Today is the Day

Going to see the new movie Serenity later today with
AlphaPatriot and Conservative Zone Mark. I'm looking forward to this, as the movie promises to be very different from the Star War / Star Trek movie experience.

What I liked about the television series it's based on - Firefly -- is that its based on the post-Civil War era of American history, when the dominant Union government was impressing Reconstruction on the South, when former Rebels were reviled outside the South, and a whole lot of former soldiers still carried the experiences of war and loss for a cause they had valued with them. That dynamic is almost forgotten today outside the South, but still can be found here, even in 2005.

Anyway, the good folks who are promoting the movie describe it thus:

Joss Whedon, the Oscar® - and Emmy - nominated writer/director responsible for the worldwide television phenomena of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE, ANGEL and FIREFLY, now applies his trademark compassion and wit to a small band of galactic outcasts 500 years in the future in his feature film directorial debut, Serenity. The film centers around Captain Malcolm Reynolds, a hardened veteran (on the losing side) of a galactic civil war, who now ekes out a living pulling off small crimes and transport-for-hire aboard his ship, Serenity. He leads a small, eclectic crew who are the closest thing he has left to family –squabbling, insubordinate and undyingly loyal.

I enjoyed Buffy, but really enjoyed the later seasons of Angel, where he did things to his characters that were really terrible, but made for compelling viewing. For example: Imagine that you have caused your best friend's son to be taken away from him forever. He was also your employer, so now you've been expelled from friends and work. You take up with a woman you knew who is evil and works for the competition; what she's getting from the relationship is mostly information about you friend/boss, and maybe influencing you to work for her. It's mostly a sordid, violent and degrading sexual relationship. Then she dies suddenly, but is due to be reborn as a vampire the next morning. Your job is to sit there, waiting for her to come back so you can kill her the minute she does. And you do.

Whedon has a way with writing people and dialogue I admire. Witty and unexpected, flawed but always striving to do good, with fresh turns of phrasing.

Like I said, I'm looking forward to this movie.