The Movie Sucked

POSTED BY: adlai
UPDATED: Monday, January 9, 2006 06:36
VIEWED: 17848
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ADLAI

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:18 AM

I loved Firefly, don't get me wrong. It was some of the best television that I've ever seen, and the dialogue rivals that of early West Wing it's so good.

Serenity left me cold. Everything is so blue and the characters are similarly cold.

The strength of Firefly was that it was a Western dressed as Sci-Fi. It wasn't really sci-fi. Well, in the movie the sci-fi is amped up to there, while the Western is completely mute.

Probably the best metaphor for the movie would have to be the Prince of Persia games. Prince of Persia Sands of Time is I think the best game ever. But it didn't sell well for whatever reason, mostly due to poor marketing. In response, the next game, Warrior Within, had the sex and violence upped to 11... and it sucked because the charm of the game was gone.

This movie is like that. A second metaphor would be the killing of Wash. Wash was the unathletic Hawaian shirt wearing guy who was quirky and funny. Well, I guess the new Firefly has no room for him; he gets killed off in an abrupt and entirely inappropriate fashion for such a major character. The quirkyness of the series is entirely absent in the movie.

I mean, Simon suddenly getting all secret operative?? And getting into fist fights with the captain? In the series he's this genteel geek who doesn't even fight back when he's hit, now in the movie he's setting off complicated grenades and getting airlifted out of secure military facilities without even a second thought? And Enora setting a flash grenade? She can barely hold a gun!

If this series is really going to the Sci-Fi network, it looks like they're going to make it into a poor Farscape clone. I certainly hope that doesn't happen.

CAUSAL

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:23 AM

Oh, there's so much to respond to, but I'll limit myself.

#1: Wash wasn't killed because there was no place for him. Joss killed him because he wanted a real sense of danger in the final battle scene (and Joss is, of course, all about provoking real emotion). The standard come back to this is, "Well, why'd he have to kill of WASH?!?" Answer: don't know (but would you like some cheese with that whine?).

#2: Believe it or not, some people still have not seen Serenity, so it would be really good to put "spoiler" or some such in the thread title.

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Editted to add: also, on a Firefly/Serenity type board, having the title "The Movie Sucked" is just aksing to be flamed and/or ignored. More flies with honey...

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I wish I had a magical wish-granting plank.

NUCKLES87

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:35 AM

While I am hoping the flaming is kept down here, I do have to disagree.

Serenity represented where Firefly was headed. Sure, the western theme was gone, but the western theme was mostly found on the outer worlds, places that the crew had very little time to visit in a three hour movie. Firefly was scifi dressed up with western nuances, not the other way around.

Serenity was what it was supposed to be: emotionally provoking. A huge finale for the Firefly story. People died, battles where fought. Joss did his very best to pull at the emotional strings of the fans and the viewers. And your anger at him towards killing Wash is proof that he accomplished what he set out to do. Kill a character that people cared about, and make them grieve.

NUCKLES87

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:35 AM

While I am hoping the flaming is kept down here, I do have to disagree.

Serenity represented where Firefly was headed. Sure, the western theme was gone, but the western theme was mostly found on the outer worlds, places that the crew had very little time to visit in a three hour movie. Firefly was scifi dressed up with western nuances, not the other way around.

Serenity was what it was supposed to be: emotionally provoking. A huge finale for the Firefly story. People died, battles where fought. Joss did his very best to pull at the emotional strings of the fans and the viewers. And your anger at him towards killing Wash is proof that he accomplished what he set out to do. Kill a character that people cared about, and make them grieve.

MATTIE

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:35 AM

I have one word for you: Troll!
Causal is right, you catch more flies with honey!
If you saw the intro that Joss did, you should take his advice and lay low, be quiet, don't speak for a long, LONG time.

Wacky fun!

NDRAGE85

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:38 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by adlai:

I mean, Simon suddenly getting all secret operative?? And getting into fist fights with the captain? In the series he's this genteel geek who doesn't even fight back when he's hit, now in the movie he's setting off complicated grenades and getting airlifted out of secure military facilities without even a second thought? And Enora setting a flash grenade? She can barely hold a gun!

If this series is really going to the Sci-Fi network, it looks like they're going to make it into a poor Farscape clone. I certainly hope that doesn't happen.

why wouldn't Simon be able to do any of that? in the series he did everything for River. He gave up everything and he did anything he could to protect her. In "Safe" he was ready to die along with her. So i don't see any of that as outlandish. and since when did that "grenade", as you put it, that he shoots off in the facility become complicated?

and Inara and the flash gernade makes perfect sense. it's just another companion trade secret. they were referenced in the show and Joss has often talked about them. just like the syringe in the pilot episode. companions have all sorts of tricks to protect themselves. they're companions, they have to have a way to protect themselves. it loses part of its allure to have a gone strapped to their side. that is why they have other means.

on a side-note though, i do understand your complaints about the loss of the western feel in the movie. while i don't see it the same way you do, i understand what you're saying.

LOOKATTHATBIRD

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:42 AM

I completely agree with you. I mean, I kind of liked the movie. I liked it much more the second time, seeing it again I focused less on the plot and more on the little things so I realised the characters had changed less than I thought originaly. But everything you said is so true. The whole blue thing was the worst. The show was all earthy and warm, at least when they were on the ship. The movie just felt bad. It was unsettleing. And since when is Mal so angry? And so disconcerned with the wellfare of his crew?

ADLAI

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:45 AM

What he's willing to do and what he's able to do are two very different things. Simon doesn't have secret operative ability. In Safe he fights only when his back is very far to the wall, and then only barely, and with fists. From his geeky composure, a more realistic view would be him hiring men to rescue her, as was implied in the series.

a few more things:

the creative asides are gone, the little swirls of conversation that left me charmed. All gone. I sense writers block and being forced to adhere to an outline set by studio execs. As a matter of fact, I smell heavy-handed Hollywood creative tampering. Joss Whedon is a very smart writer, and that's the only explanation.

OMELET

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:48 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by adlai:

A second metaphor would be the killing of Wash. Wash was the unathletic Hawaian shirt wearing guy who was quirky and funny. Well, I guess the new Firefly has no room for him; he gets killed off in an abrupt and entirely inappropriate fashion for such a major character. The quirkyness of the series is entirely absent in the movie.

I mean, Simon suddenly getting all secret operative?? And getting into fist fights with the captain? In the series he's this genteel geek who doesn't even fight back when he's hit, now in the movie he's setting off complicated grenades and getting airlifted out of secure military facilities without even a second thought? And Enora setting a flash grenade? She can barely hold a gun!

If this series is really going to the Sci-Fi network, it looks like they're going to make it into a poor Farscape clone. I certainly hope that doesn't happen.

Firstly, It's not Enora, it's Inara.

Secondly, It was a typical thing for Inara to do because, if you listened to the commentary that was so brilliant by director Joss Whedon, then you would have learned that Inara was raised in the Alliance and nothing is what it appears. Yes she is a physically weak person compared to Mal, but she is clever and is constantly thinking the next moved through in her mind. Not only that, but she intuitively knows these things because of her Companion training, as mentioned by Joss as well. The ability to know when danger was coming was something second nature to her.

Thirdly, Simon only got into that fist fight because he was being a protective older brother to River. He was angry that she could have gotten killed and took his anger out on the one responsible person there, Mal. I wouldn't put it past Simon to be physical if he had to be. The so-called "Secret Operative" that you label Simon was also present in Firefly. Remember he was the one who designed the plan to steal from Ariel, not Mal or Zoe. Simon is quite protective of River, as shown in the episode Safe and Objects in Space. He was willing to beat up somebody to get his sister back or keep her safe. Also, it was mentioned that Simon was the one who busted River out of the place she was being held captive in Serenity, the pilot episode.

Fourthly, Serenity is a darker film than the Firefly series. Wash had to die to build that arc for Zoe and to make the movie more realistic so that it would appear that all of them might actually die. Alan Tudyk was even in on this decision, so it wasn't solely up to Joss. Yes Wash was beloved, but that doesn't mean that just because the "funny man who wears Hawaiin shirts" dies means that there won't be any more quirkyness when the show comes back or when the next movie is released. It just adds a sense of realism to the film that makes it more applicable to everyday life so that it doesn't feel like a sci-fi.

That's my 2 cents anyways.

Jayne: Are you saying River's a witch?
Wash: Yes, Jayne, she's a witch. She's had congress with the Beast.
Jayne: She's in Congress?
Wash: How did your brain even learn human speech? I'm just so curious!

NDRAGE85

Saturday, January 7, 2006 4:52 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by adlai:
What he's willing to do and what he's able to do are two very different things. Simon doesn't have secret operative ability. In Safe he fights only when his back is very far to the wall, and then only barely, and with fists. From his geeky composure, a more realistic view would be him hiring men to rescue her, as was implied in the series.

a few more things:

the creative asides are gone, the little swirls of conversation that left me charmed. All gone. I sense writers block and being forced to adhere to an outline set by studio execs. As a matter of fact, I smell heavy-handed Hollywood creative tampering. Joss Whedon is a very smart writer, and that's the only explanation.

not everything could be kept the same. like Joss said, he couldn't make the movie just for the fans. having to explain Simon hiring people so smuggle River out would have taken more time. it also wouldn't have made a good connection. one of the main things that intro showed was the lengths that Simon would go to to rescue his sister. not just what was shown, but what was also discussed by the scientist and the operative. it was a necessary shortcut to take, because the movie had to have a universal appeal. to make a movie strictly for the fans would have alienated too many people. like i said, i understand your complaints, but i also understand what had to be changed for the movie. i for one enjoyed the movie. i loved it. but at the same time, i love the series more, but the two really can't be compared. there is only so much you can do in a 2 hour movie. each medium has its downsides.

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