I had to share this fine example of a Deep Left movie review, coming from the old-school communist wingbats of MIM, the Maoist International Movement. This comes from the electronic archives of MIM Notes, the diatribe mouthpiece of the die-hard communist. My favorite feature is the use of "Amerikka" and "Bu$h." Following that, it's "wimmin" and "humyn." You'll understand, when you read this....."

"Serenity": revolutionary plot with hope for the future of humanity

[Spoiler warning]

"Serenity" offers viewers a revolutionary plot with hope for the future of humanity. This science fiction movie is set in the future, when humans have expanded beyond earth into the universe. The Universal Alliance, created by "civilized" people who rule over many worlds, complete with a large military force, try to enforce their will on other worlds where humans resist the Alliance.

The insidious nature of imperialist propaganda is revealed early in the film as one main character is shown as a child in school learning about the "outer worlds" that are not a part of the Alliance. The teacher asks the class why the outer worlds would resist "civilization." While other kids give answers about the savage nature of those people (answers no doubt lifted from today's Amerikan classrooms about Third World peoples), the character River says that the Alliance is meddling where they have no business and should be stopped. This mis-education starts from an early age, teaching kids to accept imperialism. And when they do not, they are often labeled as crazy, a fate not tremendously different from that faced by River.

A small crew of mercenaries who originally fought in a war against the Alliance are brought back into politics when they shelter River and her brother from the Alliance. The movie shows the crew awakening to the political reality of the situation and the importance that they take up the struggle against the Alliance for the good of humanity. And as they do so, we see the ruthless violence of the Alliance (a.k.a. imperialists) murdering everyone this small group of resisters ever had contact with in an attempt to flush them out.

The powerful role of the media is shown both as a way the Alliance finds River, and as a tool for the resisters to fight the Alliance. The resisters see the need to expose Alliance atrocities (experimenting with drugs on outer world humans which resulted in deaths of millions and grotesque mutilation of others) to all of humanity. Their goal is to take control of the media to do this as an attack against the powerful Alliance.

The movie demonstrates the potential power of a small vanguard, and the importance of controlling the media. But it leaves out the key role that class plays in imperialism. The outer worlds are being "meddled" with, but we never see them being exploited. In fact it appears that all people are living un-exploited and it is just the power-hungry Alliance that is trying to "civilize" all worlds. While the analogy works to a point, this is lacking some crucial facts about imperialism, facts that dictate who will rise up against it and who will ally with it.

MIM would presume that those people living within the Alliance would likely benefit from the exploitation of the outer worlds and as a result, have a material interest in maintaining the Alliance. No doubt the exposure of Alliance atrocities would shift many people into the camp of the resistance. But material interest is a powerful thing, as we see with Amerikan citizens who continue to support imperialist wars in large numbers. Perhaps Whedon recognized this weakness and concluded the movie with the information that the Alliance was weakened but still intact to give viewers a realistic picture that it would not be the release of information about Alliance atrocities alone that would bring down the power.

- From MIM Notes, Nov. 1 -15, 2005.