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Oct. 7th, 2005 04:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
apocalypsosI'm now one successful drug test away from getting a really well-paying job at a factory that makes and packages DVDs. Hellooooooo, employee discount.
Oh, and I went to see Serenity. It was good.
...
AWESOME. *flails*
Okay, there's my fangirl moment out of the way. :)
For the record, I was spoiled for the movie. I mean, like, completely. And let me tell you what ... knowing about Wash did not diminish anything. I pretty much started welling up the first time he said, "I am a leaf on the wind," and didn't stop until ... well, until Wash did. Killed me well and true, that one did. (Also, I'm the sort of swoony little misfit who hopes Zoe was pregnant at the end of the movie. 'Cause I like the thought of a little part of Wash running around the ship.)
I kind of like the thought of a sane River, or at least a saner one, in any event, if that's the way it's going. Then again, it just makes her more of a Mary Sue, but -- and I hate to say it -- but I like River the Mary Sue. So there. ;P
I wasn't really upset at losing Book, because he wasn't one of my favorite characters (not like Wash, who's the kind of guy I would date), but much like with Wash, there wasn't any time to mourn. There was a war, and it was time to fight.
As for the rest of it, I love Mal and his deep love for Serenity, I love Jayne and his gun fixation, I love Inara and her gorgeous wardrobe, I love Kaylee and her desperate need to get laid (wow, she really IS me), and I love Simon and his NOT WEARING A SHIRT GYAH-OMG-MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM.
And okay, here's what bugged me about the movie -- it was really, really good. So you're saying, why does that bug you? And here's why -- because I think if we'd gotten the movie before we'd gotten the TV show, we'd still be watching the TV show.
Think about Joss's track record. He's worked mainly in two genres -- science fiction and fantasy. He's got a really great record in fantasy -- there's Buffy and Angel, and he also worked on the Toy Story screenplay. But he's got a really crappy record in science fiction -- Alien Resurrection, Titan A.E., and let's not even get into "What happens to a toad when it gets struck by lightning?". Really, look at the trailers for Serenity. Did they say "From the writer of Alien Resurrection and Titan A.E."? No, they said, "From the writer of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel," which is nice and all, except for it being the wrong goddamn genre. (This is why you'll never see the phrase "A comedy by Steven Spielberg" on anything unless it's animated.) Something about that just set wrong with me the first time I saw that, and I love all three shows.
And it's not even just that. There are a lot of factors about this movie that make me wonder a little if they set it up somewhat to fail. Oh, the loyal fans will go, over and over again if what I've seen on my friends list is any indication. And I know I've been telling everybody who I think might appreciate it to go, but the problem is that I've gotten at least twice, "Oh, you mean that show they cancelled?" Surprisingly, it's hard to sell someone who's never watched Firefly on a movie based on a TV show cancelled after 14 episodes. What kind of confidence does that give people who want to go that it'll be good? Oh, the good reviews? I've seen way too many reviews of Serenity where the writer says somewhere, "I'm a Firefly fan, and I loved this movie!" That's great, but I make the same face when I read a review of a Star Trek movie where the writer says they love the show.
And it doesn't even help if I say I've got the whole season and they can borrow it, because really, who's got fourteen straight hours to spare? Not to mention they released it in September, when action movies that are expected to make any money come out earlier in the summer. (EDIT: I should probably add that I'm not really sure the multiple sneak previews helped as much as they were expected to. Oh, I think they helped somewhat, but I'm still wary about the whole thing.)
You know what's going to happen? It's going to do okay at the box office -- not great, but okay -- and then it's going to kick ass on DVD. And that's why I think it would have been better if a feature-length movie had come out first, especially with Joss's past. Joss has already taken a cult movie and turned it into a really good TV series. Yes, it was fantasy, but a little tweaking of Serenity in a few places would have made it a great set-up for the series. (Actually, a new script from the pilot probably would have been better, but you see what I'm getting at.)
I don't know ... I'm probably just rambling and being pessimistic. But I honestly did love the movie, and it's really sad that all I can think is that if we'd gotten a film first, Firefly would still be on my TV schedule.
Bah. Enough sideways pessimism. I killed an hour before the movie plotting the Books of Boggs, so now I'm going to script the hell out of them on my index cards. :)
Oh, and I went to see Serenity. It was good.
...
AWESOME. *flails*
Okay, there's my fangirl moment out of the way. :)
For the record, I was spoiled for the movie. I mean, like, completely. And let me tell you what ... knowing about Wash did not diminish anything. I pretty much started welling up the first time he said, "I am a leaf on the wind," and didn't stop until ... well, until Wash did. Killed me well and true, that one did. (Also, I'm the sort of swoony little misfit who hopes Zoe was pregnant at the end of the movie. 'Cause I like the thought of a little part of Wash running around the ship.)
I kind of like the thought of a sane River, or at least a saner one, in any event, if that's the way it's going. Then again, it just makes her more of a Mary Sue, but -- and I hate to say it -- but I like River the Mary Sue. So there. ;P
I wasn't really upset at losing Book, because he wasn't one of my favorite characters (not like Wash, who's the kind of guy I would date), but much like with Wash, there wasn't any time to mourn. There was a war, and it was time to fight.
As for the rest of it, I love Mal and his deep love for Serenity, I love Jayne and his gun fixation, I love Inara and her gorgeous wardrobe, I love Kaylee and her desperate need to get laid (wow, she really IS me), and I love Simon and his NOT WEARING A SHIRT GYAH-OMG-MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM.
And okay, here's what bugged me about the movie -- it was really, really good. So you're saying, why does that bug you? And here's why -- because I think if we'd gotten the movie before we'd gotten the TV show, we'd still be watching the TV show.
Think about Joss's track record. He's worked mainly in two genres -- science fiction and fantasy. He's got a really great record in fantasy -- there's Buffy and Angel, and he also worked on the Toy Story screenplay. But he's got a really crappy record in science fiction -- Alien Resurrection, Titan A.E., and let's not even get into "What happens to a toad when it gets struck by lightning?". Really, look at the trailers for Serenity. Did they say "From the writer of Alien Resurrection and Titan A.E."? No, they said, "From the writer of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel," which is nice and all, except for it being the wrong goddamn genre. (This is why you'll never see the phrase "A comedy by Steven Spielberg" on anything unless it's animated.) Something about that just set wrong with me the first time I saw that, and I love all three shows.
And it's not even just that. There are a lot of factors about this movie that make me wonder a little if they set it up somewhat to fail. Oh, the loyal fans will go, over and over again if what I've seen on my friends list is any indication. And I know I've been telling everybody who I think might appreciate it to go, but the problem is that I've gotten at least twice, "Oh, you mean that show they cancelled?" Surprisingly, it's hard to sell someone who's never watched Firefly on a movie based on a TV show cancelled after 14 episodes. What kind of confidence does that give people who want to go that it'll be good? Oh, the good reviews? I've seen way too many reviews of Serenity where the writer says somewhere, "I'm a Firefly fan, and I loved this movie!" That's great, but I make the same face when I read a review of a Star Trek movie where the writer says they love the show.
And it doesn't even help if I say I've got the whole season and they can borrow it, because really, who's got fourteen straight hours to spare? Not to mention they released it in September, when action movies that are expected to make any money come out earlier in the summer. (EDIT: I should probably add that I'm not really sure the multiple sneak previews helped as much as they were expected to. Oh, I think they helped somewhat, but I'm still wary about the whole thing.)
You know what's going to happen? It's going to do okay at the box office -- not great, but okay -- and then it's going to kick ass on DVD. And that's why I think it would have been better if a feature-length movie had come out first, especially with Joss's past. Joss has already taken a cult movie and turned it into a really good TV series. Yes, it was fantasy, but a little tweaking of Serenity in a few places would have made it a great set-up for the series. (Actually, a new script from the pilot probably would have been better, but you see what I'm getting at.)
I don't know ... I'm probably just rambling and being pessimistic. But I honestly did love the movie, and it's really sad that all I can think is that if we'd gotten a film first, Firefly would still be on my TV schedule.
Bah. Enough sideways pessimism. I killed an hour before the movie plotting the Books of Boggs, so now I'm going to script the hell out of them on my index cards. :)
