“Serenity” struggles to stay above sci-fi cliche
I’m sorry to say that I wasn’t one of the many people in the movie theater whose eyes were wide open with anticipation during this film’s beginning. Nor am I terribly familiar with the sci-fi television series, “Firefly” on which this film is based, which further made me a minority from the fans. Although this film will probably go down in history as another cult classic, “Serenity” actually proved to be a fun ride through space, despite the array of stereotypical characters and flighty storyline.
“Serenity” remains true to its television roots as we are taken along the treacherous journeys of a small, ramshackle spaceship carrying an equally small and ramshackle crew of eclectic characters. Headed by the macho Captain Malcolm “Mal” Reynolds, the crew includes Kaylee, the perky mechanic; Wash, the sarcastic pilot; Inara, the regal prostitute and Jayne, the dolting fighter. And this is just the beginning of the film’s list of players as they travel around the universe, set far into the future, meeting a variety of interplanetary humans.
All along their travels, brief action sequences predictably bombard the crew as they experience many a brush with death, thwarting and dodging the operations of the Alliance (their tyrannical system of government).
First-time film director, Joss Whedon (whose career has mostly been made up of directing episodes of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) is clearly in his element here, especially since he created the initial television series and directed a swarm of “Firefly” episodes during its one-season run in 2002. Whedon offers a unique and chaotic view of the future as our ever pressing need for serenity (Ah-ha! They must be on to something!) creates a vast, survival of the fittest environment. Surprisingly, Whedon doesn’t fill the story with constant scenes of action and violence.
“Serenity” makes a notable attempt to remain a character-driven story as the interpersonal relations are revealed and highlighted throughout the dialogue. Emphasizing the humanistic elements of the film helps it to have a somewhat emotional effect on the audience. But because the dialogue is filled with so many clichés and seemingly juvenile statements, the heart of the film becomes strained. All of the actors clearly enjoyed revising their roles for this film and they each do their best to maintain integrity in spite of the mediocre writing. Their integrity, however, does not stretch to the most believable heights.
Although “Serenity” remains true to its television roots, it felt like everything about the series was trying to be shoved into the allotted time of the movie, making the progression of the plot so capricious that the spaceship (called Serenity, supposedly representing a symbol of peace amidst a universe of anarchy) felt like a slick pinball whizzing through a busy machine trying to get every light to flash and every bell to chime.
This dazzling display of emotion and sci-fi fantasy makes the film confusing at times. But “Serenity” pulls through, and even though it doesn’t remain an enormous blaze of thrills, it sufficiently sustains at a flicker.
Casey T. Allen is a movie critic for the Utah Statesman. Comments can be sent to him at
caseyal@cc.usu.edu