking about. maybe we also needed these deaths to set up some grand story in future movies!
~lissa, spwhore
Likewise, who's to say Book took his secret to the grave with him? The crew of at least one Alliance ship knows who or what the Shepard really is. Perhaps Book's background and how it would effect the Serenity crew could/will be the basis of the plot of Serenity II?
Captain Pete
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About the deaths...
Lacking any real feedback from the actors or Joss (who I'm sure are all under gag orders so as not to reveal key plot points prior to the movie's release), I'd say that the earlier posts speculating Ron and Alan perhaps didn't want to get roped into a three movie deal sounds plausible... Ron has a thriving career and Alan seems to be the hot new thing looking to spread his wings. I wouldn't blame either one of them.
About Book's death in particular...
I think that Joss is focussing on getting into movies in a big way. When he started Firefly, he was the King of TV. He knew that a character-driven series needed driving characters to have legs. So he loaded up on complex people with complex stories from which he could milk several seasons of conflict, adventure, and growth. But that is a LOT of baggage to carry into a three-movie deal. In addition to whatever other forces there were behind Book's death, I suspect that Joss was OK with it as a means of lightening up on the baggage... pruning the storyline as it were to enough to fill three movies. That said, I think Book's story would have been interesting. I'd love to have seen it... or to read about it someday.
As for our fear that the non-Browncoats won't "get" the relationships...
They don't need to. They need to enjoy a kickass action story with intriguing characters. THAT"S what will cause a second movie to happen. They'll get the relationships in the next movie (if there is one). I think it is hugely unrealistic to insist that Joss be held responsible for educating a new audience on 13 hours of character development in a 2 hour movie and STILL tell a compelling story. We Browncoats need to get over the fact that this story wasn't focussed on the relationships. Again... it was an action story with a solid background of relationships that will mean more to the audience the next time around.
My 2 cents, of course. I could be all wrong.
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