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DVD Talk review of 'Serenity: Collector's Edition'

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DVD Talk review of 'Serenity: Collector's Edition'

Old 08-19-07, 07:05 PM
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DVD Talk review of 'Serenity: Collector's Edition'

I read das Monkey's DVD review of Serenity: Collector's Edition at http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=29908 and...
what a thorough and great review. the DTS sounded to you exactly as it does to me. loud and boastful without being obnoxious and unclear with dialogue. i haven't experienced the whole thing as yet, but i will, oh yes, i will...
i just wish i didn't used to have the R4 or else all the features would have been new and fun to discover, but i am very much looking forward to the new cast commentary. i liked Nathan on "Slither" and with this cast and this surprisingly fun, entertaining movie (i still haven't been able to get into the series, but the movie is an entity all its own and so addictive) i am sure this will be no exception. great read and i can't wait to dig in.

plus, i think if the Q&A from the R4 was included this might have made this release a "Collector's Series", but beggars can't be choosers.

Last edited by OldBoy; 08-19-07 at 07:13 PM.
Old 08-19-07, 07:17 PM
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also, das...what is this "gut-bustingly hilarious as Fillion's prank on "The Message""? if i watch the ep. will i know what the prank is?
Old 08-19-07, 08:30 PM
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Thanks for reading the review. It didn't occur to me when I first typed that sentence that the blooper material from "The Message" is not a part of the blooper reel included on the Firefly DVDs. I don't really know why, and truth be told, I can't even remember where I saw it or how long it's been. I just remember laughing harder at it than anything else on that reel or the Serenity one. I could type what happens, but it won't be funny. Of course, now that it's been built up so much in your mind, it probably won't be that funny anyway. But it made me laugh. Spoiler for what happens in "The Message":
Spoiler:
When the camera is slowly panning around Tracey's casket to get somber reaction shots from the crew as his final words are played in the background, Nathan keeps circling around behind the camera, so that every time a new crew member comes into frame, Nathan's also standing in the frame staring coldly in the distance with perfect deadpan. He makes it into about 5 reaction shots in one circular pan, and no one can keep a straight face except him. See? Doesn't really work when you type it.

das

Last edited by das Monkey; 08-19-07 at 08:33 PM.
Old 08-19-07, 08:43 PM
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What about the picture quality? The first release the picture was really dark, and wasn't very good. Contrary to what the older review said. I heard the HD-DVD is much better in terms of picture quality. Did they correct this, or is it still the same ugly dark and partly grainy pic from the 1 disc?
Old 08-19-07, 09:29 PM
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I disagree. It's often a dark film. When I saw my first advance screening, I commented to another member here about how some scenes were really dark and others were overexposed. We assumed it was a stylistic choice (more obvious for the scenes on the planet surface) but wondered if it would be changed in the finished product. When I saw it again on opening night, scenes were dark again and I had my answer. When it showed up on DVD, it was dark, and the commentary talked about underlighting scenes for effect. It's still dark. I have not seen the HD DVD, but checking Josh's review, it's apparently dark there too, just with more detail, better resolution, and no compression issues.

So, IMO, aside from some minor issues found on most DVDs, the picture quality is fine, but if you were really bothered by the first release, I guess you won't like this one either.

das
Old 08-19-07, 10:35 PM
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don't you think they used the same transfer on this? i doubt they would have newly re-mastered it considering it just came out not too long ago.

can you try to remember how you saw that "The Message" blooper? youtube perhaps? i would love to see that...
Old 08-19-07, 10:51 PM
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As I said in the review, it looks the same to me. To be sure, I took half a dozen screenshots of varying contrast, and they were identical.

As for the extended blooper reel, my guess would be a convention. I remember seeing the mule chase at one before the film came out, so maybe it was there?

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Old 08-20-07, 05:48 AM
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i don't know if iam allowed to comment on the film here or not...but can someone explain to me what's so good about Serenity!??! first, let me just say that i love Sci-fi but i haven't seen Firefly...so maybe that's the reason? i just don't understand its appeal and iam willing to give it another chance just gimme your opinions on "why Serenity is so good" i dunno...it seems to me that's it's very overrated.
Old 08-20-07, 06:38 AM
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I think it is such a character driven series, that without seeing Firefly I can see how you might be let down by it. That said, I love the movie, but it is probably overrated partially because of the cirumstances of it's creation.
Old 08-20-07, 03:53 PM
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Originally Posted by starman9000
I think it is such a character driven series, that without seeing Firefly I can see how you might be let down by it. That said, I love the movie, but it is probably overrated partially because of the cirumstances of it's creation.
i have the series, but only saw a few eps and really didn't get into it at all. maybe i have to give it another chance, but it will be the third. with that said, i love "Serenity"!! love it. i think it can stand entirely on its' own as its own entity. it is a Sci-Fi blast with all the great elements of so many films rolled into one. the cast is just perfect and completely gel together. the dialogue is crisp and as das said some of the wittiest you will ever hear. i think Nathan Fillion just oozes Han Solo gravitas and plays the role masterfully well. it is just a great Sci-Fi epic regardless of what series came before it or it is tied to. great movie making by Whedon all around i think.
Old 08-20-07, 04:28 PM
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There's a thread in the DVD forum about that Gag Reel, which can be downloaded by right-clicking this link:

http://www.whispergraphics.net/Firefly-GagReel.mp4

I had to convert it to a different format to watch it though, as it wouldn't play in Quicktime despite being an MPEG-4 file.

Here's the original thread about it:

http://forum.dvdtalk.com/showthread.php?t=509596


The Gag Reel on the Firefly DVD set is a shortened version of the one here, so much of it will be familiar.

Last edited by Nick Martin; 08-20-07 at 04:31 PM.
Old 08-20-07, 06:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Nick Martin
http://www.whispergraphics.net/Firefly-GagReel.mp4

I had to convert it to a different format to watch it though, as it wouldn't play in Quicktime despite being an MPEG-4 file.
If you're on a Mac, then you can install Perian to play in Quicktime or for Mac and Win you can use VLC to play it.
Old 08-22-07, 06:23 AM
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I double dipped because I have to say, this is very close to being my favorite sci-fi action movie of all time, no kidding. The Firefly TV series gets run in my home, in order, at least twice a year.
Old 08-22-07, 11:03 AM
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I am insane, but triple-dipping here.

The regular DVD, then the HD-DVD, now with all the extras (and rebate from FYE), I have to have the CE. (In addition to the Series set)

I never saw the show (FireFly) when it was on TV, but a buddy recommended it to me and I got hooked. The Movie exceeded my expectations. And I am not what I consider a Sci-Fi fan. Star Trek and Galactica are just boring to me, but this show (and movie) are really well done.

Even when it's on now (HD Universal?), I will watch the episode.
Old 08-22-07, 02:32 PM
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I double dipped mainly for the new commentary track. I would have liked to of seen some more features or maybe a cool booklet (like a criterion). Oh well, Its still great. The featurettes are pretty cool to.
Old 08-26-07, 08:07 AM
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You're not the only one whop triple dipped. I bought the original DVD release, the 2-disc one, and for some reason (I guess to show support), I even bought the damned UMD release of the movie (though I have never actually watched that version). If I had a HD player, I know I would have bought the HD release too.
Old 08-28-07, 09:59 PM
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i just can't understand why they would prevent you from switching audio tracks during movie. that really pisses me off, especially since you can switch subtitles and when you switch back to DTS the movie starts over. this really makes me mad.
Old 08-30-07, 05:59 PM
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I just finished the CE edition, and I have to say that it is not worth the $19.99 that I paid for it. I enjoyed the movie of course, but I bought the edition for the extra features. I found the commentary with the cast to be quite boring with everyone talking over each other, and most of the extra features just replayed the same interviews that we had already seen. By the end of the dvd, I was quite sick of hearing the love fest everyone had for the film.
Old 08-30-07, 08:33 PM
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I too bought the CE. Sure I didn't need it, and in fact I was happy with my original copy, but I do love the franchise. So if my second needless purchase helps support any future Firefly universe media get developed then I am happy to do my small part.
Old 08-31-07, 12:42 AM
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I was just pleased that they finally did some behind the scenes stuff on Rivers working out for her fight scenes. Plus, what Superman said about supporting the franchize.

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