Saw this movie last week, but due to various problems, it’s taken this long to talk about. Just to warn everyone

MAJOR SPOILERS COMING UP. IF YOU'VE NOT SEEN THIS YET, AND ACTUALLY CARE ABOUT THE STORY, TURN AWAY NOW. DON'T LOOK FURTHER, JUST GO READ SOMETHING ELSE.

Budget

Right from the start of this movie you could tell this was going to be a good Sci-fi flick. The smaller-than-usual-budget-for-a-sci-fi-movie (apparently $40 million) however does come through in the lack of overly elaborate sets. This was arguably the one aspect that did make the movie seem less fit for the big screen than anything else (i.e lack of big name Hollywood actors etc). Although the story does journey to different locales, the real life sets were less than spectacular.

That isn’t to say that it’s a cheepo movie. Money has been spent on this film. This movie would have been the best Firefly episode ever made. The CGI used here was superb, and there were shocks, spills and revelations. I enjoyed seeing the worlds that Firefly/Serenity inhabit. That aspect has always been missing from Sci-fi TV series. Battlestar Galactica does do a gallant job of trying to rectify this situation, in that the sets don’t look the same from one shoot to the next, however BG doesn’t really show much in way of new worlds, so they don’t need to spend much money on the CGI.

Characters

For me although Kaylee was originally my favorite character, she quickly turned to my number 2 or 3, as River easily took over that role towards the end of the Firefly show. With the Serenity movie she’s established herself as the number 1 character of the show, by a long way. Apart from the fact that I’m completely gone on Summer Glau, she’s also the quirkiest character there. I’d question whether she looks 17, however it seems that the youth of America need to be told that they have to look like 25 year olds. Can anyone say Beverly Hills 90210?

Starting from the beginning young-River, looks NOTHING like the older version. IMHO that’s easily the worst casting of the movie. Not that the little girl was a bad actress (like a certain mini-skywaker), but she just wasn’t a good match. This was more than made up for by giving River the best scenes and the best lines.

If I hadn’t watched Firefly, I’d say that not enough information was given about Book, and his death meant little to the audience that were not familiar with the movie. Same goes for Wash. Good way to end his life on screen however:

I'm a leaf on the wind

The Operative is a suitably evil bad guy, although I’d question Mal’s decision not to kill him on several occasions. His opening scene is one I’ll remember for a while. Just the coldness of his actions are pulled off very well. I never cringed once when I saw him on scene, which I generally do when I see the ‘typical bad guy’.

Inara didn’t get much time on screen, which is a crying shame as she does a very good job of challenging Mal’s authority/ideas and plans. I’m glad they progressed that aspect of the relationship, even by the slightest amount.

Storyline

The revelation of the Reavers was another great little gem of storytelling, as we've always been led to believe that they're just humans gone wrong of their own accord. Always nice when you get a payoff to watching something for an extended period of time (think Babylon 5). It's also very cool to see them more up close. It just adds a certain brutality to the show, and gives it a bit of an edge.

Conclusion

As a Firefly fan, I was impressed by the overall package of a movie it was. I'm still on the fence about whether or not it truly required a full length feature movie in the cinema, as something deep down felt like it just didn't belong there. The Firefly fans are going to take a lot from it than anyone else that's for sure.

Just as a sidenote, if you’re interested in finding out what exactly happened in the 6 months between the end of Firefly and the start of Serenity (i.e why Inara and Book left), then check out the upcoming Serenity mini-series in trade paperback from Dark Horse (it’s written by Joss Whedon and apparently very well drawn, I’ve only scoped out the covers which are brilliant).