Review: Serena

Hollywood is fundamentally built on money, which helps to explain why trends occur: studios will seek to cash in on the success of certain films, genres and topics by releasing their own versions. It was only a couple of weeks ago that Gone Girl was released, about a flawed man brought to his knees by a disturbed, murderous wife, and now we have Serena, about exactly the same thing.

Set in the North Carolina forests just after the Wall Street Crash, Serena tells the story of one George Pemberton (Bradley Cooper), a logging tycoon trying to forge a lumber empire in straightened times. He soon meets the beguiling Serena soon-to-be Pemberton (Jennifer Lawrence), a disturbed young woman whose family were killed in a fire when she was 12. They marry, dedicate themselves to the lumberjacking and each other, and all is well.

No prizes for guessing that soon things go a little wrong, with George’s right-hand man threatening to betray them to the law. There’s death, romance and betrayal in the clear mountain air.

One of the main problems with Serena, an enjoyable but shallow affair, is that it is confused about what it is. The plot changes at the tiniest coincidence, people switch allegiances for unrealistic reasons, and the flimsiest pretences turn the film on its head. You think that you are watching one thing, only to realise that it’s another now, and you just don’t care.

Another major drawback is how the film is stuffed with easy symbolism. An analysis of its themes would reads like a school essay on American literature: the quest for the American Dream; the brutality of the frontier; man versus nature. Serena imports an eagle, taming it and teaching it to catch the snakes which are attacking the loggers. It soars above the action, gleaming in its golden United States pride. Yes, we get it. From the first scene to the last, there is a hunt for a local panther. Every so often, George leaves the action to stalk this elusive beast, drawn further into the wilderness which, one suspects, might overpower him. Again, we are insulted by the obviousness of these metaphors being stuffed down our throats.

As others have pointed out, Serena was filmed a couple of years ago. Since then, Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence have starred in two critically acclaimed films, and in all likelihood this was edited to promote their time on-screen together. As a result, the fabulous supporting cast are woefully underused. Toby Jones, for example, is a righteous local sheriff who joins the action only when totally necessary. Characters disappear as suddenly as they appear. Rhys Ifans is an enjoyable watch as the brooding psycho mountain man, a mix of Bill Sykes and Anton Chigurh, and in my mind the Welshman plays it with a lot more depth than Bradley Cooper manages.

The relationship between Serena and George, then, is an important one. It forms the backbone of the film more than individuals or plot. But the problem is that there just isn’t enough in that element to support the whole movie. Lawrence has been given a meaty role, in which she thrives, but Cooper hasn’t. The outcome is a flat shadow of Silver Linings Playbook. There are whispers of Macbeth in their marriage, but that is to do an enormous disservice to the play. What a shame – truly a wasted opportunity. 

The filmmakers could certainly have improved the final product by keeping the action within the claustrophobic logging village, which would allow for a focus that is lacking. Instead of a Macbeth style tragedy, we have a rambling and vague story which just fizzles into nothing. There is no edge, no real soul. So, while Serena is nicely shot and perfectly entertaining, it is a film that will likely soon be forgotten.