How much are you willing to except?
POSTED BY: everyworldspinnin
UPDATED: Friday, April 29, 2005 03:56
VIEWED: 6185
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Well, now that the trailer is out, it seems as though Sept. 30th can't get here fast enough for us Browncoats. But, after seeing the trailer in all it's glory, I'm bugged by a nagging question, and I'm wondering how other FFF readers feel.
How much of a difference are you willing to accept between the stories, characters, plots, etc. from Firefly to Serenity?
Before I share my thoughts on this, let me just say that I think it will not be possible to have a "literal" translation between Firefly and Serenity. It's just the nature of the difference between making a TV show, and making a major motion picture. I certainly don't want to sound as if I'm judging the film before I see it. It's just that I'm passionate about the show (as I know you all are) and maybe just a little overprotective of it.
That said, it's always been my fear that the movie may not live up to the greatness of the show. I think of it as kind of a blessing and curse that the Firefly 'Verse was so richly crafted. As an on-going TV show, there was lots to explore. Plenty of nooks and crannys to crawl into. This is evident by the posts on this board, and that after all this time after it's cancellation, we are still talking about it.
But, it's blessing serves as it's potential curse. Can something as robust as Firefly be adequately addressed in a two hour movie for the show's diehard fans? Think about it. Would Star Wars have been a great film, if it were a TV show first? If you had gotten very involved in the lives of it's characters, only to see things crammed into a much shorter time frame when the film came out?
Now throw into the mix any changes that needed to be made to make it into a film. While large space battles do appeal to me, the confined quarters of Firefly's Serenity are what got me hooked in the first place. I'd hate to see the quality of the characters and their relationships with each other be sacrificed for the sake of epicness.
So, let me answer my own question: I don't know.
I think back to The Lord Of The Rings, and how the films were different than the books. Some of the robustness had to be stripped out in order to make it filmable. However, the spirit of the books was well preserved and I felt the films were great, so I know it can be done. I hope Serenity falls into this vein as well.
Here's to hope.
Thanks,
Wes
"I am a large, semi-muscular man..."
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accept. How much are we willing to accept.
And I don't think there's going to be a character change. It's the same writer. It's going to be a little darker than the series, but that's because Joss envisioned a dark world. Fox made Joss make Mal more sarcastic, less moody. They made Joss make Jayne more goofy, less mercenary. What we will see in Serenity is the way it was really meant to be before Fox got a hold of it. I quiver with anticip-
...
...
(Say it!)
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-pation.
And all of you can get over the sound in space. Sci-fi has always had sound in space. We lauded Firefly for the realism of no sound in space. But on the big screen, in the fast pace of a single movie, the pacing just can't afford silence.
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Real Fans Wait - 09/30/05
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Quote:
Originally posted by TheGreyJedi:
accept. How much are we willing to accept.
Thanks for pointing out the typo. I really need to not post at nearly 1 am. :(
"I am a large, semi-muscular man..."
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I'll let you know next Friday morning as soon as I get back from Austin.
wo men ren ran zai fei xing.
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Quote:
Now throw into the mix any changes that needed to be made to make it into a film. While large space battles do appeal to me, the confined quarters of Firefly's Serenity are what got me hooked in the first place. I'd hate to see the quality of the characters and their relationships with each other be sacrificed for the sake of epicness.
Having seen the movie, I can safely say:
You are worrying too much. Honestly.
If the movie was too epic, or bad, or whatever: I'd say. Having seen the movie about 2 months ago now, I can safely say I'm STILL obsessing about all the little details, the hints, the ongoing story lines (some things are left hanging on purpose)....
You know the big space battle? Do you think Serenity will be flying around with lazer guns and missles? Nah. It's all about being confined, and seeing the characters in real emotional peril.
Serenity is basically, as far as I'm concerned, a couple of really excellent Firefly episodes tacked together with a huge budget and lots of time spent on it. You know those Joss episodes which are _really_ well written, well directed, advance the plot and blow your mind? That's Serenity. I'm not kidding.
The people I was with (fans) left the cinema shaking. You don't do that if it was in any way bad.
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My personal strategy is to separate the two.
There was a great series called Firefly once.
There is a great movie coming out called Serenity.
I didn't expect the series to be movie quality, althought it had a few epic moments!
I don't expect the movie to give me indepth stories on 9 separate characters. Just not the nature of the movie beast.
Heres my analogy: I love chocolate. Sometimes I have cocoa and sometimes I have chocolate ice cream. I enjoy them both but don't expect them to give me the same experience. Dong ma? 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Appears they've canceled the show and we're still here. What does that make us?"
"Big damn junkies, Sir!"
"Ain't we just."
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Quote:
Originally posted by WhoIsRiver:
Having seen the movie, I can safely say:
You are worrying too much. Honestly.
If the movie was too epic, or bad, or whatever: I'd say. Having seen the movie about 2 months ago now, I can safely say I'm STILL obsessing about all the little details, the hints, the ongoing story lines (some things are left hanging on purpose)....
You know the big space battle? Do you think Serenity will be flying around with lazer guns and missles? Nah. It's all about being confined, and seeing the characters in real emotional peril.
Serenity is basically, as far as I'm concerned, a couple of really excellent Firefly episodes tacked together with a huge budget and lots of time spent on it. You know those Joss episodes which are _really_ well written, well directed, advance the plot and blow your mind? That's Serenity. I'm not kidding.
The people I was with (fans) left the cinema shaking. You don't do that if it was in any way bad.
WIR,
Your comments are reassuring, but I can't help but sympathize with the original post. I'm pretty certain, based on your comments and others, that I'm going to like the movie a hell of a lot. The thing is, for some of us, what made Firefly so special was the way it avoided so many of the common gimmicks featured in sci-fi, especially televised sci-fi.
It was the anti-Trek. It was small, dirty and featured characters who were really more-or-less average people pushed into extreme circumstances. These were people you could hang with. Even down to the cinematography and sound editing - the show made you feel as if you were there.
More than that, the characters faced problems I could relate to. I've been stranded in the middle of the night on a lonesome stretch of highway with a broken-down car (with my two sons in the back seat no less), wondering exactly who was behind those headlights coming my way. For much of my life I've had to take, "any job, anywhere" to make ends meet and "keep flying". These are the kinds of things that drove Firefly forever into my heart.
Now, Firefly was more than that, I know. But the things I'm describing are the elements of the show most likely to be left out of the movie. Even if they are included, they surely won't be developed in the casual, seemingly off-hand way that they were in the series. There just isn't the time.
I've no doubt the movie will blow us all away. Joss's determination to keep Firefly alive has won me over, and made him something of a personal hero in the process. I implicitly trust his talent and integrity. But there will be elements of the series sacrificed in the move to the big screen and, especially if the trailer is any indication, those seem likely to be the elements that I liked the most. It's tough NOT to worry a little.
SergeantX
"Dream a little dream or you can live a little dream. I'd rather live it, cause dreamers always chase but never get it." Aesop Rock
P.S. The original spelling makes more sense than you might think.
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There's ONE key thing that makes Serenity still very much "Firefly", and very much NOT like your standard Sci-Fi fare...and, interestingly enough, why it's different even from the other two shows Joss created.
The crew are out for themselves...and, of course, River.
I don't think they're out to save the world. . .
I don't think they're out to right some mighty injustice. . .
I don't think it's a matter of, "We're all that stands between all we believe in and (insert holy terror here). . .
I get the impression that if they are out to 'warn the Alliance of the impending doom brought on by Reavers' which is only my PERSONAL theory. . . that there is a distinct personal stake in it.
Jayne and Mal both sum it all up...
"I aim to misbehave."
"Let's be bad guys."
Our heroes ARE the bad guys. In the STRICTEST sense, at least. They're not 'good guys who were wronged' like the standard sci-fi goes. . .they're not out to 'clear their name'. . .hell, they're NOT EVEN as good as Robin Hood. They rob from the rich and. . .well. . .they rob from the rich.
The only other movie to MY recollection that does the same is "Payback" with Mel Gibson.
Anyhow. . .that's MY opinion.
I could be wrong.
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Evil, Lecherous Hump
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I'm willing to accept a trade off from what we grew accustom to in the t.v. show for what we'll get in return from the BDM. In time, we'll see the return of some of the feeling of Firefly, but only in measured amounts. That's my best guess.
" They don't like it when you shoot at 'em. I worked that out myself. "
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Quote:
Originally posted by SergeantX:
But there will be elements of the series sacrificed in the move to the big screen and, especially if the trailer is any indication, those seem likely to be the elements that I liked the most. It's tough NOT to worry a little.
I have trouble understanding the worry,
is it a self-protection against setting your expectations so high (you think) they can't be met?
It is true that there were some episodes of Whedonverse shows that I didn't adore, but notably they weren't written and/or directed by Joss Whedon....
This is HIS movie, a fulfillment of his vision, without Fox trying to 'improve' it (at least JW said many times that Universal did not interfere) and I am willing to give myself over to his storytelling.
The lack of comedy and character development in the trailer doesn't mean it is missing from the film - it is ONLY a trailer! When has JW ever disappointed with the comedy and character development? He has managed to get those things into the comic books for heaven's sake!
Okay, I'm preaching to the choir here, and it is silly...we all have our own doubts and worries (mine is that I'll have an accident of some sort that will keep me away from Chicago on May 5th!)
Enjoy!
Maribeth (embers)
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