Serenity

Year: 2005
Genre: Sci-fi, action
Director: Joss Whedon


Plot: The crew of the spaceship Serenity must protect a girl with special powers from an assassin.


The gist: With Joss Whedon, you know you'll get plenty of humour mixed with action, and that's what we get here. The best part is you don't have to be a fan of Firefly, the shortlived series this film is based on.

Nathan Fillion leads a small crew of a ship called Serenity, making a living by robbing banks. One of their own, a girl called River, is wanted by an evil federation. They send an assassin after her, prompting the crew to flee while investigating the reason why they want her in the first place.

The premise has a hint of Star Wars in it, added with some western elements. Joss Whedon does a great job in seamlessly blending action and humour together, making the film real easy and fun to sit through.


The good: Though Summer Glau is predictably impressive in the fight scenes, it is Nathan Fillion who scores as the captain of Serenity. The actors playing his crew members are also great in their roles. Chiwetel Ejiofor is awesome as the assassin sent after River. And as mentioned, the script and dialogue is brilliant.

The bad: Morena Baccarin is severely underused as Fillion's love interest. And as good as the humour is, Whedon overdoes it at times, as I felt certain scenes would have worked better without it.

Verdict: A very entertaining film overall, even for those who aren't familiar with Whedon's work. (3.5/5)