2929 Productions
Not part of a collection.
Serena
Some loves can never let go.
North Carolina mountains at the end of the 1920s – George and Serena Pemberton, love-struck newly-weds, begin to build a timber empire. Serena soon proves herself to be equal to any man: overseeing loggers, hunting rattle-snakes, even saving a man’s life in the wilderness. With power and influence now in their hands, the Pembertons refuse to let anyone stand in the way of their inflated love and ambitions. However, once Serena discovers George’s hidden past and faces an unchangeable fate of her own, the Pemberton’s passionate marriage begins to unravel leading toward a dramatic reckoning.
- Original title
- Serena
- Language
- EN
- Country
- US
- Budget
- $30,000,000
- Revenue
- $5,092,129
Wuchak
May 19, 2025 · via TMDB
**_Tragic tale of a timber baron and his new wife in North Carolina, 1929-1930_** As The Depression sets-in, Pemberton (Bradley Cooper) brings his wife to his logging ranch in the Smokey Mountains (Jennifer Lawrence) and she has no problem proving her mettle with the guys. She settles in, but treachery soon manifests. Shot in the spring of 2012, "Serena” wasn’t released until 2.5 years later in 2014-2015. It was inspired by the 2008 novel, but is different enough that the two have to be viewed as separate entities in order to appreciate the movie. Here, Serena is mentally unstable and vulnerable underneath her surface strengths whilst, in the book, she is strong and in control until the very last line. She often wears dresses and looks glammed-up whereas the novel makes it a point that she dresses like a man, always wearing trousers. Moreover, Pemberton is much nicer here. There are several other changes as well. As such, I’m reviewing this as a stand-alone story. It’s great for the first half with top-of-the-line locations and cinematography, as well as a compelling enough drama with occasional thrills, including crimes and corruption. It goes without saying that the period piece costumes and sets are superb. At the halfway point, however, it bogs down, turning melancholy and, then, relentlessly downbeat for the final act. Think “Revolutionary Road.” So, I understand the low ratings, but there’s still a lot of gems to mine from the heart-rending proceedings. For instance, the movie stresses the expectations of wedlock, such as total faithfulness and the sense of betrayal when one is (inevitably) let down. Furthermore, with a husband and wife, it’s assumed that an heir is forthcoming and, if that fails to manifest, it can change everything, real or imagined. Think of Hannah’s situation in the opening chapter of 1 Samuel. Lastly, Rhys Ifans’ Galloway is a fascinating character, a sigma male with mystical trappings and a whiff of danger. Too bad there wasn’t enough time to flesh him out more. It runs 1 hour, 49 minutes, and was shot in the Czech Republic at Barrandov Studios, Prague, with establishing shots done at Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina. GRADE: B-
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
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Bradley Cooper
George Pemberton
Jennifer Lawrence
Serena Pemberton
Rhys Ifans
Galloway
Toby Jones
Sheriff McDowell
Blake Ritson
Lowenstein
Sean Harris
Campbell
Sam Reid
Vaughn
Charity Wakefield
Agatha
Douglas Hodge
Horace Kephart
Kim Bodnia
Abe Hermann
Ana Ularu
Rachel
David Dencik
Buchanan
Ned Dennehy
Ledbetter
Christian McKay
Banker in Boston
Bodil Jørgensen
Mrs. Sloan
Hilton McRae
Doctor
Conleth Hill
Doctor Chaney
Philip Zandén
Calhoun
Vladimír Marek
Convulsing logger
Petr Vaněk
Frizzell
Petr Drozda
Big Bill McComb
Filip Kaňkovský
Chopper
Helena Dvořáková
Nurse
Raymond Waring
Ticket master
Barbara Lukešová
Crying woman at bank
Pavel Řezníček
Commissioner #2
Pavel Kříž
Upset man at bank
John Comer
Beggar
Nataša Burger
Mother in waiting room
Jiří Maria Sieber
Photographer #2
Jim High
Wood Cutter (uncredited)
Morten Søborg
Director of Photography
Signe Sejlund
Costume Design
Lori McCoy-Bell
Hairstylist
Wolfgang Stegemann
Fight Choreographer
Leopold Hughes
Post Production Assistant
Wolfgang Stegemann
Stunts
Susanne Bier
Director
Matthew Newman
Editor
Pernille Bech Christensen
Editor
Jina Jay
Casting
Mark Cuban
Executive Producer
Nick Wechsler
Producer
Ron Halpern
Producer
Steve Schwartz
Producer
Susanne Bier
Producer
Todd Wagner
Producer
Johan Söderqvist
Original Music Composer
Ron Rash
Novel
Christopher Kyle
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Dec 25, 2014
