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Serenity

Play trailer 1:27 Poster for Serenity R Released Jan 25, 2019 1h 43m Mystery & Thriller Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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21% Tomatometer 202 Reviews 30% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Baker Dill is a fishing boat captain who leads tours off of the tranquil enclave of Plymouth Island. His peaceful life is soon shattered when his ex-wife Karen tracks him down. Desperate for help, Karen begs Baker to save her -- and their young son -- from her abusive husband. She wants him to take the brute out for a fishing excursion -- then throw him overboard to the sharks. Thrust back into a life that he wanted to forget, Baker now finds himself struggling to choose between right and wrong.
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Serenity

Serenity

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Critics Consensus

A high-concept mystery with a twist, Serenity isn't what it appears to be at first -- unfortunately, it's also not anywhere near as clever or entertaining as it thinks.

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Critics Reviews

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Peter Rainer FilmWeek (KPCC - NPR Los Angeles) It's sort of intriguingly bad... [But] it's worth seeing -- the cast is terrific. Sep 17, 2019 Full Review Michael Sragow Film Comment Magazine A crackpot suspense film about a fishing boat captain who veers into perilous existential waters, Serenity tries to pull off a "bait-and-switch" times two. But will anyone take the bait either time? Mar 21, 2019 Full Review Mark Kermode Kermode & Mayo's Film Review When the twist was revealed I went, "Yeah, I know." Mar 5, 2019 Full Review Calum Cooper Source (Scotland) Hindered by such a weak and conceited script, I struggle to imagine any version of this that I would be able to take seriously. Rated: 1/5 Jul 14, 2024 Full Review Ryan McQuade InSession Film When he reaches for the stars, Knight fails to catch anything, thus leading me to admire what this film could have been, instead of what we were given. Rated: D Apr 4, 2024 Full Review Manuel São Bento MSB Reviews Serenity tries to go big and bold, but falls astonishingly flat. Plot holes, logical incongruencies, awful dialogues, terrible editing, hollow characters, and neglected subplots (...) one of the worst films of 2019. Rated: D- Jul 24, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Eye C I don’t get the hate on this, they did a Truman Show/Matrix. It’s not great but not awful either. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 10/28/24 Full Review Joel P I liked it. Glad I didn't read these reviews before I watched it. After reading the reviews most of the negativity revolves around " not what I expected, unnecessary sex, or I didn't get it. Compared to most of the crap I have to shift through on these streaming services to find a decent movie, this one's not bad IMO Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 10/08/24 Full Review Ventsislav Y Definetly does not deserve the ratings the movie received. It´s a decent story with a good twist. Worth a watch Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 08/26/24 Full Review Scott K This film exceeded in levels purely of an imagination off course of a writers perspective. It's like when you're writing a story about the main character narrating that they're the author of the story you're writing. Catches a very mild effect of plot twist to where you still wonder what's happening behind the eyes of the main character Patrick even during the ending. With trauma hiding behind computer screens Patrick plays a small yet largely immense part in the film never explaining how he even started the game to begin with. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 08/23/24 Full Review Clay E I can’t believe that this movie didn’t get more attention. It’s exactly the type of movie I’ve been recently looking for and haven’t been able to find. Solid casting. Interesting concept. I’ll be watching it again. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/02/24 Full Review Gary B [SPOILER ALERT] Shallow people always hate what they don't understand, and the overwhelmingly negative response from critics about Serenity is evidence of those critics' shallowness. They thought they were getting a steamy, sweaty, story of tropical intrigue, and were POed when it became something else. Well, they were getting what they thought--but the story was written by a 13-year-old boy. They complained about broad dialogue. Again, the 13-year-old creator, a computer genius who created the story to escape from the reality of his abusive stepfather, and designed a fantasy world game in which the main character is his deceased father, Baker Dill, a fisherman (brilliantly portrayed by Matthey McConaughey). What really annoyed those critics--who just wanted noir, steamy sex and light coming through venetian blinds--is that Serenity is actually an amazing journey into the existential. If you think of the world of Serenity as the real world, and its creator as our Creator, you might begin to understand what I'm getting at. Baker Dill has one consuming motivation--to catch a prize fish. Where did he get that motivation? His creator. So, where do you get your motivations? But Dill's motivation changes. He begins to feel a stronger urge--an urge to do something bad to accomplish something good. Where did that motivation come from? From the purposes of his creator, who is exploring those purposes through the characters in his game. Of which one is his father, who grapples with the meaning of his own existence as the truth of the game comes to light. And as we do, as the truth of the game on this earth comes to light. Great stuff. Give it a try. Be patient and drop all expectations. The truth will be revealed. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 06/18/24 Full Review Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis Baker Dill is a fishing boat captain who leads tours off of the tranquil enclave of Plymouth Island. His peaceful life is soon shattered when his ex-wife Karen tracks him down. Desperate for help, Karen begs Baker to save her -- and their young son -- from her abusive husband. She wants him to take the brute out for a fishing excursion -- then throw him overboard to the sharks. Thrust back into a life that he wanted to forget, Baker now finds himself struggling to choose between right and wrong.
Director
Steven Knight
Producer
Steven Knight, Greg Shapiro, Guy Heeley
Screenwriter
Steven Knight
Distributor
Aviron Pictures
Production Co
Global Road Entertainment, Nebula Star, Ingenious, Shoebox Films
Rating
R (Sexual Content|Language Throughout|Some Bloody Images)
Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 25, 2019, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 23, 2019
Box Office (Gross USA)
$8.5M
Runtime
1h 43m
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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