Serena seems like it has everything going for it. It has an interesting, inherently dramatic setting. It has two lead stars who when working together invariably attract awards attention. A strong supporting cast of seasoned thespians ought to provide a solid backbone. And yet, Serena is mostly a mess. It feels like the product of endless compromise, of filmmakers that didn't quite know what to do with the material they were given. The movie floats through an unfocused narrative, stumbling as it tries to hit a unwieldy multitude of narrative points.
George Pemberton (Bradley Cooper) is a logger baron. He struggles to keep control of his empire as the depression hits the industry hard. He is facing challenges to the ownership of his land. While out on a trip, he spots the strong-willed, independent Serena (Jennifer Lawrence) and immediately falls in love. He proposes marriage out of the blue, and brings her back to his land. Things get tricky for the couple as jealousies arise and bring murder into the business.
This is a movie about a great many things. It is about a great passion that supersedes all sense. It is about desperation bringing about violence. It is about powerful men and what they do to hold on to their power. It is also about a gruff hunter played by Rhys Ifans, who can apparently tell the future. The film struggles to juggle all of these competing concerns, and ends up making a strange, unintelligible mess of heightened passions, political intrigue and magical realism with no real defined direction.
The film needed to be either longer or more focused. In its current form, it's somewhere in between. It doesn't have enough time to develop any of its disparate threads. The central relationship feels thin, most of it built on sweaty interactions meant to convey passion. It feels painfully forced. When things get crazy, it doesn't feel entirely justified. It is as though the movie is reaching for the next thing, unable to take the proper steps to get closer to the next piece of the story. It ends up feeling episodic, with new chapters bringing us into an entirely new place in the story.
It is a handsome production, the period details coming through vividly. But the direction might be a tad too restrained for what turns out to be a pretty crazy narrative. The charismatic leads look a little confused, unable to find a logical rhythm in their relationship. The direction should have stepped in here, filling in the blanks left by the subpar material. Cooper and Lawrence share ample chemistry, but this is by far their more stilted collaboration.
Serena took a lot of time to get to theaters, and it's not hard to see why. The film just feels unsure and awkward, stuck halfway between being a prestige period picture and a piece of mindless schlock. It feels as though the material and the direction are at odds, the stodgy tone clashing with the stranger narrative turns. There is so much happening in Serena, but the film is simply unable to make any of it compelling.
My Rating:
