It’s 1929 and George Pemberton (Bradley Cooper) runs a timber business in North Carolina. When he falls in love with a forthright young woman named Serena (Jennifer Lawrence) and brings her into the company, everything changes. She’s haunted by a tragedy in her past and also by the existence of George’s child with another local woman. He is haunted by a crime she encourages him to commit. Before long, everything falls apart.
This film got heavily criticised for various reasons, none of which I would recognise as being flaws. The characters are perfectly drawn and their motivations are made clear. The storytelling is lucid, thanks to Susanne Bier’s solid direction. The remote location looks great, too, despite the use of the sort of filters I usually find distracting. The film does become melodramatic, it’s true, but that seems entirely in keeping with their situation as their problems swiftly escalate.
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