Serena Review

RYAN: The Hollywood dream team reunites for Serena – Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence.  They’ve previously been nominated (or won) when working together in Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle.  But this movie has struggled.

CAROLINE: Yeah it’s supposedly terrible. It couldn’t even get a wide theatrical release deal.  What did you think of it?

RYAN: It is rolling out in limited release and I’m glad of it.  It’s not bad.  I can’t believe it didn’t inspire a wide distribution deal.  When you look at some of the ridiculous movies that get put out there – this one has a problem?  That’s shocking.  It’s way better than you’ve been led to believe.  It’s not as good as their previous films, to be sure, and there are some issues, but I was still into it.

CAROLINE: What were the issues?

RYAN:The script and the editing.  The story is there but is discombobulated.  Some montages show the passage of time without explicitly letting you know what’s occurring in the story.  It’s really more the editing than the script.

CAROLINE: That’a a major problem.  Apparently there were three different final edits of the film and distributors passed on all versions.

RYAN: This end result isn’t pristine but the duo is great and the story is dramatic.  It’s really an interesting look at a moment in history when the lawlessness ruled.  The lack of communication speed, regulation, medicine, etc… all contributed to the chaotic behavior of some people.

CAROLINE: It’s a sign of the times.  Corruption still exists, certainly, but in a different way.

RYAN: The story is about their love and relationship, jealousy; but also about the business of building the railroad.  Again, it’s so not as bad as others would have you think.  The design and cinematography are wonderful.  I love all the costumes and hair, makeup.

CAROLINE: J. Law does do the finger curl justice.

RYAN: They just have such great chemistry and they make out a fair amount, plus there are several love scenes.  You can tell how comfy they are with one another.

CAROLINE: I do enjoy them both.  I still kind of can’t get over the fact that Will from Alias is now a big blockbuster star, even though this one’s not a blockbuster.

RYAN: It’s a sad movie, depressing really, if you start to empathize with the characters.  It’s also slow moving but so was the time the film takes place and I didn’t mind the pace.

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