''Serena'' is a 1962

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

, British

B film A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

crime thriller directed by

Peter Maxwell Peter Maxwell (23 January 1921 – 5 April 2013) born as Peter Magitai, was a British, and later Australian film director, director and screenwriter of television and film. Biography He was born in Vienna, Austria, to newspaper journalist ...

and stars

Patrick Holt Patrick Holt (31 January 1912 – 12 October 1993) was an English film and television actor. Biography Born Patrick G. Parsons in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, Holt spent some of his childhood in India with his uncle, after which he was sent ...

, Emrys Jones and

Honor Blackman Honor Blackman (22 August 1925 – 5 April 2020) was an English actress, known for the roles of Cathy Gale in '' The Avengers''Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 58. (1962� ...

. The title of the film is the name of one of the characters, Serena Vaughan, who may have figured in a murder. ''Serena'' was part of a double bill and was later released to the home media market with ''

Impact Impact may refer to: * Impact (mechanics), a high force or shock (mechanics) over a short time period * Impact, Texas, a town in Taylor County, Texas, US Science and technology * Impact crater, a meteor crater caused by an impact event * Impac ...

'' (1963), also directed by Peter Maxwell.

Plot

Detective Chief Inspector Gregory (

) from Scotland Yard, and his partner, Sergeant Conway (

Bruce Beeby Bruce Edward Beeby (21 October 1921 – 20 October 2013) was an Australian actor who worked primarily in British films and television. He was probably best known for portraying Stephen "Mitch" Mitchell in the 1950s BBC radio serials '' Journ ...

), are called in to investigate the shotgun murder of a woman at Rosehill Cottage, a remote

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

cottage. The victim appears to be Ann Rogers (

), the wife of womanising artist Howard Rogers ( Emrys Jones). Her face, however, is so badly disfigured by the two shotgun blasts, it is hard to be sure of her identity. Rogers looks for a birthmark that would positively prove the body belongs to his wife, but it is not there. At first, Gregory had considered Rogers as the chief suspect, but his alibi proves he is innocent. When Ann suddenly shows up, the identity of the murdered woman may rest on her friend, Claire Matthews, who is missing. A search for both the artist's mistress, Serena Vaughan, and the missing woman, intensifies, but Ann's motivations are also suspect. One of the women may know the truth.

Cast

as Inspector Gregory * Emrys Jones as Howard Rogers *

as Ann Rogers *

as Sergeant Conway * John Horsley as Mr. Fisher * Robert Perceval as Bank Manager *

Wally Patch Walter Sydney Vinnicombe (26 September 1888 – 27 October 1970) was an English actor and comedian. He worked in film, television and theatre. Biography Vinnicombe was born in Willesden, Middlesex and began working on the music hall stages in ...

as Barman * Gerry Duggan as Norman Cole *

Peter Glaze William George Peter Glaze (17 September 1917 – 20 February 1983) was an English comedian born in London. He appeared in '' Crackerjack!'' with Eamonn Andrews and Leslie Crowther in the 1960s, and with Michael Aspel, Don Maclean and Bernie ...

as Station Booking Clerk * Howard Greene as River Police Sergeant * Reginald Hearne as Doctor * Lawrence James as Uniformed Constable * Benedicta Leigh as Policewoman Scott * Barry Linehan as Forensic Chemist * Bill Mills as Photographer *

Frank Pettitt Frank Pettitt (16 October 1899 – 27 March 1964) was an English stage, film and television actor. He played Albert Finney's father in the film ''Saturday Night and Sunday Morning'' (1960). Filmography * '' Night and the City '' (1950) - Cab ...

as Fred * Colin Rix as Plainclothes Detective * Raymond Smith as River Police Constable * Pat Shaw as Uniformed Policewoman

Production

Principal photography on ''Serena'' took place on location in

, and at

Shepperton Studios Shepperton Studios is a film studio located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, with a history dating back to 1931. It is now part of the Pinewood Studios Group. During its early existence, the studio was branded as Sound City (not to be confused w ...

, Shepperton, Surrey, England.

Critical reception

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' gave ''Serena'' two out of five stars, calling it a "Basic programmer with a plot more clever than most"; while the ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

'' rated it three out of five stars, and wrote, "Rising well above the quota-quickie average, this entertaining little whodunnit shoehorns an extravagant amount of plot into its short running time. Directed at a fair lick by Peter Maxwell"; and ''

Allmovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was founded by popular-cult ...

'' called the film an "interesting mystery." In a 2004 review, John Pym described ''Serena'' as "stagey" and, "(a)... not very taxing mystery."Pym 2004, p. 1055.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Pym, John, ed. ''Time Out Film Guide''. London: Time Out Guides Limited, 2004. .

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0056469 1962 films British crime thriller films Films directed by Peter Maxwell 1960s crime thriller films Films shot in Surrey 1960s English-language films 1960s British films