Serena (2014 film)

Last updated

Serena
Serenaposter.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Susanne Bier
Written byChristopher Kyle
Based on Serena
by Ron Rash
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Morten Søborg
Edited by
Music by Johan Söderqvist
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • October 13, 2014 (2014-10-13)(BFI London Film Festival)
  • October 24, 2014 (2014-10-24)(United Kingdom)
  • November 12, 2014 (2014-11-12)(France)
  • March 27, 2015 (2015-03-27)(United States)
Running time
110 minutes [1]
Countries
  • United States
  • France
LanguageEnglish
Budget$25–30 million [2]
Box office$5 million [3]

Serena is a 2014 drama film based on the 2008 novel of the same name by American author Ron Rash. [4] Directed by Susanne Bier, the film stars Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper as newlyweds running a timber business in 1930s North Carolina. Due to negative reviews, the film was a box office failure.

Contents

Plot

In Depression-era North Carolina, George Pemberton is an ambitious timber baron who falls in love with Serena Shaw, a young woman with a sad past. They marry, and she joins him on his land and starts to take control, pressuring and questioning George while remaining affectionate.

George's business partner Buchanan feels threatened as Serena begins to undermine his authority. The partnership worsens, and Buchanan strikes a deal with the local sheriff, who wants to buy George's land to make a park. George is hurt by his betrayal, and Serena convinces him Buchanan was never his friend.

On a shooting trip, George and Buchanan go alone to flush out a bear. George contemplates killing him, only to hesitate and be seen by him. Buchanan cocks his rifle, but George fires first and kills him. Campbell, George's worker, witnesses the murder but denies it to Sheriff McDowell, and the death is ruled an accident. Serena consoles George and justifies his actions.

After seeing his illegitimate son Jacob posing with his mother, Rachel, for a picture, George feels responsible for the boy and begins giving her money. Serena remains unaware of this, but considers Rachel and the baby a threat.

When Galloway loses his hand to an errant axe swing, Serena uses a belt as a tourniquet to save his life. George rushes the pregnant Serena to the hospital after she experiences heavy bleeding and pain. She miscarries, and they learn she can never again bear children. Tensions grow, and the parentage of Rachel's baby becomes more obvious to Serena.

While Serena and George are away, Campbell takes ledgers from the safe and presents them to the Sheriff. He is preparing to testify that George has been bribing a senator and shot Buchanan deliberately. Discovering what Campbell has done, George and Serena realize he could ruin them.

Galloway tells Serena that he knows where Campbell is, and tells George there is a panther in the forest so he's busy hunting it. Meanwhile, Galloway heads into town to kill Campbell and retrieve the ledgers. Finding George’s hidden picture of Rachel and her baby and discovering that George has been giving Rachel money, Serena scratches the baby's face from the photograph.

Serena leaves with Galloway, telling George that she has business to take care of. Not finding Rachel at home, they head for the Widow Jenkins’. George's employee Vaughn calls the Sheriff, worried about Rachel and what Serena plans to do. The Sheriff goes to Widow Jenkins', finding her with her throat slashed, and takes Rachel and her baby away.

In the morning, the Sheriff questions George, revealing that Galloway killed Campbell and the Widow Jenkins and that he is after Rachel and her child. George asks Serena if she sent him to kill Rachel and Jacob, which she insists was necessary. He storms out; when Serena follows him, he briefly chokes her before driving off with a gun and the ledgers.

George goes to the Sheriff, gives him the ledgers, and promises to turn himself in if he tells him where Rachel and the baby are. George races to save her before Galloway finds her. Galloway tracks Rachel to the train station, where she hides in a shed. As the train approaches, George finds Galloway, who sees Rachel jump onto the train. George goes after them and slashes Galloway's throat.

George bids Rachel and the baby farewell as they depart to live with Vaughn. George returns to the camp and sets off to hunt the panther. He shoots it, but it leaps at him from behind, fatally wounding him. He manages to kill it with a hunting knife before dying.

The Sheriff returns to the Pemberton cabin with George's body. Serena, having expected him to return, grows upset and refuses to identify his body. As the Sheriff leaves, she lies on the bed and uses a lighter to set the cabin on fire. Serena remains motionless as it burns, killing her.

Cast

Production

The film was originally to be directed by Darren Aronofsky, with Angelina Jolie as the title character. Susanne Bier replaced Aronofsky as director and brought on Jennifer Lawrence instead. Lawrence recommended Bradley Cooper, with whom she had worked previously on Silver Linings Playbook ; they had gotten along so well that they often spoke about working together in the future. When Lawrence read the script for Serena, she sent a copy to Cooper and asked if he would do it with her. He agreed and Bier cast him as George Pemberton.

At the time, this was the third project to star Cooper and Lawrence, after Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle , and their second time playing mutual love interests.

Filming took place in the Czech Republic at Barrandov Studios from March 26 to May 2012. [2] Bier took more than eighteen months to complete the film, but there were no re-shoots or problems in post-production. [5] Bier also had to take time away to promote Love Is All You Need . [6]

Release

The film premiered at the BFI London Film Festival on October 13, 2014, [7] was released in the United Kingdom on October 24, 2014, and France on November 12, 2014. [8] Magnolia Pictures distributed the film in the United States. The film was released on all video on demand and digital stores on February 26, 2015, before a limited theatrical run on March 27, 2015. [9]

Reception

Box office

The film earned £95,000 ($153,310) on its opening weekend in the United Kingdom, debuting at No. 19 at the UK box office. [10] [11] In its second week, the film dropped to finish 34th, grossing £11,645 from 37 screens. The movie ended its run with a total gross of $320,907 (£200,557)

The film made $1 million on video on demand in the United States before its theatrical release. [12] The movie opened in 59 screens across the United States on March 20, 2015, and earned $100,090 for a 30th-place finish. [13]

As of November 9, 2014, the film had a theatrical domestic gross of $100,090 and an international theatrical gross of $3,723,317 for a worldwide total of $3,823,407. [14]

Critical response

Serena received negative reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a score of 16% based on 110 reviews with an average rating of 4.28/10. The website's critical consensus states "Serena unites an impressive array of talent on either side of the cameras – then leaves viewers to wonder how it all went so wrong." [15] On Metacritic the film has a score of 36 out of 100 based on reviews from 29 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". [16]

Andy Lea of Daily Star wrote in a positive review that, "It's another terrific performance from Lawrence, who almost manages to sell Serena's all too quick transformation from steely feminist to crazed femme fatale." Similarly, Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian praised Lawrence, "Lawrence brings her A-game. She is passionate, impetuous and confident, with a tough determination to grab the brass ring that has been presented to her." Guy Lodge of Variety agreed, "The Stanwyck comparisons lavished upon Lawrence's Oscar-winning work in Silver Linings Playbook resurface here; she certainly looks every inch the Golden Age siren with her crimped vanilla locks and array of creamy silken sheaths that, true to vintage Hollywood form, never seem to get sullied in the wild." He added, "The star also makes good on her proven chemistry with Cooper, who acquits himself with stoic intelligence and a variable regional accent in an inscrutable role that, for its occasional flourishes of Clark Gable bravado, is equal parts hero, anti-hero and patsy."

In The Canberra Times , Jake Wilson praised Cooper, arguing, "Cooper once again proves his value as a leading man who approaches his roles like a character actor." [17] However, he was more nuanced about the cinematography, suggesting it made "the setting slightly abstract, in the manner of her former mentor Lars von Trier – and the storytelling suffers from some sudden transitions and ill-explained twists." [17] He concluded, "if this is not a perfect film, it's an unusually haunting one." [17]

Writing for the Toronto Star , Peter Howell criticized the film, suggesting the cinematography was "bland, unsteady and lacking in definition." [18] In the Vancouver Sun , Katherine Monk argued that Bier was "probably trying to make a movie similar in feel to The Piano ." [19] However, she argued that the "whole national park subplot is confusing and blurs the blacks and whites required to generate sympathy, and every character suffers a similarly grey fate." [19] She concluded, "by the end, we barely like anyone in this smoky landscape, let alone care about what happens to them." [19] Writing for The Toronto Sun , Bruce Kirland stressed the setting of the Great Depression, suggesting it was, "the rural reflection of the film versions of The Great Gatsby , which are based on the classic 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald." Nevertheless, he called the film a "colossal bore." [20]

In The Daily Telegraph , Robbie Collin praised Lawrence's acting at the expense of Cooper's, suggesting, "Lawrence comes out of it significantly better than Cooper," adding that she was "effectively Lady Macbeth in jodhpurs and a pussy-bow blouse." He concluded on a despondent note, writing "all [the film] amounts to is dead wood." [21] Stephen Dalton of The Hollywood Reporter criticised the film, arguing, "it is difficult to believe a single word of it, still less to care about these relentlessly selfish and short-sighted characters." Dalton praised Lawrence's and Cooper's acting, but suggested the problem lay in "Christopher Kyle's script, a string of jarring cliches and clunky attempts at subtext" and "Johan Soderqvist's cloying, imploring orchestral score." [22]

In The Irish Times , Donald Clark praised the cinematography as "exquisite," but suggested that Lawrence's performance was "genuinely poor." He concluded, "Nobody is likely to see the [film]." [23] Writing for The Independent , Geoffrey Macnab called it "a strangely dour and downbeat affair." He suggested it was reminiscent of Michael Cimino's Heaven's Gate . However, he criticized its "heavy-handed poetic symbolism" and "the guilt and self-loathing that its characters feel." [24]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jennifer Aniston</span> American actress (born 1969)

Jennifer Joanna Aniston is an American actress. She rose to international fame for her role as Rachel Green on the television sitcom Friends from 1994 to 2004, which earned her Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild awards. Aniston has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid actresses, as of 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bradley Cooper</span> American actor and filmmaker (born 1975)

Bradley Charles Cooper is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award and two Grammy Awards. In addition, he has been nominated for twelve Academy Awards, six Golden Globe Awards, and a Tony Award. Cooper appeared on the Forbes Celebrity 100 list three times and on Time's list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2015. His films have grossed $13 billion worldwide, and he has been placed in annual rankings of the world's highest-paid actors four times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susanne Bier</span> Danish film director

Susanne Bier is a Danish filmmaker. Bier is the first female director to collectively receive an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a European Film Award and a Primetime Emmy Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David O. Russell</span> American filmmaker (born 1958)

David Owen Russell is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. He has earned numerous accolades including two British Academy Film Awards, and a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for five Academy Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jennifer Lawrence</span> American actress (born 1990)

Jennifer Shrader Lawrence is an American actress and producer. Lawrence is known for starring in both action film franchises and independent dramas, and her films have grossed over $6 billion worldwide. The world's highest-paid actress in 2015 and 2016, she appeared in Time's 100 most influential people in the world list in 2013 and the Forbes Celebrity 100 list from 2013 to 2016.

<i>The Notebook</i> 2004 American romantic drama film by Nick Cassavetes

The Notebook is a 2004 American romantic drama film directed by Nick Cassavetes, from a screenplay by Jeremy Leven and Jan Sardi, and based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Nicholas Sparks. The film stars Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams as a young couple who fall in love in the 1940s. Their story is read from a notebook in the present day by an elderly man, telling the tale to a fellow nursing home resident.

<i>Winters Bone</i> 2010 film by Debra Granik

Winter's Bone is a 2010 American coming-of-age drama film directed by Debra Granik. It was adapted by Granik and Anne Rosellini from the 2006 novel by Daniel Woodrell. The film stars Jennifer Lawrence as a poverty-stricken teenage girl named Ree Dolly in the rural Ozarks of Missouri who, to protect her family from eviction, must locate her missing father.

<i>Limitless</i> (film) 2011 American science fiction thriller film by Neil Burger

Limitless is a 2011 American science-fiction thriller film directed by Neil Burger and written by Leslie Dixon. Loosely based on the 2001 novel The Dark Fields by Alan Glynn, the film stars Bradley Cooper, Abbie Cornish, Robert De Niro, Andrew Howard, and Anna Friel. The film follows Edward Morra, a struggling writer who is introduced to a drug called NZT-48, which gives him the ability to use his brain fully which helps him vastly improve his lifestyle.

<i>The Great Gatsby</i> (2013 film) Film by Baz Luhrmann

The Great Gatsby is a 2013 American historical romantic drama film based on the 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The film was co-written and directed by Baz Luhrmann and stars an ensemble cast consisting of Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton, Isla Fisher, Jason Clarke, and Elizabeth Debicki. Filming took place from September to December 2011 in Australia, with a $105 million net production budget. The film follows the life and times of millionaire Jay Gatsby (DiCaprio) and his neighbor Nick Carraway (Maguire) who recounts his interactions with Gatsby amid the riotous parties of the Jazz Age on Long Island in New York.

<i>Silver Linings Playbook</i> 2012 film by David O. Russell

Silver Linings Playbook is a 2012 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by David O. Russell. The film is based on Matthew Quick's 2008 novel The Silver Linings Playbook. It stars Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence, with Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver, Chris Tucker, John Ortiz, Shea Whigham, Anupam Kher and Julia Stiles in supporting roles.

<i>American Hustle</i> 2013 film directed by David O. Russell

American Hustle is a 2013 American black comedy crime film directed by David O. Russell. It was written by Eric Warren Singer and Russell and inspired by the FBI Abscam operation of the late 1970s and early 1980s. It stars Christian Bale and Amy Adams as two con artists forced by an FBI agent to set up an elaborate sting operation on corrupt politicians, including the mayor of Camden, New Jersey. Jennifer Lawrence plays the unpredictable wife of Bale's character. Principal photography took place from March to May 2013 in Boston and Worcester, Massachusetts, as well as New York City.

<i>American Sniper</i> 2014 biographical film

American Sniper is a 2014 American biographical war drama film directed and co-produced by Clint Eastwood and written and executive-produced by Jason Hall, based on the memoir of the same name by Chris Kyle with Scott McEwen and Jim DeFelice. The film follows the life of Kyle, who became the deadliest marksman in U.S. military history with 255 kills from four tours in the Iraq War, 160 of which were officially confirmed by the Department of Defense. While Kyle was celebrated for his military successes, his tours of duty took a heavy toll on his personal and family life. It stars Bradley Cooper as Kyle and Sienna Miller as his wife Taya, with Luke Grimes, Jake McDorman, Cory Hardrict, Kevin Lacz, Navid Negahban, and Keir O'Donnell in supporting roles.

<i>Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day</i> (film) 2014 American family comedy film

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day is a 2014 American comedy film directed by Miguel Arteta from a screenplay written by Rob Lieber. The film stars Steve Carell, Ed Oxenbould and Jennifer Garner, and is loosely based on Judith Viorst’s 1972 children's book of the same name. Co-produced by Shawn Levy and Lisa Henson for Walt Disney Pictures through their respective production companies, 21 Laps Entertainment and The Jim Henson Company, the film was released in North America on October 10, 2014. The film received mixed reviews from critics but was a success at the box office, grossing $100.6 million worldwide against a $28 million budget. It is one of the only films produced by The Jim Henson Company to not feature any puppets.

<i>Aloha</i> (2015 film) 2015 film by Cameron Crowe

Aloha is a 2015 American romantic comedy film written, co-produced and directed by Cameron Crowe. It stars Bradley Cooper as former US Air Force officer Brian Gilcrest, who returns to Hawaii after being rehired by a former boss to oversee the launch of a privatized weapons satellite in the skies over Hawaii. Emma Stone, Rachel McAdams, Bill Murray, John Krasinski, Danny McBride, and Alec Baldwin star in supporting roles. As of 2024, it is the latest film directed by Crowe.

<i>Serena</i> (novel) 2008 novel by Ron Rash

Serena is a 2008 novel by Ron Rash. Set in 1930s North Carolina, the novel tells the story of newlywed couple Serena and George Pemberton and their timber business. It was listed as #34 on the New York Times Bestseller list for Hardcover Fiction in the November 2, 2008, issue of The New York Times Book Review. It has been adapted into a film by the same name starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence. The film was released in October 2014.

<i>Burnt</i> (film) 2015 film by John Wells

Burnt is a 2015 American comedy-drama film directed by John Wells and written by Steven Knight, from a story by Michael Kalesniko. The film stars an ensemble cast including Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, Omar Sy, Daniel Brühl, Matthew Rhys, Riccardo Scamarcio, Alicia Vikander, Uma Thurman and Emma Thompson. The film was released on October 30, 2015, by The Weinstein Company. The film was not well received by critics and grossed $36.6 million.

<i>Live by Night</i> (film) 2016 film by Ben Affleck

Live by Night is a 2016 American gangster film written, directed, produced by and starring Ben Affleck. Based on the 2012 novel of the same name by Dennis Lehane, the film follows an ambitious Ybor City bootlegger (Affleck) who becomes a notorious gangster. The film also stars Elle Fanning, Brendan Gleeson, Chris Messina, Sienna Miller, Zoe Saldaña, and Chris Cooper.

<i>Joy</i> (2015 film) 2015 film by David O. Russell

Joy is a 2015 American biographical comedy-drama film written and directed by David O. Russell and starring Jennifer Lawrence as Joy Mangano, a self-made millionaire who created her own business empire.

<i>Passengers</i> (2016 film) American science-fiction film

Passengers is a 2016 American science-fiction romance film directed by Morten Tyldum, written by Jon Spaihts and starring Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt. The supporting cast features Michael Sheen, Laurence Fishburne, and Andy García. The film follows two passengers on an interstellar spacecraft carrying thousands of people to a colony 120-years-traveling-distance from Earth, when the two are awakened 90 years early from their induced hibernation.

<i>A Star Is Born</i> (2018 film) Film by Bradley Cooper

A Star Is Born is a 2018 American musical romantic drama produced and directed by Bradley Cooper with a screenplay by Cooper, Eric Roth and Will Fetters. It stars Cooper and Lady Gaga in lead roles, with Dave Chappelle, Andrew Dice Clay and Sam Elliott in supporting roles. It follows an alcoholic musician (Cooper) who discovers and falls in love with a young singer (Gaga). It is the fourth American movie made of the story, after the original 1937 romantic drama and its 1954 and 1976 remakes. Principal photography began at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2017.

References

  1. ↑ "SERENA (15)". British Board of Film Classification . September 18, 2014. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  2. 1 2 Sneider, Jeff; Oldham, Stuart (March 8, 2012). "Rhys Ifans lands role in timber-epic 'Serena'". Variety . PMC . Retrieved December 31, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Serena". Box Office Mojo . Archived from the original on July 21, 2018. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  4. ↑ Smith, Zack (February 20, 2013). "Ron Rash discusses the craft of the short story and the complexity of Appalachian speech". Indy Week. Retrieved February 25, 2013.
  5. ↑ Tatiana Siegel (November 25, 2013). "New Jennifer Lawrence-Bradley Cooper Movie Quietly Shopped to Buyers". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 4, 2013.
  6. ↑ Norman Wilner (September 13, 2013). "Susanne Bier gives herself a little break". MSN. Archived from the original on January 1, 2014. Retrieved December 4, 2013.
  7. ↑ Bernstein, Rachel (September 12, 2014). "Watch: Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence Share Secrets and Blood in First 'Serena' Trailer". Indiewire. Retrieved September 12, 2014.
  8. ↑ Brevet, Brad (September 12, 2014). "New Picture of Jennifer Lawrence in 'Serena', Which is Hitting UK Theaters in October". Rope of Silicon. Retrieved September 12, 2014.
  9. ↑ Siegel, Tatianna (September 17, 2014). "Lost Jennifer Lawrence-Bradley Cooper Movie: It "Made No Sense"". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  10. ↑ Alex Ritman (October 29, 2014). "U.K. Box Office: 'Fury' Beats 'Turtles' to Top, 'Serena' Tanks". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 1, 2014.
  11. ↑ Charles Gant (October 28, 2014). "Choppy waters for Serena as Fury storms UK box office". The Guardian. Retrieved November 1, 2014.
  12. ↑ "'Serena' Hits Box Office After Ultra-Strong VOD Start – Specialty B.O. Preview". March 27, 2015.
  13. ↑ "SERENA". March 29, 2015. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
  14. ↑ "SERENA". October 29, 2014. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Serena (2015)". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved November 16, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Serena". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  17. 1 2 3 Jake Wilson, Serena review: Jennifer Lawrence in her element in haunting, imperfect melodrama, The Canberra Times, December 1, 2014
  18. ↑ Peter Howell, Serena can’t see the forest for the trees: review, Toronto Star, December 4, 2014
  19. 1 2 3 Katherine Monk, Movie review: Serena a calculated study of loss (with video), Vancouver Sun, December 4, 2014
  20. ↑ Bruce Kirkland, 'Serena' review: Third time not the charm for Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper, Toronto Sun, December 4, 2014
  21. ↑ Robbie Collin, Serena, review, 'intensely unlikeable', The Daily Telegraph, October 23, 2014
  22. ↑ Stephen Dalton, 'Serena': London Review, The Hollywood Reporter, October 13, 2014
  23. ↑ Donald Clark, Serena review: Lawrence and Cooper together again? We’re afraid so, The Irish Times, October 23, 2014
  24. ↑ Geoffrey Macnab, Serena, film review: Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper 'go mild' in the Deep South, The Independent, October 23, 2014
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.