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Serenity Trailer Finally Released

Posted by timothy on from the now-you-can-die-quietly dept.

ShinyHat writes "Browncoats Rejoice! The trailer for Joss Whedon's Serenity, based on his unjustly cancelled Firefly television series, was released on the QuickTime Movie Trailers page. Thanks to its new September 30th release date it won't be completely overshadowed by Star Wars. Talk is, if the movie does well enough, Universal will pick it up for a second and third installment." (As promised.)

66 of 437 comments (clear)

  1. My Girlfriend... by Spytap · · Score: 4, Funny

    My girlfriend has been "geeking out" (her words, not mine) over the new website all day. She's even more excited about this than I am.

    Note to self: she's a keeper ;)

    1. Re:My Girlfriend... by phritz · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I know what you mean, man ... the gf called me, breathless, to tell me to download the trailer. I have to give Joss big props - If you need a way to get your non-geek girlfriend to be excited about spaceships and hot girls in tight outfits doing acrobatics, you can't go wrong with Firefly and Buffy.

  2. DVD quality XVID version by Gossi · · Score: 5, Informative

    ...is here!

    1. Re:DVD quality XVID version by Gossi · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Incase anybody is wondering, serving this used 129gb of bandwidth in the first hour alone.

  3. Obligatory... by gotgenes · · Score: 5, Funny

    Serenity now!!!

    --
    It's such a fine line between stupid and clever.
  4. Direct Link by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    http://movies.apple.com/movies/universal/serenity/ serenity_m480.mov

  5. Holy Crap by Golias · · Score: 4, Interesting

    That trailer makes the Star Wars III trailer look like a stupid cartoon.

    I'm so jacked up to see this, I'll probably skip "Revenge of the Sith" entirely and see "Serenity" one extra time with the eight bucks I save!

    --

    Information wants to be anthropomorphized.

    1. Re:Holy Crap by GersonK · · Score: 5, Funny

      That trailer makes the Star Wars III trailer look like a stupid cartoon.

      But then, an episode of Clutch Cargo would also have that effect.

    2. Re:Holy Crap by harlows_monkeys · · Score: 2, Interesting
      That trailer makes the Star Wars III trailer look like a stupid cartoon

      I noticed that. The sets and backgrounds in Serenity have striking contrasts and colors that make then visually interesting, yet they also seem believable in a way that few science fiction movies manage. Too often, things stand out as being different in order to look "futurey". Star Wars is full of this, especially the latest episodes.

    3. Re:Holy Crap by DavidTC · · Score: 5, Interesting
      Firefly isn't trying to be 'intelligent', if by intelligent you actually mean 'philosophical'.

      Trust me, Joss has already gone there. He's out of philosophical points to make. He made them in his morality plays about good and evil called Buffy and Angel. Take a position on free will, on good and evil, on the nature of reality, on the ends justifying the means, on vengence vs. justice, on love, on death...and you will find something supportive of that position in Buffy or Angel, and something unsupportive of it.

      Anf Firefly not particularly 'good' sci-fi, if by good sci-fi you mean 'hard'. Sure, his ships don't make sounds in space, but on the other hand, no explaination is given of where all these new worlds came from, and how far apart they are, or if ships go FTL, or even what their fuel is. There's no 'This is how the universe works', because none of the characters actually care about that, anymore than we care about how cars work. (Well, Kaylee, the mechanic, cares, but it's not like she'd have a reason to try to explain it.)

      Firefly tries, and succeeds amazingly, at being good drama. With letter-perfect characterizations and amazing plots, and what was shaping up to be an interesting storyline before it was summarily canceled..

      Firefly is perfect sci-fi, if you think sci-fi is 'drama set in a universe where differences in science affect the characters and how they act'. It's pretty crappy if your idea of sci-fi is Star Trek Technical Manuals. It's pretty crappy if you go too far the other way and your idea of good sci-fi is the ramifications of your entire life being a lie, aka, The Matrix. (If you want that from Whedon, the Buffy episodes are 'The Real Me' and 'Normal Again' and the entire Connor arc on Angel. And 'Superstar' on Buffy, but that's more a joke than a serious look at it.)

      Don't believe the trailer. Three kinds of people are going to watch this movie: Those who've seen the shows, those who watch action movies, and those who watch every sci-fi movie. The first need no ads (Considering the amount of work it was to be a Firefly fan in the first place, they probably build a damn theater if one wasn't handy.) and the third you could show just a drawing of a space ship and say 'Come watch ship fly in space' as the ad copy. The trailer is aimed at the second group, who will get excited by the ad.

      If you want to know if it will be worth it, download 'Serenity', the first episode, and watch it. Might want to start the second downloading while the first is coming in.

      --
      If corporations are people, aren't stockholders guilty of slavery?
    4. Re:Holy Crap by NanoGator · · Score: 2, Interesting

      "I'm so jacked up to see this, I'll probably skip "Revenge of the Sith" entirely and see "Serenity" one extra time with the eight bucks I save!"

      Question: Is this trailer like a LOT more interesting if you watched the show?

      I ask because I never caught it, and I'm not seeing the big whoop-de-fuck that everybody else is. As the trailer stands, it actually looks like mediochre sci-fi, to me.

      I'm not posting this to troll. I'm just trying to understand what it is I'm missing that's preventing me from getting worked up like everybody else.

      --
      "Derp de derp."
    5. Re:Holy Crap by valkoinen · · Score: 2
      If you want to know if it will be worth it, download 'Serenity', the first episode, and watch it. Might want to start the second downloading while the first is coming in.


      Or better yet, if you like it, order the DVD box.
    6. Re:Holy Crap by Craig_P92669 · · Score: 2, Funny

      I dunno, I thought the part where R2 got Padme to pee on the EPT stick was pretty good.

      --
      http://xs4.xs.to/pics/04481/p556222.gif
    7. Re:Holy Crap by superflippy · · Score: 2

      I'm a fan of the show, and I also thought the trailer was just OK until the final 5 seconds.

      BOUNTY HUNTER: I am unarmed.
      MAL: Good. *shoots*
      ME: Awesome!

      The scene in - I think - The Train Job where they spaced the guy who was threatening to track them down and kill them was one of my favorites, and this reminded me of that. I love it when the characters do the obvious, most expedient thing instead of doing whatever will create the most contrived drama.

      --
      Your fantasies contain the seeds of important concepts.
    8. Re:Holy Crap by MotherInferior · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I do see your point, but I think you might be confusing intelligent with didactic. There are any number of deep concepts underlying the series.

      • Continuity of class structures over time
      • Universal nature of frontier culture
      • The ineffective nature of technology on the core problems that face mankind. (as opposed to Star Trek's "In the future we'll all shit flower petals and rainbows! Except for the Klingons and Borg... we still need bad guys, you understand."
      • The effect of scarcity and want on common morality and civility.
      Mr. Wheadon just didn't use the series as allegory thinly veiled in laser beams and photon carbonificators like most other sci-fi shows have (Gallactica being the canonical example). He wanted to tell a story, nothing more, but in telling a story as honestly and thoroughly as you can, you're going to expose a philosophical framework, which he did pretty darned well, IMO.
    9. Re:Holy Crap by RikF · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I thought the "we're all going to die" line was delivered beautifully. It's a very dry follow up to the previous 2 lines which went something like (I'm a work and I'll get odd looks if I pop my headphones on to check!)

      "This could get interesting"
      "Define interesting"
      "oh god, oh god, we're all going to die"

      so as a dry reply I think it works very well.

      RikF

      --
      In Soviet Russia you own your cat
    10. Re:Holy Crap by DavidTC · · Score: 2, Interesting
      No, I'm not confusing it, I'm responding to people who think 'The Matrix' was intelligent sci-fi, because, ooo, we're all really living in a computer simulation! Man, that really makes you think...if you've never had any exposure to real science fiction at all. ;) Hell, Red Dwarf did that.

      I don't see your fourth point at all, I think it's actually the second point...morality and civility in a frontier.

      And disagree with your third, I think the reason technology is 'ineffective' is because the government wants it to be so. The last time you let poor people have high tech, they started a war. From what little we've seen of the non-frontier, it looks like quite a lot of core problems have been solved. The core 'problem' is, in fact, the malcontents who refuse to fit in and instead 'head west'.

      But, yes, there was a philosophical framework framework there. Interestingly enough, it isn't the same one as in Buffy and Angel, and that was obvious the second Mal threw that guy into their engine.

      Although it somewhat hard to tell, because the viewpoint is completely different...people who are vigilantes against evil, vs. the losers in a war who aren't trying to do anything.

      --
      If corporations are people, aren't stockholders guilty of slavery?
  6. And the Angels sung... by Bananatree3 · · Score: 3, Funny
    Haaaalleeeeeluujah! Haaaalleeeeeluujah! hallelujah! hallelujah! halleluuuuuujah!

    ohhh finally, Serenity has come, Serenity has come. Ohhhhhh finally, Serenity has come, and a kingdom come!

  7. Fullscreen Version by CloudsSpaz · · Score: 5, Informative

    Fullscreen Version (640x480)

  8. uuuuuu...huh? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Why is there suddenly sounds in space?!?

    1. Re:uuuuuu...huh? by Spad · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Good question - one of the things I liked about Firefly was the fact that space was silent and you didn't have the sound of laser blasts and explosions for "effect", which is no doubt why they've been added to the film (and to help those who don't get the whole "no sound in space" thing).

    2. Re:uuuuuu...huh? by -Harlequin- · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I think there is a fair chance that the sounds are just in the trailer. Trailers have to be flashy and exciting, and appeal to people who have never seen the show, and that means sound fx.

      Once they're in the cinema watching the movie, THEN you have the time to introduce them to a world where space is silent and six-shooters go hand in hand with spaceships. Trying to do that in a trailer is risky. This is more of a USA thing, trailers elsewhere are a bit less action-focused. (The "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon DVD has the US trailer in addition to the normal trailer, watch them one after the other and you might think they're different movies :-)

    3. Re:uuuuuu...huh? by ceejayoz · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Mine's that the combat systems in ships would generate sounds to give sound cues and feedback.

      Hearing a ship pass you would be valuable, for example.

      What I'd love to see would be a sci-fi movie that implemented that, and had it cut out due to battle damage. All of a sudden, silence.

    4. Re:uuuuuu...huh? by Lahiru · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I think there's a fair chance the sounds WILL be in the final film. I see your point about making the trailer more flashy than the film itself, but I can't think of any films where the trailer added sounds from outside the film's sound mix just for the trailer.

      They probably had to make some concessions to the studio in order to bring Firefly to the big screen. I doubt that the suits would have been eager to try something as experimental as taking out sound from space battles. And let's face it, most people in the audience will think something's wrong with the sound or the film's budget was stretched too thin to include good sound effects! Hollywood has programmed viewers to expect sound in space, so that's the norm. I'd love to be proven wrong though...

    5. Re:uuuuuu...huh? by voisine · · Score: 3, Informative

      Actually, if you watch closely I think all the sound effects happened when you could clearly see atmospheric effects around the edges of the ship. There is a *lot* of sound durring re-entry. :)

    6. Re:uuuuuu...huh? by Scrameustache · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I can't think of any films where the trailer added sounds from outside the film's sound mix just for the trailer.

      How often do you pay attention to sounds in trailers and cross-reference them with the actual movie afterwards?

      I've never done that before, but I remember that the Inspector Gadget trailers had scenes that weren't actually in the movie itself.
      Man, that was a bad movie!

      I doubt that the suits would have been eager to try something as experimental as taking out sound from space battles.

      Experimental?
      Been done in Firefly, been done in SW:epII! AND in 2001: A Space Odyssy (yes, I count a waldo bashing a guy in a suit as a space battle, shaddap ;-).

      And as someone else has pointed out, most of the "space" battles in the trailer appear to be in high atmo.
      Plus, another poster said something wishfull about a combat system that includes sounds:

      I'd like to point out that if you listen to AM radio while watching a distant thunderstorm, you'll hear the lightning's electromagnetic interference through your speakers at the same time as you see the flash. Space battles would make a "sound" if there is something to take the huge EM noise and transform it into air vibration, like, say, a metal box that could resonnate... I dunno, like, a spaceship... possibly one with a comm system...

      : )

      --

      You can't take the sky from me...

  9. Firefly is better than that ... by Heisenbug · · Score: 2, Insightful

    it sounds like I should poke around the site more, but I was actually disappointed with the trailer. It basically made it look like another space action movie, with none of the unique characters or plotting or effects or [embarrassing Joss Whedon lust here] that made Firefly stand out so much. I have my fingers crossed that it's just marketing (or that I'm just in a crotchety mood), and the actual movie will be consistent with the show.

    In the meantime, I for one would gladly buy a movie ticket just to see the original double-length episode of Firefly in a theater ... maybe if Serenity works out they should release that episode as "Serenity: Episode 1".

    1. Re:Firefly is better than that ... by Tenken · · Score: 2, Insightful

      It wouldn't really serve much purpose pandering to the Firefly fans, although as a fan I found the trailer wholly satisfying. They need to bring in the general audience, so it has to can't afford to be too quirky, at least not in the first trailer. Perhaps the fans will get one of those internet exclusive trailers, everyone knows thats where we all live ;)

    2. Re:Firefly is better than that ... by Goose3254 · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I heard that if this movie performs well, the studio will film the next two movies back-to-back or at the same time a la "The Matrix" sequels (only better I hope).

      As far as a new series goes, although I really prefer that over a spread out movie series, I wouldn't look for that, at least until the movies play out, and then only with some drastic casting changes. Logically if these movies do really well, the cast will be properties considered too hot for series TV. One of the things I LIKED about "Firefly" was the fact that there was a careful "reveal" used on the characters. It definately left you wanting more. In a movie there isn't that much time, and you still have to include plot story and the obligitory "action", in order to make the movie stand on it's on merits. Another thing to look for is that if this movie is really successful, Joss himself will firmly movie into the "movie" realm, something that is kind of eluding him now.

      It would ROCK if they used this series to bring back the old "serial" format and could crank out one every 6 or 8 months, or better yet, get picked up by HBO or Showtime for a monthly series, like "The Sopranos". Considering the attention to detail and quality for which HBO has been noted in it's series work, I think Joss would be in his element, and the abbreviated filming cycles would allow the actors plenty of time to work in other projects. AND the DVD marketing of the series episodes already have a proven path to market. The best of all worlds!

  10. Just if you were wondering... by The-Bus · · Score: 2, Informative

    The music at the beginning of the trailer is Kasabian's song "Club Foot" --- and yes, the movie looks hot. Although the young-girl-fighting-people-using-Buffy-techniques- thing was a bit odd. Another downside: I have no idea what the movie is about. Although that could be good too.

    --

    Small potatoes make the steak look bigger.

    1. Re:Just if you were wondering... by metlin · · Score: 2, Informative

      If you've watched the series completely, you'd have noticed that River does some pretty amazing things, and has really heightened senses and reflexes - there is even an episode where she shoots several men straight with amazing accuracy.

      So, that wasn't really a surprise.

    2. Re:Just if you were wondering... by AJWM · · Score: 4, Informative

      where she shoots several men straight with amazing accuracy.

      Oh come on, that doesn't do it justice. River sees the three men (who are shooting in her direction), has the gun, but doesn't want to see them get shot. So she turns away and, not looking at them, takes the three of them out with three well-placed shots. Kaylee is there (she'd dropped the gun), and that's the event that makes Kaylee a little afraid of River in the subsequent shows.

      --
      -- Alastair
  11. Re:Cheesy? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    I'm assuming you're referring to River - which any Firefly can tell you is not a damsel in distress. She can take care of herself just fine actually.

  12. Serenity Preview? by rk · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'll be in my bunk...

  13. Re:I need a paper bag by Johnny+Mnemonic · · Score: 4, Informative


    Rumor is, that Book has only a very small role in the movie. Not all of the orginal cast could be gathered together; frankly, we're lucky we got as many as we did.

    Although there was some doubt precisely which character wasn't back for much, there was little doubt that one of the actors couldn't be signed--Joss was just vague about which one. But the preview (and other speculation) sure makes it look like it's Book.

    Better him that Inara, I guess ;) Hopefully we get more of that backstory in Eps 2 and 3, for which apparently there is strong interest by Universal.

    --

    --
    $tar -xvf .sig.tar
  14. Re:xvid help? by 01000011011101000111 · · Score: 5, Informative

    If you can't get it to work, grab a copy of vlc http://www.videolan.org/ - I've had files that media player makes unwatchable run fine in it... Should (iirc) also come with a whole bunch of codecs included as well...

    --
    Programming is an Art. I am an Artist. Does that mean I get to wear a daft hat?
  15. WHERE THE HELL IS BOOK?! by gellenburg · · Score: 4, Funny

    WHERE THE HELL IS BOOK?!

    God.....

    Damnit!

    I want to know what the hell is up with BOOK! Who the hell is he?!

    Son of a BITCH!

    I mean... River is cute and all... you'd think they'd at least continue on with Book's character and give us fans some insight into his past.

    I mean... please. The character "River" is so cliché. Book is a real enigma.

    Fuck.

    1. Re:WHERE THE HELL IS BOOK?! by JTWYO · · Score: 4, Informative

      I read an interview today that implied that this movie will address who Book really is as well. As far as I know, the entire cast is back, even if they did leave a few of them out of the trailer. SPOILERS Also, reavers.

    2. Re:WHERE THE HELL IS BOOK?! by Gossi · · Score: 3, Informative

      Book is in the film. Just not the trailer.

    3. Re:WHERE THE HELL IS BOOK?! by Jeremy+Lydell+Haugen · · Score: 4, Informative

      Book is in the trailer. Background, 1 min 56 secs in.

      --
      http://www.ihopethisworks.com
  16. Browncoats == brownshirts? by bratboy · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I've never watched the TV show (although I've read a synopsis of the backstory), and the first thought I had when hearing that the rebels were called "browncoats" was that it was curious that they'd chosen a term with such loaded historical connotations (the "brownshirts" were the Sturmabteilung, i.e., the Storm troops, i.e., the private army of the Nazi party). My goal here isn't to be PC, but rather to ask those more steeped in the lore of the show whether there's been a discussion on why the show's creators chose this term.
    -daniel

  17. Obligatory quote by DaHat · · Score: 4, Funny

    I for one welcome our new blue handed overlords!

    --
    Help Brendan pay off his student loans
  18. we all like firefly by rvr · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I had not heard of the series Firefly and a friend highly recommended it so I obliged and borrowed the DVD. I plugged it in and it became a hit with me and my three kids. It is now a favorite, we all became hooked.

    We loved the surprises and twists of the series and the trailer had some hints of it. We loved the gritty nature and the "western" feel. Can't afford fancy kick ass laser guns? Use regular 19th century handguns. Works for me. Do I use a scientific magnifying glass to look for blunders? No. I just sit back and enjoy and don't give a rats ass about that - leave that to others.

    The mix of future and contemporary, sci-fi and western, redneckness and intelligence and humor and seriousness captivated me. Bring on the movie. A little breath of fresh air in the glut of shows that pass for TV entertainment.

    I plan on watching the series late september and then checking out the movie. Will wait.

  19. Screw Star Wars Episode 3 by MourningBlade · · Score: 3, Interesting

    With a big rubber dick. I'll wait until it comes out on DVD and I can rent it.

    THIS, however, is something I want to see on opening night.

  20. Direct Files by rechelon · · Score: 5, Informative

    Direct Files

    small
    http://movies.apple.com/movies/universal/serenity/ serenity_m240.mov
    4.83 MB

    Medium
    http://movies.apple.com/movies/universal/serenity/ serenity_m320.mov
    8.5 MB

    Large
    http://movies.apple.com/movies/universal/serenity/ serenity_m480.mov
    21 MB

    Full screen:
    http://movies.apple.com/movies/universal/serenity/ serenity_ifs2.mov
    41MB

    1. Re:Direct Files by bluephone · · Score: 2, Informative

      Actually, a donkey-rape service would be a bonus. I'll RFE that for Forefox 1.1...

      --
      jX [ Make everything as simple as possible, but no simpler. - Einstein ]
  21. Re:unjust? by An+Onerous+Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I've noticed that, most of the time, when someone says they were modded down for "going against slashthink", what they really mean is... ...they were modded down for being gratuitously insulting.

    or ...they spent a half hour carefully crafting a post that explained in lengthy detail why they didn't care about the story, and why anyone who did care about it was an idiot.

    or ...their rebuttal was so riddled with factual inaccuracies that it undermined the point they were trying to make.

    Of course, bad moderation happens, and bad moderators exist. But a solid 80% of the time, it's just people being shocked to learn that they're not a tenth as brilliant or convincing as they would like to think.

    In your case, you're trying to make much of semantics, and going about it a little wrongheadedly. Since nobody but you called it a "shocking" or "brutal" injustice, you've apparently tried to blow our miffed feelings way out of proportion. Injustices come in a wide variety of sizes, from kicking the family dog to wholesale genocide.

    Yeah, it was just a show. But it was a good show, and deserved better treatment than FOX gave it. I think the word "unjust" is apt.

    YMMV, IANAL, PBUH.

    --

    You want the truthiness? You can't handle the truthiness!

  22. Re:Cheesy? by Lord_Slepnir · · Score: 3, Funny

    Ironically, Her Brother is more of a 'Damsel in Distress'

  23. Sound in Space?! by Shky · · Score: 2, Insightful

    One of the coolest things about Firefly was the lack of sound in space. I certainly hope that they've only put the sounds in for the trailer, but somehow I doubt that. Here's hoping they haven't made too many more stylistic changes (because the show was already dripping with amazing style).

    --
    CC Licensed Serialized Story and Podcast: Ingenioustries
    1. Re:Sound in Space?! by larkost · · Score: 2, Interesting
      Sadly I did not see any evidence of the classic look from FireFly specifically:
      • the color scheme is very "cool" (color temprature... more blue), verses the much warmer scheme used in the series (more like the pallet from a western)
      • the series was famous for making special effect shots look like they were done with a hand-help camera: out of focus objects coming into focus, wild panning across the frame as if someone was trying to track with a moving object (rather than the perfect framing that is common), the point of view shaking with the "engine noise", etc..
      • many more close-ups of the actors. The series usually tried to keep groups in frame.
      I hope that the preview is not representative of the final work we will see in September in this regard... I liked those aspects of the series. In any case... I will be there.
  24. Looks really, really cool... but... by weslocke · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Was anyone else bothered by the 'turning away' from the western aspect of the series? I kept an eye out when I heard the techno/industrial song, but all I caught was a glimpse or two of revolvers. I fully imagine that the movie will be true to the series, but I still feel a bit let down that I didn't hear "Burn the land and boil the sea, you can't take the sky from me" in the preview...

    It's been running through my head ever since Joss said the trailer was coming...

    Sigh...

    (Still looks cool as heck though)

    --

    'Life is like a spoonful of Drain-O, it feels good on the way down but leaves you feeling hollow inside'
  25. "his unique vision of the future" by Scooter · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Don't get me wrong, I liked the series, and this is one film that will persuade me to drag my ass to the cinema to endure the neck creaking, rustling, coughing and sweating, not to mention the washed out scratchy picture and unsatisfactory sound rendering; in order to see it before it premiers for real - on a disc I can play at home - on something a bit less agricultural, while I have a drink, but enough of my cinema pet hates rant :P

    I have to take issue with this statement though - this vision of the future is hardly unique. In fact, it's a fairly standard issue vision of the future as proposed by Poul Anderson (Trader Team, The long night, Mirkheim etc), Marc Miller (Traveller et al), Bell & Braben (Elite) George Lucas (Star Wars), Harry Harrison (Rat series):-

    Take sea going activities and extrapolate into space. Merchant ships, pirates, busy ports, adventure on the high, er.. volumes of near vacuum... and so on.

    That said, it happens to be a vision I like - a working, slightly dirty and worn around the edges future filled with real looking objects - a vision that could be said to have been pioneered by Lucas, at least on screen.

    I hope the soundtrack on that trailer isn't indicative though - cheap music will really feck this movie up. Using current pop output to score a film like this will date it in months.

    1. Re:"his unique vision of the future" by Abcd1234 · · Score: 2, Informative

      "Take sea going activities and extrapolate into space."

      I believe by "unique" they were referring to the blend of Sci-Fi and Western that Whedon went with... unfortunately, that isn't unique either. :)

    2. Re:"his unique vision of the future" by eskayp · · Score: 2, Insightful

      "...i'm often surprised by what the characters do - like real people. they have motivations and emotions and aren't always perfectly rational "

      Plus the times they are completely rational, but in a totally unexpected direction or manner.
      Firefly's CG, special effects, and production were good, but you're right -- it was the character development that addicted us.
      So many arresting personal quirks and offbeat futuretalk sayings.
      We need Firefly restored to continue the story.

      --
      I didn't desert Windows; Windows deserted me: BSOD
  26. Re:Interesting.... by kannibal_klown · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Definately see the series in some form or another before going to see the movie. The movie appears to deal with the whole back-story that was floating around since the first episode.

    It's really a good series, but I know some that didn't like it. Personally I wasn't a big fan of it when it was first on TV, but I downloaded the first ep and got hooked. Bought the DVD boxed set the very next day.

  27. Sounds in Space... by Funksaw · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Okay, yes, the trailer implies that there are sounds in space in this version. 1) This is a trailer, not the final cut. There may be no sounds in space in the final version. 2) "No sounds in space" was more of a gimmick than anything else. Anyone who sees the reaver ship and Serenity passing each other extremely slowly - even though both ships would be moving extremely fast in order to get to a destination millions of miles away - knows that Firefly wasn't hard SF - I don't even think they established whether they had FTL tech or not. Ditching "no sounds in space" isn't a storybreaker. I mean, honestly, did you go and watch the original because it was silent? 3) Who is to say that the "space" scenes don't take place in some sort of atmosphere?

  28. Re:Looks really, really cool... but... by prator · · Score: 2

    I agree with the other reply to your post. I think this has been trailerized for the general public. Also, I'm hoping that the sounds in space was a trailer thing too.

    -prator

  29. Re:Browncoats == greycoats by redbeard_ak · · Score: 3, Informative

    The conflict before the movie is akin to the US Civil War. The colony planets (in a "state's rights" fashion) resist domination by the Alliance. (No slavery in the story though so no idealogical high ground for the Alliance).

    The frontier is much like the American West after the Civil War. The Alliance is powerful but remote authority. Some of the main characters were rebels and wore brown (thus brown coats) much like some western characters (ie, the Outlaw Josey Wales) were former confederates.

    --
    . This sig unintentionally left blank. I meant to put something here, but I'm busy.
  30. To the people worried about the Music... by Fearan · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I also thought about this when seeing the trailer. Then I remembered The Two Towers trailer using a remix of the theme song from Requiem for a Dream, which was a bitttt more techno than the LOTR soundtrack. Honestly, right now I'm not worried. Trailer makes it look rather good.

    Kind of dissapointed to not have seen Book in the trailer, and only a few frames with Kayle (sp?), but you have to remember that 2 hours will not provide the same amount of room to develop 6-7 characters effectively. And Josh usually focuses on character in his series, going in depth about each one. So let him do his thing of focusing on key cast properly, and maybe we'll see more of the rest in other installments?

    Hell... Maybe we'll get to see it back on TV one day? (I know I'm crossing my fingers, although Mr. Whedon has said he will not return Firefly to TV... money does make people change ideas, as seen with Family Guy.)

  31. Re:Looks really, really cool... but... by jeblucas · · Score: 4, Funny
    I still feel a bit let down that I didn't hear "Burn the land and boil the sea, you can't take the sky from me" in the preview...
    Oh I so hate that theme song. So, so , soooooo much. I said Chinese cursewords every time it played.
    --
    blarg.
  32. Re:Not a fan, but this looks good! by Digitalia · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Unfortunately, your assertion that science fiction must depict a technological utopia is disheartening. You are definitely a core-worlder/first-worlder. You've never seen the technological inadequacies in the fringes of the third-world, and so you think that high technology must suffuse the world.

    As for the characters, we were really being given a small glimpse into their nature. Had the series continued, Joss would have fleshed out their character quite readily. It's a much more realistic method for depicting a rich and multifaceted character. This is in stark contrast to the unoriginal caricature characters from B5, which need less than 5 minutes of screen time to fully reveal their entire raison d'etre.

    --
    Pax Digitalia
  33. Re:Cheesy? by Scrameustache · · Score: 4, Informative

    River - which any Firefly can tell you is not a damsel in distress. She can take care of herself just fine actually.

    Actually, no she can't. She's insane and needs constant medical attention supervision so that she will not harm herself or others.

    Her brother threw away all he had to save this damsel.
    The fact that she's a psychic supersoldier in potentia doesn't make her any less vulnarable in the state she was in through the first episodes.

    --

    You can't take the sky from me...

  34. Sound Effects? by nahdude812 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Am I the only one who noticed that there were sound effects in space? I really hope this is only in the trailer, and that the actual movie stays true to the series by removing the sound effects from the space scenes.

    It was the first space scene sans engine noises, that first completely hooked me on Firefly. I couldn't believe someone writing sci-fi actually obeyed the laws of physics in this sense. And the soundlessness of it, filled instead with that guitar drawl, really lent a feeling of surrealness, and in fact, I thought it made space seem like a lot scarier place than any other sci-fi had ever managed -- the thought of being stranded out there, in utter silence, alone and forever, really got me.

    --
    Slay a dragon... over lunch!
  35. Sneek Preview Announced For May 5th by Recessive+Gene+Boy · · Score: 2, Informative
    I don't think anyone has posted this and it's probably too late to get modded up, but I'll try anyway. Apparently Joss posted in the boards over at http://browncoats.serenitymovie.com that there will be a sneak preview of the movie on May 5th in ten cities around the US. For those of you who don't want to register on the boards to see it I'll post it here...
    Well.

    It gets better.

    As thus: The movie is very nearly finished. You've seen many pretty images in the trailer. But I've still got work to do and you've still got months before you can see it. Unless.

    And, no, I'm not talking Australia (but Hi, Australia! anyway), I'm talking here in the more-or-less-United States, a one time multi-city Browncoat sneak event. Thursday, May 5th at 10:00 pm, the movie (Serenity! Pay attention! Jeez.) will be playing at exactly 10 theaters in 10 cities across the country. You (or possibly someone much like you) (or possibly a robot EXACTLY like you, but with better manners and sonic arm-lasers, sent to take your place) will be able to buy a ticket to see Serenity months in advance. Not just the bitty trailer with not enough Kaylee and Book, but the whole film, in its extremely almost completed state.

    You probably have some questions. How is this possible? What cities exactly will it be in? What are these changes my body is going through? All valid. It's possible because some clown put a bunch of Universal execs in a theater full of Browncoats and dude, they came out SWEATING, they never seen energy like that. They loved it, and even though they were already wicked supportive of the movie (see: earlier posts re: we're making the movie) they simply weren't ready for you guys. When I whinged on about pushing the date and everyone here was posting about "what do we do till September", they agreed to let me sneak it out.

    Maybe they thought it was a fluke. Maybe they wanna see if people really do care about the flick. Or maybe they're just treating us with respect and kindness, though that last option confuses and terrifies me as much as these changes my body is going through (I'm "perspiring" and becoming "interested in girls", which believe me is very unsettling when you're 40.) Does it matter? The plan works for me, and it can work for a select bunch of y'all. Here's what I know:

    The cities to be hit are:

    Seattle
    Austin
    Sacramento
    Boston
    Altanta
    Chicago
    San Francisco
    Las Vegas
    Denver
    The Portland of Oregon

    If you're in or near one of those, you might wanna stop by. There's supposed to be a "Can't Stop the Signal" page on this website (I don't know where it is -- hey, I remembered my damn password, doesn't that buy me any cred?) There should be more info there soon about how to get in, bringing peeps into the fold, I think there's even competetions and stuff. (All I know is I have exactly 20 Brownie points. I answered ONE triv Q and got it wrong. Forget cred. I have no cred.) Now a couple of us might just creep into one of those major metropolitan multiplexes to see if anyone does show up, so remember: swearing in Chinese ONLY.

    All right. This will please the fans and satisfy the employers of Joss Whedon, so I must stop as my arm-lasers are getting tired. I politely thank you for your attention.

    Should be fun.

    -j.

    My roomate just called to tell me the news. Apparently he was able to score 8 tickets for the Chicago showing.

  36. Details people, details! by Scrameustache · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Sadly I did not see any evidence of the classic look from FireFly specifically:
    the color scheme is very "cool" (color temprature... more blue), verses(sic) the much warmer scheme used in the series (more like the pallet from a western)

    The outer planets have a warm colour tone.
    The alliance planet have a cool, bluish hue: Rewatch "Ariel".

    Same applies to the trailer, pay attention when a Reaver ship is chasing Mal and Jayne, and a Reaver shoots a circular saw at Mal, the colour tones are those of the outer planets: Warm, yellowish.

    the series was famous for making special effect shots look like they were done with a hand-help camera: out of focus objects coming into focus, wild panning across the frame as if someone was trying to track with a moving object (rather than the perfect framing that is common), the point of view shaking with the "engine noise", etc..

    Check out the shot of Serenity zooming above a blue planet during Mal's intro speech near the beginning of the trailer: The camera vibrates, the ship moves out of frame and the camera tracks it shakily... exactly like what you lament not seeing in the trailer.

    many more close-ups of the actors. The series usually tried to keep groups in frame.

    2 things: First of all, he's showing us fanboys closeup shots of our beloved characters (look folks: The gang's all here!).
    Secondly, you have a very selective memory. Check out this site's excellent screenshot galleries to see that there were closeups of people all the time in the series. Why you erased that from your mind? I dunno.

    I hope that the preview is not representative of the final work we will see in September in this regard... I liked those aspects of the series.

    I hope the trailer is representative: I liked those aspects of the series and they're still there, if you look at what is actually shown in the trailer. Thank you.

    --

    You can't take the sky from me...

  37. Re:Kaylee by STrinity · · Score: 2, Informative

    The plants growing on Wash's console though are concerning....

    That's This Land where the dinosaurs live.

    --
    Les Miserables Volume 1 now up with my reading of