“The Woman of the Hour” makes a wild, true story seem boring

Tony Hale and Anna Kendrick there Woman of the hour.
Photo: Leah Gallo/Roadshow Films/Everett Collection

You wouldn't expect Anna Kendrick's directorial debut to be a gritty serial killer drama, but maybe that's the point. The actress, best known for her vibrant work in comedies and musicals, also stars in the film as aspiring actress Cheryl Bradshaw, a Columbia University graduate who we first meet at a seemingly botched audition. The year is 1978 and Cheryl's days in Hollywood aren't going well. Despite her hard work, she can't seem to book a single role, partly because casting directors and filmmakers seem more interested in whether she smiles and goes nude than whether she can act. (“She seems angry,” they whisper to each other in her presence.) Her neighbor and fellow actor Terry (Pete Holmes) is outwardly supportive, but really just wants to put her to bed. With no other choice, Cheryl reluctantly agrees to her agent's suggestion that she perform with her The dating gameto make her face visible. After all, this is a world where women are ruthlessly judged by their looks and charm; someone with more serious ambitions is simply lost.

Also appears in the same episode of The dating game Bachelor #3 is Rodney Alcala, played by Daniel Zovatto, who we met in the opening scene of the film, which is set in 1977 Wyoming, where he photographs a young woman and then strangles her. It's all based on a completely crazy true story: Alcala was a serial killer and rapist in New York and California for over a decade, and in the middle of his incredible crime spree – after appearing on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list and two stints in prison – he appeared on the legendary dating show.

The film intercuts Cheryl's appearance with several of Alcala's crimes as it jumps through the timeline. We see him in New York in 1971 killing a flight attendant who asked him for help moving some of her belongings to a new apartment. We see him in 1977, working as a typesetter for Los Angeles Justas he tries to lure a young man into a solo photo shoot. Kendrick, a promising director, artfully stages these sequences without relying on cheap tension or exploitative gore. She has a good eye and a deft cutting hand; She knows exactly when to cut away, when to deliver a meaningful ellipse. The overarching tone of these sequences is not tension but sadness.

The film's organizing principle conveys the frustrating repetition of this story. Despite numerous warning signs and multiple violations of the law, Alcala was able to operate unhindered for years. The structure conveys something else: in a world of sexist jerks and jerks, Alcala often stands out as respectful and thoughtful. In the role of Zovatto, he is knowledgeable, respectful and even a little charming. He studied film at UCLA and is up to date on independent theater and acclaimed literature. He tells a girl that she reminds him of Linda Manz Days of Heaven. He talks to Cheryl about Sam Shepard and Edward Albee. He talks a good game and says the right things. But of course he's also a psychopath, and every now and then he says or does something that betrays the monster lurking within him.

Unfortunately, while it's playing out on the screen, Woman of the hour is not quite as convincing as one might hope. Structuring the film The dating gamein which Cheryl is largely treated like a piece of meat by everyone (including the smug presenter, played with oily, reassuring skeeziness by Tony Hale), could be an intriguing thematic ploy, but also pushes the picture into a dry, dry cadence, as itself the story feels overdetermined. (Even those who don't know what Alcala looks like The dating game (As it turns out in real life, you can probably imagine some of the story beats.)

The circular structure, as thematically sensible as it may be, also prevents cohesion. We watch scenes from the life of a serial killer without really understanding much about him; We also ultimately don't learn much about Cheryl herself (about whom relatively little is known in real life).
The whole film feels a little too cautious: composed, but also more than a little academic. In the end, it mostly consists of a series of well-directed scenes, all wrapped up in an arc that tells us that the world outside isn't safe. In our current media landscape obsessed with serial killers and true crime, this will generate some clicks but won't provide much new insight.