Serenity: Good ole’Sci-Fi with a New Twist
I just saw Serenity last night. This movie is kind of the culmination of a minor sci-fi cult following in a series called Firefly. There are fan clubs, forums, more geekiness than you can imagine, unless you have ever been to a Dr. Who convention (been there; done that). So what makes a movie like this tick? Do you have to be a part of the in-group in order to watch the movie?
No. that was one of the things I really enjoyed about the movie. I hadn’t seen any of the TV series before seeing the movie last night, but it didn’t matter. It was well written, with a good balance of dialogue and action. AND there wasn’t a lot of insider stuff that sci-fi flicks are often known for. It is a good action adventure that most anyone should be able to pick up on, strap in and enjoy.
So let’s apply the Clint Eastwood rule to Serenity and see how we do:
The Good
The action was good. It moved well. As a techno-nerd, I enjoyed the ships and guns, and just enough fight scenes to really keep my interest and keep things movie. In the same way, there is a level of depth to the characters that goes beyond your typical Steven Segal or Alien vs. Predator type movie.
The Bad
There wasn’t any really offensive language that I remembered, which is unusual and very good. Probably the most offensive part to the movie was the positive portrayel of the “companion” character named Inara Serra. A companion is a prostitute. My problem with the character is that prostitution is really held up as a noble and honorable profession, because it “services” the natural urges of humanity. Ugh.
The Ugly (that is, the parts that really make the movie tick for the Christian)
Probably the two parts to the movie that I enjoyed the most were first of all the positive portrayal of a (presumably) Christian pastor known as Shepherd. He is a fairly minor character, but he is depicted as having a firm sense of right and wrong, of self-sacrifice, and as providing a kind of moral compass in the midst of dark times. Obviously Shepherd is no Lutheran, but that is a twist in a sci-fi flick to me. He is also martyred, which is a nice touch.
The second really enjoyable part is watching Captain Mal Reynolds. Reynolds struggles with whether his vocation as the captain of his ship is to take care of his crew and pasengers, to himself, or to larger needs of humanity (I don’t want to say more without giving up the plot).
The bottom line is that it is a good flick, it moves well, and that it would give some good opportunities to talk about vocation and sacrifice.
I give it an 8 of 10.
Enjoy!
Pr. Todd Peperkorn
Pastor
Sci-Feek Geek
New Firefly Fan
