Tv blabs, movie blabs, book blabs. Lots of blab, but no flab.

Tuesday, October 18

Be Watching

On Sunday night at 6:30pm

SBS is airing a doco called "Down Under" about Aussies working in Cirque Du Soleil. Sounds interesting:
This documentary series, presented by Richard Snashall introduces us to Anita Nelving, an Australian from the Hills district of Sydney who now resides in Montreal after joining Cirque du Soleil at its headquarters in Singapore. Anita takes us on a tour of Cirque du Soleil's headquarters where 2000 people work, and where every piece of costume is individually made and dyed. We also meet Martina Howard, an Australian expatriate who works as a performing artist with the circus.

Thursday, October 13

Spoiler Free

Now, I've done my best to leave out any spoilers. I do mention a couple of plot points, but nothing that gives anything away other than setting up where things are at. I will hopefully get my other post out soon.

Serenity is Joss Whedon’s first big trip into the cinema. He’s visited before with the scripts for Toy Story, Alien 4 and Titan A.E. but this is his first go in the directors chair. Serenity picks up 6 months after the last episode of Firefly. Mal and the crew are still finding it difficult to get work, legitimate and not-so legitimate. River is as vague as always and Simon seems even more protective of her.

The film opens with an introduction that zips along; revisiting and revising some of the history of the show, and quickly setting up the universe for those unfamiliar or new. The introduction of The Operative who has been sent to retrieve River is deftly handled and Chiwetel Ejiofor instantly establishes himself as a worthy foe for the Serenity crew.

All the original TV cast are back in their roles, but sadly the format of a film doesn’t allow enough time for all of them to have meaty roles. Mal and River are the focus, with Simon, Zoe, Wash, Jayne and Kaylee as general crew and support. Inara has barely an introduction which may confuse the uninitiated. Book appears, but is sadly not around enough.

Serenity herself has had a facelift. Some major redesigns of the cargo bay make it much colder. There seems to be no extra living quarters behind the medical bay that were used on so much in the show, and there a few extra little rooms here and there. I like most of the changes, but I think overall the ship felt colder and not as homely.

Joss’ direction has the film speeding along. The crew run from fight to fight or away from The Operative. In essence this is a chase film that spans a few worlds and the action is what keeps it all going. After Buffy and Angel Joss knows how to film a fight scene and River is the star of the biggest ones. Mal is also in usual form: getting his arse kicked numerous times.

I did feel in some of the dialogue heavy scenes that the editing was a little TV-like. Cutting back and forth between people’s faces a lot rather than using an interestingly framed master shot. There were a lot of these types of shots, but I think old habits die hard, and it’s understandable for a TV-like element to inhabit this film.

As is typical of Whedon’s work, the surprises are good, and the shocks are like being hit with a sledgehammer. If you know Firefly, expect to be shaken to your core by what happens. For those unfamiliar, don’t get too comfortable in your seat because this is a wild ride that doesn’t wait around for anyone who’s fallen behind.

An excellent send off for the series. An excellent stand-alone product. A new glimmer of hope that quality sci-fi is still possible.

Tuesday, October 4

That's Me! Clever AND Dangerous...

I got an interesting result:



You scored as River Tam. The Fugitive. You are clever and dangerous, which is a nasty combination. The fact you are crazy too just adds to your charm. They did bad things to you, but you know their secrets. They will regret how they made you.

River Tam - 81%
Zoe Alleyne Washburne - 69%
Simon Tam - 56%
Hoban 'Wash' Washburne - 50%
The Operative - 50%
Capt. Mal Reynolds - 44%
Inara Serra - 38%
Kaylee Frye - 38%
Shepherd Derrial Book - 38%
Jayne Cobb - 25%

Which Serenity character are you?
I am kinda glad that I relate the least with Jayne.

Found via One Dog Said To Another.

Monday, October 3

It's Not Too Bad

It's certainly no Titanic, but $10.1mil isn't that bad.

Box Office Mojo has Serenity at #2 in the opening weekend's box office, only losing out to Flightplan.

Honestly, I don't think anyone expected the BDM to make a killing. It's a solid film that will hopefully sustain.

In it's first day of release here in Oz Serenity made $280, 763 which put it in 5th place behind the other school holiday releases.

No Pressure. Really.

While doing some research for my much anticipated Serenity post, I discovered that the Firefly DVDs are currently #3 at Amazon!

Which is bloody shiny if you ask me.

It is currently in front of Batman Begins, Star Wars (the last middle one), even Lost and Desperate Housewives!

I intend to write two Serenity posts. One for those who haven't seen Firefly or wish to remain spoiler free, and another that is an in-depth look. Both will be clearly marked.

Not that I feel any pressure about writing these...!

I am going to see the BDM again tomorrow. Cheap Tuesdays rule!

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