An opinion article of sorts...
Oct. 17th, 2003 03:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
missroseroseI wrote this mostly while at work today. I'm wondering if there's anywhere online, preferably at a movie discussion site of some sort, where I could send it to be posted. If anyone has any ideas, leave a note, please...
"Firefly": A New Hope For Star Wars Fans?
A firefly, as I'm pretty sure most people know, is an insect that shines a light from its rear in order to communicate or attract a mate (or both). A firefly's light tends to be short lived, but when it lights up, it's not only bright - it usually blinks on again after being extinguished.
When it comes to the show of the same name, there's a good chance this will be a rather apt metaphor. Many people have never heard of the show "Firefly," a sci-fi/western show created by Joss Whedon of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" fame. It was an extremely well-done show with an excellent cast. Unfortunately, because Fox did very little in the way of advertising and eventually consigned it to the Friday night death-slot, it was cancelled after eleven episodes due to low viewership.
However, things didn't end there. Many people have heard about the series through word of mouth, and some of us (like me), who never watch television, have become huge fans of it after seeing recordings of the currently-released episodes. There is a DVD release scheduled for early December, which includes the three episodes that were filmed but not aired, and there is apparently a movie in production, slated for a 2005 release.
What I think a lot of people don't realize is that if done correctly, this movie has serious box-office potential. The pilot episode of the series won an Emmy award for best visual effects, but the real gems in the series were the characters. Each one had their own history, their own distinct personality, and their own motivations, from the honorable if standoffish captain to the sweet, innocent, genius engineer to the generally wussy but talented pilot. The dialogue was also uniformly excellent: some of the best one-liners I have ever heard came from this series, and one of them became sort of a catchphrase in my college dorm last year: "Preacher, don't the Bible have some pretty specific things to say about killing?" "Very specific. But it gets rather fuzzy in the area of kneecaps."
Admittedly, a talented writer and excellent acting isn't necessarily enough to guarantee huge box office profits - just look at "Mystic River." However, there is one aspect of the situation that not a lot of people have noticed - the market. Right now, there is a huge gap in the marketplace left by the two recent Star Wars releases. Pretty much everyone I've talked to agrees that they stink, and for pretty much the same reason across the board - Lucas has gotten so caught up in the computerized effects that he's totally neglected the sort of character development and story that, *combined* with the revolutionary effects, made the first three movies such a success. While some people like the special effects, and many people have gone to see the latest Star Wars movies out of respect for the original three, I think almost everyone will agree that they were, at the very least, a disappointment. And because of this, there are a whole bunch of people who have been wanting to see a really good science fiction movie, with fun characters and dialogue and nicely done special effects.
Enter "Firefly."
If Joss Whedon is willing and able to keep to the formula that made the series excellent, there's a very good chance that the movie is going to bring in some huge returns - even if Universal makes the same mistake Fox did with the series, i.e. not advertising it at all. After all, the first "Star Wars" movie was popularized mostly through word of mouth; Fox was so sure it was a flop that at one point they were considering selling their stake in it as a tax shelter. But because of the amazing effects, the believable characters, and the intelligent (and oftentimes hilarious) banter, "Star Wars" grossed millions and remains a classic today.
Consequently, the biggest worry for this film is not whether enough people will go to see it; it's whether the producers, director, and actors are able to keep to the formula that made the TV series so much fun. I've seen a lot of discussions about whether and how easily "Firefly" can be adapted to the big screen, but honestly, all the elements for a good movie were in the series - decent plot, good character development, nice special effects, and (appropriately!) witty dialogue. Length should be no problem, either, as evidenced by the two-hour pilot episode, which really felt more like an hour. In essence, nothing really needs to be changed to make a great movie out of it other than the physical format.
If done well, this movie has the potential to be the brightest "Firefly" flash yet. Here's hoping that afterwards, it will flash again in a new (and hopefully, this time, more constant) form.
"Firefly": A New Hope For Star Wars Fans?
A firefly, as I'm pretty sure most people know, is an insect that shines a light from its rear in order to communicate or attract a mate (or both). A firefly's light tends to be short lived, but when it lights up, it's not only bright - it usually blinks on again after being extinguished.
When it comes to the show of the same name, there's a good chance this will be a rather apt metaphor. Many people have never heard of the show "Firefly," a sci-fi/western show created by Joss Whedon of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" fame. It was an extremely well-done show with an excellent cast. Unfortunately, because Fox did very little in the way of advertising and eventually consigned it to the Friday night death-slot, it was cancelled after eleven episodes due to low viewership.
However, things didn't end there. Many people have heard about the series through word of mouth, and some of us (like me), who never watch television, have become huge fans of it after seeing recordings of the currently-released episodes. There is a DVD release scheduled for early December, which includes the three episodes that were filmed but not aired, and there is apparently a movie in production, slated for a 2005 release.
What I think a lot of people don't realize is that if done correctly, this movie has serious box-office potential. The pilot episode of the series won an Emmy award for best visual effects, but the real gems in the series were the characters. Each one had their own history, their own distinct personality, and their own motivations, from the honorable if standoffish captain to the sweet, innocent, genius engineer to the generally wussy but talented pilot. The dialogue was also uniformly excellent: some of the best one-liners I have ever heard came from this series, and one of them became sort of a catchphrase in my college dorm last year: "Preacher, don't the Bible have some pretty specific things to say about killing?" "Very specific. But it gets rather fuzzy in the area of kneecaps."
Admittedly, a talented writer and excellent acting isn't necessarily enough to guarantee huge box office profits - just look at "Mystic River." However, there is one aspect of the situation that not a lot of people have noticed - the market. Right now, there is a huge gap in the marketplace left by the two recent Star Wars releases. Pretty much everyone I've talked to agrees that they stink, and for pretty much the same reason across the board - Lucas has gotten so caught up in the computerized effects that he's totally neglected the sort of character development and story that, *combined* with the revolutionary effects, made the first three movies such a success. While some people like the special effects, and many people have gone to see the latest Star Wars movies out of respect for the original three, I think almost everyone will agree that they were, at the very least, a disappointment. And because of this, there are a whole bunch of people who have been wanting to see a really good science fiction movie, with fun characters and dialogue and nicely done special effects.
Enter "Firefly."
If Joss Whedon is willing and able to keep to the formula that made the series excellent, there's a very good chance that the movie is going to bring in some huge returns - even if Universal makes the same mistake Fox did with the series, i.e. not advertising it at all. After all, the first "Star Wars" movie was popularized mostly through word of mouth; Fox was so sure it was a flop that at one point they were considering selling their stake in it as a tax shelter. But because of the amazing effects, the believable characters, and the intelligent (and oftentimes hilarious) banter, "Star Wars" grossed millions and remains a classic today.
Consequently, the biggest worry for this film is not whether enough people will go to see it; it's whether the producers, director, and actors are able to keep to the formula that made the TV series so much fun. I've seen a lot of discussions about whether and how easily "Firefly" can be adapted to the big screen, but honestly, all the elements for a good movie were in the series - decent plot, good character development, nice special effects, and (appropriately!) witty dialogue. Length should be no problem, either, as evidenced by the two-hour pilot episode, which really felt more like an hour. In essence, nothing really needs to be changed to make a great movie out of it other than the physical format.
If done well, this movie has the potential to be the brightest "Firefly" flash yet. Here's hoping that afterwards, it will flash again in a new (and hopefully, this time, more constant) form.
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Turn not to the dark, soundless space side!
Date: 2003-10-17 08:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-11-16 08:44 am (UTC)I'm just hoping for more of the story to be told, blockbuster or not. A few people have suggested that a series of good movies, rather than one big attempt at "great", could be better- sort of like the serialized stories of the early days of cinema. Given that the production costs for Firefly were very modest (by movie standards), you wouldn't have to target every kid/SUV owner/liberal/conservative/retiree to make a profit. But I'm afraid today's movie marketing model probably doesn't support that concept very well.
I'd *really* like a couple more seasons rather than just one movie :)
I like special effects, of course (Y chromosome), but *really* like a decent story. To be entertained without feeling intellectually insulted afterward.
Enjoyed reading through your journal, and am envious of your snow :)
Chris.Talbert@gouldevans.com
Also greatly enjoyed your post... keep the faith.
Date: 2003-11-19 09:57 pm (UTC)I came across your Firefly movie posting over on fireflyfans.net.
What a great read. You seem smart, hip and intelligent (wait... that's redundant AND repetitive).
I have high hopes for the movie also. I originally watched FF as an old friend of mine is one of the actors (Alan Tudyk/Wash). While I originally tuned it to see how he was doing, I too quickly fell in love with the quirky and deep characters. My DVDs are already on order and I've got a party planned for my neighborhood to break open the shrink wrap.
2005.... far, far too long a time to wait.
Sigh.
Thanks for your posting.
Peace
Richard Echeandia (eh954<@>hotmail.com)