Serenity (2005)

Serenity is the spin-off film of the cult TV show Firefly, a hugely popular sci-fi series, so naturally fans of the show such as myself had very high expectations for Serenity and against all expectations they were met. But you don't have to be a fan of Firefly to enjoy Serenity, despite the fact that Whedon spends a lot of time wrapping up loose ends from the show and previous knowledge is needed to understand certain references a newbie watcher can still understand everything that's going on and enjoy it like any other sci-fi. But Serenity isn't like many other sci-fi films, as with Firely Whedon chose to combine sci-fi and western aspects to create 'space western' a genre reminiscent of Star Wars. The combination of the future and the past is beautifully done, futuristic gun fights in ghost towns and old-school revolvers vs laser weapons is something that hasn't been done before and I loved the whole feel of the era crossover. Nathan Fillion plays the role of the hardass, ex-revolutionary, Captain of the Serenity (the spaceship) very well, over the short course of film you see him build and describe his relationship with each crew member on board. Another acting highlight fowr me was sarcastic pilot played by Alan Tudyk who became philosophical every time he pulled off a fancy maneuver. The special effects in Serenity are also very impressive, Firefly's limited budget didn't allow for huge space battles and sprawling megacities but this time around it appears Whedon was told to go crazy and have some fun, so you can try and guess where most of the budget went during the filming when you come to the 'somebody fire!' scene. Although I can appreciate that it would be hard to implement a fresh new plot for new audiences into Serenity, but the story does seem rather weak at times, folllwing cliched guidelines; something Firefly manahed to steer clear of. Also I didn't really see the 'humor' other reviewers were raving on about, there were a few weak jokes but that was really it. But in the end I would say the pros outweigh the cons, Serenity is a brilliant new genre hybridization with strong character and a unique feel. I would recommended it to any fan of sci-fi, not just Firefly loyalists, Whedon did to good of a job of keeping his audience non niche to not watch one of the most original sci-fi films of the decade.