Whedon is the patron saint of those who equate “good dialogue” with “more dialogue.” His writing in “Serenity” is a mixed blessing. On the one hand, he’s created a lingo that exists at the intersection of frontier slang, sailor salt, and SoCal talk. The interaction between the outlaws is like something out of David Mamet or “Master & Commander” in that we don’t understand how individual words and phrases are being used until we “see” what everyone does as a result. That’s how movies are supposed to work: “show,” don’t “tell.” But when characters start giving us chapter and verse on how they feel about each other, the results are disastrous; we veer away from the space chase into a soap opera. The B couple is embarrassing, over-explaining every little look and glance. The one-liners are almost too plentiful to be funny. The Operative is a relentless motormouth—yack-yack-yack—but, since “The Matrix” movies, I guess no one takes you seriously unless you have a tough black guy who knows kung-fu and big words. Again, Joss, this is a movie, not TV—don’t “tell” us how these people feel, “show” us!
The movie’s production design is cheap and charming. Let’s just say that “Star Wars” is Neiman-Marcus and “Serenity” is the knock-off you buy at Target: they’re both cut from the same cloth, but only one has been to the tailor. Both feature vaguely jittery, computer-generated effects, but extra credit if you can guess whose jitters are less vague. Compared to “Star Wars,” space battles in “Serenity” are a bit choppy, blurry, and peopled by spaceships that are all the same grey-black metal. Both “Revenge of the Sith” and “Serenity” feature unscheduled landings on concrete runways, but one is distinctly better than the other. Few of the costumes and makeup in “Serenity” look beyond the capacity of the average university drama department. Muzzle flashes on the ends of guns are treated as privileges, not necessities. But I love that “Serenity” heedlessly bounds past these rough edges.
Will “Serenity” please “Firefly” fans? If you’re a regular visitor to my website, you know I don’t care. You know I regard with contempt viewers who decry movies that are unfaithful to the books or history upon which they are based. Joss Whedon has made a good movie and that’s what counts.
Finished Saturday, October 1st, 2005
Copyright © 2005 Friday & Saturday Night
Page one of "Serenity." Back to home.