Friday, September 02, 2005

Can't Stop the Signal

So we went to the screening of Serenity last night, and it was fantastic. I can't say much because I don't want to spoil anything, but I loved the movie. I've had a pounding headache since yesterday morning and it didn't even manage to detract from the experience. The screening was packed with hardcore Browncoats who spent the half hour or so before the movie started singing Firefly-related songs ("Jayyyyne! The man they call...Jayyyyyyne!") and passing around a giant card for Joss Whedon that folks could sign. It was pretty much Geekmas in there, which was fun. There were some people there who were Firefly virgins though. You could tell who they were because they were the ones looking at their oddly dressed fellow moviegoers and asking, "Why are you guys wearing those stocking caps/blue latex gloves/brown coats? It's September and HOT outside!"

One of the guys in our group had never seen Firefly before, but he loved the movie and borrowed our DVD set immediately after the movie because he was dying for more. It's great how satisfying the movie is for new viewers, and yet it doesn't spend a ton of time repeating stuff fans already know. In the space of two hours, they establish a somewhat complicated setting and maybe ten major characters and make everyone understand and care about all of it. They even manage to deal with complex and very relevant political themes without being heavyhanded about it.

The movie is funny and sad and exciting and suspenseful and all the things you want it to be. I laughed, I cried, I was thrilled to see Good triumph over Fox Broadcasting. I can't wait to see it again when it opens September 30th, and I'm going to make everyone I know come see it with me. This movie has a chance to be very successful commercially and hopefully they'll get to do a whole series of movies. I think the cast is signed for three, and I'll be sad if they don't do at least that many. GO SEE IT. And AVOID SPOILERS.

Attached to the print we saw was a trailer for Doom, starring The Rock. That trailer got almost as positive a reaction as the movie did. It looks like a total blast, and it seems to be filmed largely as a first-person shooter just like the game, so you're looking down the barrel of a gun/chainsaw/whatever while monsters occasionally jump out right in front of you. I think it will be a lot of fun, but I don't want to sit to close to the screen. I don't like scary things jumping out at me.

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