Serenity [Includes Digital Copy] [4K Ultra HD Blu-ray] [2 Discs]

Director: Joss Whedon Joss Whedon

Overview

Serenity is based on Joss Whedon's television show Firefly, in which interplanetary travel has brought about colonization of the planets, leading to a combination of sci-fi and Western tropes. The film picks up where the short-lived series left off, following the exploits of a crew of small-time criminals and outcasts who eke out a living on the edge of space, performing illegal smuggles and transports aboard a Firefly class cargo ship named Serenity. Led by a quick-witted veteran from the losing side of an interstellar war, Captain "Mal" Reynolds (Nathan Fillion), the crew is comprised of a rag-tag assortment of characters who, despite having their differences, are mostly loyal to one another, the closest thing that many of them have to a family. The stability of the crew is challenged, however, by the revelation that two of the passengers aboard, a brother and sister, are fugitives, wanted by the Interplanetary Alliance with a hefty reward on their heads. The young woman, River (Summer Glau), who was held captive in a government facility, has since developed unimaginable combat skills and telepathic abilities. She appears to have been altered by some form of experimental technology, leaving her emotionally unstable and incalculably valuable. The ship therefore remains on the outskirts of space, keeping it under the radar of the Alliance but placing the crew in danger of being sacked by Reavers -- savage men who traverse the edge of space, turning hapless goers by into food and clothing. They cannot run forever and now, the crew of Serenity must risk everything and rely on each other to keep River out of government hands and their ship in one piece. One question, however, haunts the crew throughout their ordeal: is River herself more of a threat to them than any of the enemies that pursue them? Serenity mixes action with humor and relies on the cast's strong chemistry as portrayed through the characters' steady rapport.

Product Details

Release Date:	10/17/2017
UPC:	0191329009888
Original Release:	2005
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	Universal Studios
Language:	English
Format:	Blu-ray
Sales rank:	8,959

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Nathan Fillion	Capt. Malcolm Reynolds
Gina Torres	Zoe
Alan Tudyk	Wash
Morena Baccarin	Inara
Adam Baldwin	Jayne
Jewel Staite	Kaylee
Sean Maher	Simon Tam
Summer Glau	River Tam
Ron Glass	Shepherd Book
Chiwetel Ejiofor	The Operative
David Krumholtz	Mr. Universe
Michael Hitchcock	Dr. Mathias
Sarah Paulson	Dr. Caron
Yan Feldman	Mingo,Fanty
Nectar Rose	Lenore
Tamara Taylor	Teacher
Glenn Howerton	Lilac Young Tough
Hunter Ansley Wryn	Young River
Logan Craig O'Brien	Boy Student,Lab Technician
Erik Erotas	Boy Student
Demetra Raven	Girl Student
Jessica Huang	Girl Student
Marley McClean	Girl Student
Scott Kinworthy	Ensign
Erik Weiner	Helmsman
Peter James Smith	Lab Technician
Weston I. Nathanson	Trade Agent
CeCe Cline	Young Female Intern
Chuck O'Neil	Vault Guard
Amy Wieczorek	Lilac Mom
Tristan Jarred	Lilac Son
Elaine Lee	Fan Dancer
Terrence Hardy	Mining Camp Boy
Brian O'Hare	Alliance Pilot
Ryan Tasz	Black Room Soldier
Colin Patrick Lynch	Black Room Soldier
Terrell Tilford	News Anchor
Joshua Kwiat	Slovenly Beaumonde Man
Rick Williamson	Actor
Joss Whedon	Actor
Linda Wang	Actor
David Sobolov	Actor
David Newman	Composer

Technical Credits

Joss Whedon

Joss Whedon	Director,Screenwriter
Barry Mendel	Producer
Loni Peristere	Special Effects
Dan Sudick	Special Effects
Christopher Buchanan	Executive Producer
David V. Lester	Executive Producer
Alisa Tager	Executive Producer
Dave Adams	Special Effects
Ron Bartlett	Sound Effects
Tom Bellfort	Sound Effects
Andrew Bock	Sound Effects
Charlie Campagna	Sound Effects
Rick Canelli	Sound Effects

Editorial Reviews

Science fiction fans will recognize in this pleasantly old-fashioned space opera the basic plotline and characters of Firefly, the short-lived 2002 television series by Joss Whedon (creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel). It takes place in a faraway solar system dominated by an overbearing Alliance that's being challenged by rebel upstarts with varying agendas. Mal Reynolds (Nathan Fillion), captain of the spaceship Serenity and its ragtag, smuggling crew, takes aboard a psychic named River Tam (Summer Glau) and her brother Simon (Sean Maher), fugitives from Alliance mind-washers. Reynolds may come to regret the decision, as his passengers are being pursued by the most tenacious and deadly of Alliance agents, a man known only as the Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor). There's nothing terribly innovative about the plot; Whedon's Alliance is another of those bureaucratic, Big Brotherish entities that offers freedom from discontent while subverting civil liberties and stifling dissent. The Serenity's motley crew typifies the rugged, rough-edged, anti-establishment individualists that naturally reject societal structure. You can guess who comes out on top. But writer-director Whedon isn't interested in breaking new ground, and his half-hearted attempt to tinge Serenity with political satire falls flat. Whedon's strength is character delineation and interplay, and the movie is most enjoyable when its principal characters are jousting verbally. Mal's crew -- Zoe (Gina Torres), Wash (Alan Tudyk), Jayne (Adam Baldwin), Inara (Morena Baccarin), and Kaylee (Jewel Staite) -- banter with aplomb, speaking in a peculiar combination of futuristic jargon and pseudo-hip Chinese slang. Some of Whedon's dialogue is a little too cutesy for our taste, but it's generally snappy and well delivered by a relaxed cast that's obviously having fun with the material. The surfeit of talk, however, doesn't mean that Serenity stints on action -- far from it. There are lots of energetic confrontations, both in space and on the ship, and if you blink at the wrong time you're liable to miss plenty.