There’s a bigger, bolder, more fascinating, and most importantly, a complete movie stuck somewhere inside Warren Fischer’s short film The Serena Variation. There’s no doubt that the twenty-eight minute short is one of a kind, and Fischer has tried to pull off something truly remarkable here. Unfortunately, he is constrained by the short film format, and the man has too much to tell. Never have I ever imagined a short film would dare to attempt breaking its narrative into six chapters, like what someone like Tarantino does. Full marks to Fischer for attempting to do something like this, but the result is not quite convincing, sadly. Imagine you’re served a ten-course meal, from starter to main course to dessert, but on a tiny plate, and you’ve got to polish it off in half an hour. That’s what watching The Serena Variation feels like. It’s way too much narration, and there’s not much in the way of dialogue, which is a bummer. A lot is going on, all at the same time, and even if you focus on everything, you end up overwhelmed and exhausted. Like I said, the film fast-tracks a ten-course meal, so it’s only natural if you find it hard to digest.
That said, The Serena Variation does have a fascinating story. I wouldn’t exactly call it original, but just imagine the prospect of Todd Fields’ Tar and Damien Chazelle’s Whiplash having a love child. Here, we have our protagonist, Serena, who’s on the spectrum—at least that’s what it seems like (and the official synopsis also confirms that). She’s an extremely talented violinist, eyeing for a spot on the team of Lydia Tar-esque, celebrated composer Ann, who’s about to embark on a journey to create a new musical piece. Ann is both demanding and dominating. There’s a hint of sexual tension going on between Ann and Serena, but the composer is deliberately hard on the violinist. There are two other characters, Vic and Allen, who are also trying to win Ann’s approval, just like Serena. But Ann treats them differently compared to Serena. The story ultimately boils down to Serena going out of her way to cement her place in Ann’s newest musical odyssey. Ann purposefully indulges the other three to heightened their senses, by getting them high on something mysterious. That effectively brings a lot of surrealism to the table, which makes things overly complicated.
I personally prefer to go into a film knowing absolutely nothing about it and not having seen the trailer. I believe that’s the best possible way to experience the story, in most cases. But for The Serena Variation, I wish I had researched a bit about the Italian violinist and composer Nicolo Paganini, as well as the pastoral romance of Daphnis and Chloe. Of course, I did that right away after finishing, but I would suggest you check it out a bit. The Serena Variation makes a whole lot of references to these, and it’s definitely better if you take a bit of preparation first. I should probably also mention that director Warren Fischer has stated that he has drawn inspiration from his personal life. House of Psychotic Women, a popular book on the female psych when it comes to the horror genre, written by Japanese author Kier-La Janisse serves as a guideline for The Serena Variation, which the director has deliberately modeled on the genre films of the seventies, only set in modern times. Of course, Serena and Ann’s (toxic?) relationship and how that ends up affecting Serena make the crux of the story here. Dylan Brown, who has already received the best actress award at more than one short film festival, is expectedly fantastic as Serena. Her performance is the best thing about the short film, for sure. Renata Friedman, whom you might have seen in shows like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and The Patient, does a commendable job as Ann, even though the writing for her character is pretty thin. Ellen Mah plays Vic adequately, while Chance Gabriel plays Allen. Neither of them have much material to work with, so nothing much can be said about their performances.
I could talk endlessly about the cinematography and music of The Serena Variation. The director himself has composed the music, and since he himself started his career as a violinist, he gets everything right in the music department. Given the importance of music in this narrative, it was very important for The Serena Variation to get its sound right, and thanks to having a director with proper knowledge and experience, it achieves that easily. Not to mention, it looks top-notch from start to finish, with every single frame looking so gorgeous.
Every time I watch a short film, the question of what if this was made into a feature comes to my head, and The Serena Variation is not an exception to that. In fact, this film has a story that’s desperately in need of being expanded and shown as a full-length feature film. That way, the narrative will be able to breathe properly, and the audience is going to have the opportunity to process what they see. Despite the short not managing to hit the right notes, Fischer’s ambition as a director is admirable, and you can see it on the screen. With a bit of fine tuning, Fischer will be able to carry this story with the same cast. Sure, A24 can always pick it up and decide to make it big with a familiar director and a bigger cast, which will also be a good thing if it happens. The Serena Variation, at the end of the day, is a short film that is simultaneously fascinating and frustrating. Whether you are into classical music or not, you should give this one a watch, especially if you’re craving something exciting.
