MCF Has Seen That Movie Too

If you haven't seen Joss Whedon's theatrical masterpiece Serenity you should probably stop. Don't pass “Go”, and I'll just hang on to your $200. I'm about to share my thoughts on the film, and though I'll try to talk around them, I'm pretty sure I can't avoid at least alluding to MAJOR SPOILERS. I can't be held responsible, from this point on in tonight's post, for anything I divulge. Still with me? Hopefully, those who remain have seen the film.

Before I share MY thoughts, however, let's see what the critics are saying. By critics, I of course mean my fellow bloggers:

Joseph Dilworth, Jr.: “Here's a film that's wonderful, terrifying, funny, sad and terrible all at once. And one of the best things about it is that there are times that it doesn't even occur to you that this is a ‘space movie.'”

Sarah: “This is not a two-hour TV episode slammed on to a theater screen. This is a film.”

Big Orange Michael: “Joss Whedon has done it again.

I should never have doubted him.”

Lorna: “We laughed, we cried, we shook with horror and grief, and never took our eyes off the screen. I'll see it again in a heartbeat.”

Kelly: “Incredible movie. Joss Whedon completely surprised me in several parts of the movie. Everything met my expectations, which were astronomically high.”

Rhodester: “I've been hoping she'd pop up again somewhere—she has a REALLY cute—dog.”

Jerry: “I'll be offline for a week.”

Hmm...maybe I ran out toward the end, there. Where are the Film Geeks in all of this, for example? Word must reach the people. As for me, I almost didn't reach the theater. After Jerry's wedding, I made a point of getting back to mass at my own church, so my Sunday morning would be clear. In my excitement, I woke up at 7:30 AM. The movie didn't start until 11 and it was COLD, so I rolled over and went back to sleep.

After an indeterminate period of time, feeling rested, I sat up and reached for my watch. 10:30. I live 20 minutes from the stadium theater I planned to go to. By some miracle I showered and dressed and was out the door in 10 minutes, hastily throwing cereal into a baggie to eat on the way. Of course™ there was a long line, and of course™ the machine nearby continually told me to reinsert my credit card, until I noticed the line for the human tellers had gone down anyway. At 11:05 I finally got in, missing maybe a few trailers. Soon I would bear witness to my greatest cinematic experience this year since Batman Begins.

Honestly, having watched all three Joss Whedon television shows, I should know what to expect by now. I had high hopes, which were exceeded, and concerns, which were allayed. The movie opens with something fans know happened, but never saw before. The relationship between a brother and his sister is established immediately, and from the start the theme of love is cemented. We see love of a Captain for his ship and his crew, love between a husband and wife, unrequited love between a doctor and a cute engineer, love between a brother and sister, love between a tough guy and his gun, and love between a geek and his robot. We lose not one but two beloved characters over the course of the film, and at one point it seems as though we're going to lose everyone. In the span of five minutes the phrase “I am a leaf on the wind” goes from comedy(“What does that even mean?!”) to tragedy.

The real genius of the movie is the blend. The blend of well developed characters playing off one another is as prevalent as the blend between laughter, tears, and tension. I really hate to use the “roller coaster” cliché since this is something so much more, but I'm not adept enough verbally to come up with a better analogy. The thing about using a cliché that bothers me the most though, is how this movie is anything but a cliché. You don't know what's going to happen next. You don't know if there's going to be a happy ending. Things happen as they would were these events happening for real. In real life, people die, and it's not always in a hospital bed, after saying a tender goodbye to the mother of your unborn child five days before retirement with a down payment on a boat. Sometimes it's unexpected and sudden. We're fragile, here one minute and gone the next, and Whedon has never been afraid of that aspect of life in his storytelling. I've seen it happen on his other shows, should have expected it here, and yet didn't.

The movie plays to the strengths of each character. Everyone, from captain to pilot to soldier to muscle to doctor to holy man to mechanic to companion to psychic warrior has a key contribution to make. As with the series, at times it really feels like Whedon is channeling Claremont's ‘70s X-men. It's all here, from the terse dialogue to the complicated relationships of underdogs and outcasts working as a family to the strong female characters. Everyone has something vital to contribute and if any piece is lost, one in particular, the rest are certain to fall apart. The movie climaxes in a desperate last stand with everything on the line, and serves as the fitting conclusion that the television show never had.

Still, I certainly wouldn't object to any sequels.