what's your take? by reginaroadie

GENERAL DISCUSSIONS

what's your take?

POSTED BY: REGINAROADIE
UPDATED: Monday, October 3, 2005 13:14
SHORT URL:
VIEWED: 9483
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Thursday, September 29, 2005 1:57 PM

Hey all

I just checked over at rottentomatoes.com (a really good review database website). For the uninitiated, the way the Tomatometer works, is that they take all the reviews of a movie, check to see how many are good and bad, and give it a percentage. If 60% or more of the reviews are positive, then it's demmed fresh. Anything below that is considered rotten.

At the beginning of the week, SERENITY was hovering around the 60% area, and had even dipped to a 57%. But right now, it is at 80%. It's only 7% behind A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE (the new Cronenberg movie) as the best reviewed movie ofthe week.

Here hoping it can climb to a 90% or more.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
XANDER: (baby-talk) Who's a little fear demon?
C'mon, who's a lit-tle fear demon?
GILES: Don't taunt the fear demon.
XANDER: Why? Can he hurt me?
GILES: No, it's just… tacky.

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Thursday, September 29, 2005 2:28 PM

THRAWN

But what's more important is what the reviews are saying. This is getting exactly the reviews I was hoping for; I couldn't be happier.

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Thursday, September 29, 2005 3:39 PM

GTHING

I think the critics are complaining too much about the "cheese" aspect. They don't even consider that it takes some artistic effort in these days' movies to make something look cheesy. I am damn near certain no one else is making science fiction or action movies that look anything like Serenity. The Matrix and Lord of the Rings screwed the genre in that idea. Too many movies these days try to look like them. Get me The Road Warrior man!!!

Excerpt from My Genre Geek Resume:
~huge Odyssey 5 fan (despite its cancellation)
~dangerously obsessed with BtVS and Angel
~former Andromeda fan

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Thursday, September 29, 2005 3:43 PM

HAKEN

Likes to mess with stuffs.

Quote:
Originally posted by reginaroadie:
Here hoping it can climb to a 90% or more.

FYI, it's hitting 89% for the "Cream of the Crop." Woohoo!

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Thursday, September 29, 2005 4:09 PM

SWITCHY

This is awesome! I just checked RT and all the positive press had me smiling from ear to ear. I think this thing may really happen. What numbers have to happen this weekend to snowball to the magic numbers Universal said they wanted?

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Thursday, September 29, 2005 4:30 PM

SOKOLOV

I haven't seen the movie or anything, but just read those reviews.

Many of the reviews note the lack of screentime hurt character development. Unlike "normal" films that feature only a couple of leading roles, Firefly/Serenity actually has such a robust cast that it is really made more for TV, in my opinion. There is really no way around it unless multiple movies were already planned but it still makes me a little sad. I think one of the charms of the series was the slowly unveiling of each of the characters done in such a way that you can't help but love them all nearly right from the start. Scenes like Simon and Kaylee talking in her room in Jaynestown and the end of Shindig with Mal and Inara, and the scene which houses my favorite line in the series with River talking about the cows. Hopefully scenes like that appear in the movie, but I am not sure there really is time to do that sort of thing and still play out a full story in 2 hours.

The whole character development issue, of course, isn't an issue with us devoted fans ;)

One of the other things I loved most about the series was the camera work. Every episode watches like a movie. None of it looks like TV to me.

In a way, I wish the story was more of an "episode" than a feature film (similiar to Star Trek: Insurrection), but I suppose that would've been less engaging to newcomers who are likely looking for a more epic experience.

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Thursday, September 29, 2005 9:40 PM

NEVAKEE

Sounds quite good - but remember what Joss said in his last post - it is not enough that Serenity does good during the first weekened (though it is important, too), but it needs some staying power - so, get people to see it in the next few weeks, too.

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Thursday, September 29, 2005 10:51 PM

RIVERSGUY

Now at 83%, still, looking good.

Argh I've got to wait till Thurs for a preview over here in sunny ol England. Seen it twice already at other previews, but I need more!!

----------------------~~-----------------------------------------------~~-------------------------

"The human body can be drained of blood in 8.6 seconds, given adequate vacuuming systems."

"Miranda"

The Original Grr Aggh boy

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Thursday, September 29, 2005 10:54 PM

FLAMETREE

I saw the movie last night in Sydney. There were about 20 people there.

The good news for serenity is that there was a positive review, which was the featured review with a picture of river and mal, in a free newspaper which is handed out to the people on the trains here.

"through it has been highly anticipated by fans, buffy creator joss wheadon's first foray as a feature director demands some contextualising for the uninitiated. Wheadon's follow up to buffy was the sci-fly firefly, which gained a small, loyal following but was a commercial failure. It lasted only 15 episodes, the victim of poor marketing and scheduling decisions. three years later serenity picks up where firefly left off. continuing whedon's usual genre-mixing serenity is a space opera shot in the style of a western. Set 500 years in the future, in the wake of a galactic civil war, it follows a space crew, led by the hardened Mal (nathan fillion), who are on the run from the alliance, the imperialistic victors of the war. These cowboys are protecting river (summer glau), the young escapee of a program of scientific experiments that has given her surprising powers. With the sort of grammer-destroying dialog that made buffy so great, mixed with the full-throttle action, serenity is an intelligent, must see science fiction."

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Friday, September 30, 2005 8:34 AM

FLYINGTAMS

And, theve changed featured reviewer to someone who actuall likes it. Probably the best non spoilry review so far:

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/click/movie-1151889/reviews_viewer.php?r
id=1440627&fb=no

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Friday, September 30, 2005 11:37 AM

LADYSHELLEY

Review in the Denver Rocky Mountain News:

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/movies/article/0,1299,DRMN_23_41
20202,00.html

This is important for a few reasons:
1. This guy rarely likes a mainstream film, he's much more an art house kinda film lover, so for him to give it a B is monumental.

2. He actually gets it, even though he's never seen the series. "The movie runs on the fuel of sly intelligence, not to mention a healthy skepticism about mankind's ability to achieve anything that might be called progress."

3. He sees the possibility of sequels, {in mentioning flaws} "I'm betting that, given a second chance, Whedon and company could build a better movie, which would be great considering that this one's not bad."

And this is probably my favorite quote of the review:
"He should be applauded for creating a space opera that spares us the nobility of Star Trek and the self-importance of Star Wars."

Lady Shelley
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://www.redhawke.org

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Friday, September 30, 2005 11:51 AM

CROWFLYY

Just checked the Tomatometer, we're up to 83%, which was where the last Star Wars flick finished,I believe. I also checked the "user" reviews from regular moviegoers, they have it at 93%. Interesting enough though, the negative user reviews seem mean and petty, none that I saw were based on any real substance, with a great number of random insults included. One that jumps to mind is "Nerds will cry in thier mothers basement, regular people will just vomit". Why is it this Show/Movie seems to bring out that kind of nastyness in some people? I am very partial, and actually watched the entire season when it originally aired, so maybe a new convert can shed some life on this bizarre attitude.

Crow

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Friday, September 30, 2005 12:10 PM

LADYSHELLEY

Quote:
Originally posted by Crowflyy:
Just checked the Tomatometer, we're up to 83%, which was where the last Star Wars flick finished,I believe. I also checked the "user" reviews from regular moviegoers, they have it at 93%. Interesting enough though, the negative user reviews seem mean and petty, none that I saw were based on any real substance, with a great number of random insults included. One that jumps to mind is "Nerds will cry in thier mothers basement, regular people will just vomit". Why is it this Show/Movie seems to bring out that kind of nastyness in some people? I am very partial, and actually watched the entire season when it originally aired, so maybe a new convert can shed some life on this bizarre attitude.

Crow

Don't look at this new-comer for an explanation, I don't get it either.

Part of it may be simple jealousy; let's face it the last crop of Star Wars movies were not that great (and I'm a huge SW fan), so maybe there is a bit of that "this one is better than mine" kinda feeling. [Reading this again that didn't seem to come out the way I meant]

Most of it though is just plain nastyness; these folks know there is a loud, loyal, vocal fan base and they want to see it riled. This is trolling on a large scale so to speak. Their problem is not many people are agreeing with them. The "real" critics, the ones paid to watch a film and judge its merits, like what they've seen, so really it's so much loud air and not much else. They're mouths are movin' and they should do somethin' about it.

And the ones whining on IMDb, Yahoo and other places that the rating scores are inflated, should remember they probably did the same thing for their favorite flick. (Though I still say you need to wait until you've seen the film to vote just so it looks half-way legit

)

Lady Shelley
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://www.redhawke.org

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Monday, October 3, 2005 11:34 AM

ALLIANCEOFFICER

I just want to know what is up with USA Today reviewer Claudia Puing. She trashed Serenity and obviously really didn't watch it. But she loved snoozefests like "The Constant Gardener" and "Capote" .... which IMHO both should have been left on the cutting room floor. I wonder if Claudia is actually one of those "ficitious" reviewers.

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Monday, October 3, 2005 1:14 PM

JASONZZZ

What? Konstant Gardner was a great flick. Only Lords of War and Corpse Bride were better... But hey, you can't make everybody like it...

Still trying to decide on the Jokie Foster flick...
eh.

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http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=5&t=3283
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