Here we see that it’s all connected, as the argument continues into the cargo bay.We see the captain touring the ship, the pilot landing the craft, the warrior choosing his gear, the mechanic keeping them flying, the doctor giving inoculations. This shot does a lot by showing each of the crew members in their roles, rather than just telling them to us. We see through a window into the infirmary.It looks lived in and worn, as though the ship has been flying a while. We continue downstairs, to another area with an organic feel about it, in this case a sitting area.This was done because the sets were built single-story, meaning the lower level was actually next to the upper level, instead of below it. They head downstairs, at which point the shot cheats, and there’s a hidden splice. Mal’s confronted by Simon, which begins a conversation that carries throughout the rest of the shot.When combined with their conversation, it shows the viewers the condition of the ship. The shot continues to the engine room, where Kaylee is trying to keep things together as things spark and steam around her. ![]() The camera follows Mal through the kitchen/dining area, where the wooden table and chairs give the ship an organic feeling, differentiating it from other, more sterile sci-fi films.We see Zoe coming up one set of stairs from the lower level, heading to see her husband in the cockpit.The sets were built in the correct configuration to match the design of the ship, allowing the camera to seamlessly follow Mal as he tours the ship. We move from the cockpit to the crew quarters hall, and encounter Jayne coming out of his bunk with many weapons and grenades.To the new viewer, this shows the relaxed vibe of the ship, where people are allowed to be themselves. The camera pans over to show us the pilot, whose station is covered with toy dinosaurs.The shot begins in the cockpit, where Mal is reacting to a piece of his ship falling off during descent towards the planet.Click through the pics to read more about each frame below. The scene isn’t easily available online, so I’ve taken some screencaps and put them in the gallery below, along with my commentary. The writing is top notch, of course, with plenty of lines that people love to quote (“We may experience some slight turbulence and then… explode.”), but I’d like to look at the visual language of the shot. It’s the 4 minute long take which introduces our main cast and the ship, Serenity. ![]() (2) – This one has been talked about a lot online. It gives us insight into his methods without the need for him to explain it verbally. In an interesting bit of framing, his eyes pass exactly through River’s eyes, showing us how the Operative is attempting to see the world through her eyes in order to try to track her down. It’s a sequence that has lots of fun playing with perception and layers, but the shot that interests me occurs as the Operative rewinds the hologram footage and then walks through the image of River. We then see her being rescued by her brother, only for the scene to be stopped and revealed as security footage being watched by the Operative. She contradicts the teacher, who stabs her in the forehead with a stylus, and it’s revealed that the classroom was simply a memory she was experiencing while being experimented on by scientists. It transitions this narration into a classroom lesson in which sits a young River Tam, one of the protagonists. The movie opens with a narration describing the state of the universe in which Serenity is set. (1) – The first shot that I want to highlight comes near the very beginning. Green, Serenity‘s cinematographer, when you listen to Joss’s commentary on the film and read his script it becomes apparent how many of these shots he planned far in advance. And while some of the credit has to go Jack N. Some of these are great examples of Joss’s use of visual storytelling, others are creative or unconventionally framed, and some are just ones that I like the way they look. So I decided to take today’s Friday Favorite to go beyond just my usual one item and instead highlight all of my favorite shots from Serenity. However, seeing Serenity on the big screen again reminded me how creative he is with a camera. ![]() He is able to get creative and varied performances out of his actors, though some of that can also be attributed to his writing ability. Joss Whedon gets a lot of praise for his writing, often at the expense of his skills as a director. Welcome to “Friday Favorites” which highlight some of my favorite movie-related things.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |