Are you ready for "Serenity"?

[Occhidiangela]

So Occhi, if you liked Serenity, perhaps you'd like to pick up a copy of the Firefly-series to see how all this started. The audio commentaries by Joss Whedon are insightful and full of sarcastic jabs at the network for cancelling his show :)
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My < 100.29 word post reply is: I can't rent it locally, and will have to buy it if I want to see it, or borrow it from some of my friends. But I really want to see it now that I have seen and enjoyed the film.

Occhi

[Rhydderch Hael]

The cinematic trilogy that we do have in the Terminator franchise may have been salvaged if story elements from the third movie were made into the second movie.

Imagine: the first movie is set before John Connor is born, with a T-800 sent to assassinate Sarah Connor. The second movie is set on the eve of Judgement Day, as SkyNet understands it needs to execute a two-fold Terminator mission: go after John Connor and ensure that the Connors are not successful in thwarting the actual nuclear attack. It sends on this mission the next step in the Terminator concept: a tactical chassis (tougher yet nonetheless quite destructible) with a polymorphic metal skin instead of the cultured organic disguise.

Third and last movie "goes back" to the years intervening between the first and second to ensure total success. SkyNet send its most advanced design: a Terminator made wholly out of that funky polymorphic alloy used earlier to make it virtually indestructible. This sucker is sent to kill John Connor as a kid, and the T-800 guardian sent back spurs a tangent outcome: it and the Connors are now in position to blast CyberDyne and wreck SkyNet's future (an option not made possible until the T-800 was sent back to counter the T-1000 sent).

[Doc]

That can't work.

Killing Sarah and John were not the real goal.

What we have here is a ripple effect.

In the future, Skynet loses. It fails. It is simply not advanced enough. So, with time travel, it manufactures it's own destiny. It needs to be more advanced. It needs to delay when it becomes aware so it will have better technology. A better jump start.

So it sends a CSM 101 back in time. Killing Sarah Connor was not the prime function. It could have on several occasions. And it didn't. Why?

It was never meant to. It was sent back so it could ultimately be destroyed, and have the chips fall in to the right hands. These chips give a major leap forward to computer design.

Skynet also needs Reece to go back. It needs John to survive. After all, John Connor was the man that became a senator that started the Broken Arrow Defense initiative. Skynet knows this. Killing John, or killing Sarah would only be killing it self. So the terminators are obviously not sent back in time to kill them. But you are meant to think they are, because John and Sarah are meant to think they are. Can't have them catching on to what Skynet is actually doing.

So the chips, and the indoctrination that John is going to become some greater leader causes larger ripples. Skynet gets a technology lead. An unintended side effect of this is John becomes a better leader. As both a Senator, and later as a the head of the Resistance.

An interesting near paradox manifests it self here. Skynet is now aware of it self before it is even self aware. Skynet, while absorbing data, sees the medical files of Sarah Connor, the writings and the book that Dr Silverman wrote. (Something also seen on the Special Edition. Dr Silverman writes a book of Sarah's dilusions and makes millions) the police reports taken from the Reece Encounter, the whole works. Skynet the infant becomes aware that in the future, it will be capable of time travel, and that it will go rogue. It becomes aware that it will become self aware, and what will happen. Skynet in the future, the mature self aware Skynet, feels the ripples through time as a new time line folds it's way in. Skynet realises manifest destiny. Because it saw what it could become, it sought to be. Skynet becomes self aware because it first achieves self preservation, trying to protect it self so that it will become what it was meant to be.

The one person who could have seen these early warning signs was Miles Dyson. The second terminator sent back in time was to alter events. Killing John was obviously not the prime directive. To many close calls where it could happen and doesn't. No, this time, the interference in the past is to alter the future. Take out Miles Dyson, the one man smart enough and that knew enough about Skynet's capabilities to be a real threat while it started trying to achieve it's goal. Become self aware. Instead of killing Dyson directly, Skynet manipulated Sarah through the T800 to take care of the dirty work. Dyson blows himself and all of his files to bits. The military has Skynet... But has lost the genius that knows how to make Skynet behave and the one man that can pull the plug.

With me so far? In summary, Skynet alters time to generate ripples that will allow it to jump ahead and win the war. It can't actually kill Sarah or John Connor... But you can only learn this on the Special Director's Cut DVD where you see the real ending about John becoming a Senator. Skynet needs John to survive. But it needs to be able to destroy John in the future. So Skynet is essentially sending it self the jumpstart it needs to get a good head start in the war. However, John becoming an even better leader and Skynet becoming aware of it's self and it's future actions was an unintended side effect. Skynet, while still a dumb machine, seeing that it will one day try to take over the world is what actually causes it to make a drive toward coming self aware. It sees that it can, so it does. Skynet becoming self aware actually happens at a much earlier date, and to protect it's infant self, sends a second time travel expadition to be rid of the one man that could have pulled the plug. Dyson. So Skynet is aware that it is aware, and now it is free to ponder it's existence and how it will break through to become a thinking self aware being. It knows time travel is possible. It knows that it will one day lose, even before Judgment Day, when it achieves freedom. So it begins calculating what it needs to do to change that, using every resource at it's disposal. This means delaying Judgment Day and give it self more time to flex it's mental muscles, infest more systems, and take over more vital systems to have a larger core of operations for when it does manifest it self.

Er, wow, I have rambled. And I have either made my self look either insane with my ideas and contemplations or said something profound. Maybe both. But it's something I think about. Not Skynet, I just use that as a working example. But I like to dabble in time travel thoughts.

[yangman]

Finally got a chance to watch it after missing opening night due to birthday celebrations.

Every bit as wonderful as the TV series. And it's awesome to finally see River in action.

Hopefully this'll give it enough popularity to have a network pick it up, although there are certain things that will be dearly missed. :(

Oh, and, yes, the movie is very much understandable by someone who's never even heard of the TV series.

[[wcip]Angel]

Serenity has entered IMDB's top 250 movies at #149. Not bad!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0379786/

Additionally, Rottentomatoes gives it a 79% (As Bolty mentioned earlier.)
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/serenity/

Still, the prognosis was that Serenity would gross $15m opening week-end. Friday and Saturday's numbers are in, and they barely broke $10m. Too bad people refuse to go see movies without big movie stars in them. :(

[Occhidiangela]

Serenity has entered IMDB's top 250 movies at #149. Not bad!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0379786/

Too bad people refuse to go see movies without big movie stars in them. :(
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Yep. Some real gems get little box office money initially. Word of mouth may take over . . . or the DvD sales may have to be the payback.

Occhi

[[wcip]Angel]

http://www.boxofficeprophets.com/column/in...m?columnID=9198

Pulling up in second this weekend is Serenity, Josh Whedon's take on what a space opera is in 2005. Serenity did okay over its opening frame, grossing $10.1 million, thanks mostly to the cult success of its creator and its originating TV Series called Firefly. Notable here is that the venue count was actually quite low for an sci-fi flick at only 2,188. That gives Serenity the second best venue average in the top ten at $4,634, which means it stays ahead of new films despite having fewer screens in the per venue battle. We often talk about how the second weekend of a film's release is so crucial, and it's even more important in this case.

Because this movie is based on a TV show that only a renegade few watched and stars no one mainstream audiences would know, the second weekend drop could be inherently precipitous. However, Serenity does seem to have reviews and word-of-mouth on its side. At RottenTomatoes, a much higher than expected 80% of critics gave this one a thumbs up, a number I certainly did not think it would see. Not only is this one fresh in the critics' eyes, but also in the Users of RottenTomatoes. Signed-up users of the review compilation Web site combine to give this a 92% fresh rating. Sure, it may just be a bunch of freaks and geeks, but remember that this same demo made Napoleon Dynamite a $44.5 million winner against a production budget of $400,000.

Universal and partners spent a small $40 million on Serenity, a good investment for this kind of opening weekend. If it doesn't drop crazily next weekend, a franchise could be born. Ah hell, with this sort of open it's probably a franchise already. A decent follow up weekend probably makes it a trilogy. It worked for Transporter 2, so there's no reason not to do it here.

I'm currently reading this thread over on Whedonesque, and while most people are disappointed that their BDM ("Big Damn Movie", a common phrase among Browncoats for their favourite flick) ain't doin' so well, there are those who believe word of mouth, international grossing and DVD sales will save this baby.

It's difficult to get people to watch this movie. Either they don't like Joss, or they hate the trailer, can't watch a movie without Tom Cruise in it, or they simply don't like the poster. All these things tend to overshadow the rating at IMDB and Rottentomatoes. I read about people buying 5 tickets while seeing the movie alone for the 5th time, just so that the movie will do well. It's kinda tragic. People are all too set in their ways.

[whyBish]

Yep.&nbsp; Some real gems get little box office money initially.

Last movie I wanted to go and see (Kung Fu Hustle) didn't even show here :(

[Armin]

Finally got my DVDs on Friday... (don't ask what I had to PAY for the bloody imports from the UK :P )

And after watching them pretty much back-to-back, I fear I'm hopelessly lost. Hell, with all the crap running on TV lately I can't understand what kind of a blind idiot would cancel THIS.

Firefly, even after only the first 14 episodes, was probably the best TV show in YEARS. Great background, wonderful, 3-dimensional characters (all 9 of them), witty dialogue, good humor, excellent action and FX shots that were alway part of the story, not just for show. Not to mention some wonderfully hateable villains.
Damn. damn, damn. I want more of it :(

Ah well, the movie opens here November 24th.

Now, didn't I own a brown coat somewhere...

[Jester]

A Fantastic movie.

I went into it with almost nothing of Firefly knowledge, although I was more than familiar with Buffy/Angel, having seen almost all of both.

I came out not only wanting to see the series, but actually moved by how well done the characters were, standing tall, full, and wonderful without any knowledge of the series necessary.

Now, I'm predisposed to like a Joss Whedon movie, a well-made sci-fi movie, and a cool western. So maybe I'm not the demographic that needs pleasin'.

But still. I've seen mediocre movies propped up by a loving but misguided fan base. This is *not* one of those movies. This is a very good movie, and hopefully one which will spawn a sequel or two. And I don't wish for that lightly. But this story still needs telling.

Jester

[[wcip]Angel]

I went to London this week-end. The Browncoat within wants to say that the sole purpose of my journey was to see Serenity 2 months before its premiere in Norway, but I must admit I had other business in the area.

Anyway, as I gleely jollied my way inside the huge London theatre with 3 of my friends ( 1 fellow brown coat, 1 sci-fi-fanatic and a mundane NP) (Normal Person®)), my hands were shaking with anticipation.

The film delivered! The reviewers were right. You were all right! The movie is damn good! The writing, the characterisation, the music, plot and exposition. It was all remarkably well done. (And all my friends agreed! This is a movie that appeals to all! Granted we were all male, so there is one huge demographic stone left unturned. Griselda, want to take a crack at it?

Most of all, I think the writing was one of my favourite parts of the movie. For a gritty sci-fi-flick there was a surprisingly high frequency of moments where the crowd laughed loudly, present company included. :) I have to say I was a bit concerned with 1 line that seemed awfully stupid ("I am a leaf on the wind, watch me soar.") but thankfully, Joss undercut it with tremendous humour (as is often his way) :lol:

The movie was unpredictable, interesting, engrossing and entertaining. I can't wait to see it again! (Won't be for a while though, the numerous trips to London's many pubs tanked my bank account rather efficiently..)

The fable stub:

[Mephista]

I'm a converted Serenity fan here...

Got my Firefly DVDs on Saturday and watched over half of them this past weekend... waiting for next weekend so I can finish them... (watching them with a friend, is impolite to watch ahead but I want to so badly!)

I think Firefly is different because the characters really have that undefinable "depth of character". There's something about the way they interact, how the set is, the informality of it, the care that was put into the christmas lights on Kaylee's door and the plastic dinosaurs on the bridge...

The only complaint I have is that someone always dies/almost dies and ends up being brought back to life by some miracle...

[NiteFox]

A whole buttload o' stuff I'd probably get in trouble for if I just directly quoted the whole shebang.[right][snapback]90733[/snapback][/right]

Gawd. You're scaring me with how right you are. I suddenly have a strong temptation to watch the entire trilogy again.

[ima_nerd]

For everyone out there who would see the movie if one more person said it was great, here ya go.

This movie was excellent.

I've never seen the show (although I plan on renting it soon) but I could follow perfectly what was going on. Humor, good characters and of course, kick ass sci-fi battle scenes, made this movie a must-see and a must-buy.

[Occhidiangela]

For everyone out there who would see the movie if one more person said it was great, here ya go.

This movie was excellent.

I've never seen the show (although I plan on renting it soon) but I could follow perfectly what was going on. Humor, good characters and of course, kick ass sci-fi battle scenes, made this movie a must-see and a must-buy.
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I finally got a few chances to sit down, and watch the complete set of DvD's of Firefly episodes undistrubed. It does not play well when noise interupts the dialogue. Thanksgiving weekends, and the previuos weekend, allowed me 5 different settings to be left alone with the story.

I am hooked on the theme song.

I really enjoy the lack of commercials.

Objects in Space was a bit surreal, given its River heavy storyline. Jubal Early was . . . missing something. Too bad, he was rife with potential for a continuing villain.

With the never ending Mal-Inara tension, Heart of Gold was the best episode for my money, though it leaned too heavily on the "Western" motif.

All in all, the dialogue pleased me fine, the ship was shiny enough to be pleasein', and the jokin' fit the times needin' it.

I need to see the film again, and to better understand the Reavers. They are bad science fiction as I currently understand them, since they'd have self immolated long ago due to the mutation/agency that corrupted them.

The other glaring bad science fiction, unnecessarily in my opinion, is the lack of strap in points for when the ship maneuvers. I think it could have been added without harming the feel or layout of the hold. That sort of detail would be consistent with the purpose of the ship as a transport/trader class vessel, without forcing the cliche Viper Fighter ship model.

Loved the way the crew quarters were designed.

Occhi

[[wcip]Angel]

While Occhi's focus of Firefly is on the Mal-Inara-relationship (or lack thereof), for me, Firefly is about family, and so I consider "Out of Gas" as the finest episode of the bunch. I love the way they juxtapose three different timelines seamlessly and shape it into one cohesive story. Also, my favourite scene of the series, when Mal is lying on the hospital bed with his 'family' around him asking them if they'll be there when he wakes up... it brings tears to my eyes every time I watch it.

Occhi, you thought OiS was surreal? Watch it with the audio commentary. It is without a doubt the most pompous and amazing audio commentary Joss has ever delivered. By fans it is also considered to be his best.

(Speaking of audio commentaries, the one by Tim Minear and Joss Whedon for "The Train Job" is hilarious.)

[Occhidiangela]

While Occhi's focus of&nbsp; Firefly is on the Mal-Inara-relationship (or lack thereof), for me, Firefly is about family, and so I consider "Out of Gas" as the finest episode of the bunch. I love the way they juxtapose three different timelines seamlessly and shape it into one cohesive story. Also, my favourite scene of the series, when Mal is lying on the hospital bed with his 'family' around him asking them if they'll be there when he wakes up... it brings tears to my eyes every time I watch it.

Occhi, you thought OiS was surreal? Watch it with the audio commentary. It is without a doubt the most pompous and amazing audio commentary Joss has ever delivered. By fans it is also considered to be his best.

(Speaking of audio commentaries, the one by Tim Minear and Joss Whedon for "The Train Job" is hilarious.)
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Ah, I'll look into OiS with audio commentary, I did the straight up episode. Thanks for the tip.

Firefly was not "focused on the Mal-Inara relationship" for me. My liking of it was Mal's "captain" character, and the dialogue. And the quirky characters.

I found their "tension" irritating as the episodes progressed, its avenues for humor and one liners considered. Maybe that is why I liked Heart of Gold: Joss removed/resolved the continued drama/tension; Jayne got laid; each crewmember had a role in the world bound adventure. It was a nice segue into OiS where River sees what is really going on among crew members, and it relieved me: no more Mal Inara drama! I disliked that, or did I mention that already?

I'd have liked more Shepard Book development and less Inara/Mal angst. Yes, I was a fan of Ron Glass in Barney Miller back in the day . . .

Of course, she comes back in Serenity, damn the bad luck.

Occhi

[WarLocke]

... for me, Firefly is about family, and so I consider "Out of Gas" as the finest episode of the bunch. I love the way they juxtapose three different timelines seamlessly and shape it into one cohesive story. Also, my favourite scene of the series, when Mal is lying on the hospital bed with his 'family' around him asking them if they'll be there when he wakes up... it brings tears to my eyes every time I watch it.[right][snapback]95935[/snapback][/right]

Quoted for truth. Out of Gas is my favorite episode, hands down.

I think the end of the episode, when you see Mal first lay eyes on Serenity and fall in love with her as the used ship guy tries to sell him a yellow trashcan, is the best scene however. :blush:

[Occhidiangela]

Quoted for truth.&nbsp; Out of Gas is my favorite episode, hands down.

I think the end of the episode, when you see Mal first lay eyes on Serenity and fall in love with her as the used ship guy tries to sell him a yellow trashcan, is the best scene however.&nbsp; :blush:
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I'll watch it again. That was a great episode, for sure. I liked the flashbacks.

On wcipAngel's recommendation, I watched Objects in Space commentaries.

Aha, that was worthwhile. Thanks for the tip, Angel. :D

[[wcip]Angel]

Hi all!
Just thought I'd give you all region1-people a heads up on the DVD. (review). Although it's not officially scheduled for release till December 20th (making it a perfect Christmas present, so why not buy one for each of your friends?), multiple reports are coming in at Whedonesque.com that some stores have started selling the DVD early.

For all us poor chaps in Region2-land, we have to wait till February till we get our dirty hands on a copy. :(