Serenity

The irony of Serenity is that it is anything but serene and that is the beauty of it.

I’ve read this quote over and over again in reference to the movie Serenity and I just don’t get it. It’s one of those movies that has so much “hype” surrounding it but leaves you almost always expecting more when it ends and its rolling credits begin to flood the silver screen. I’ve read over most of your responses to the movie and I feel like I’m not really getting what everyone else seems to have gotten from it.

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So, I watched Serenity again last night and I can FINALLY say...I GET IT! I GET IT!

In the future, humanity has spread to other planets when the Earth became overpopulated. But it is not a peaceful universe: Civil war rages between groups of planets, the highly structured and controlled worlds of the Alliance vs. the Independents, who are the residents of the outer worlds. There are also groups that have become cannibals and prey on other humans.

I think the above description of the movie's plot and I can't help but feel a little queasy. I can't just laugh at the humor found in this space western comedy because so much of it resonates with a possible (very real) future for all of us Earthlings. In my response to the class question, I assent to the idea of expanding further into the galaxy in order to accomodate our excess population. In doing so, however, I never really thought about the implications that would bring. In short, I never considered the fact that we would bring all of our flaws (pollution, war, and even a lack of humanity at times) with us.

I suppose the quote is right on. This movie is far from "serene." I argue this point because I'm fearful that we will eventually run out of places to run. We will eventually destroy everything and not so much because it's a natural "circle of life" but because we're flawed humans and rather than force ourselves to sustain and improve our home here we'd rather take on more so as to avoid having to be accountable for the soiling of our planet.