Woman of the Hour Review
Natalia Manzolini ’28 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer
Spoilers Ahead
Woman of the Hour is Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut now available to watch exclusively on Netflix. A part of the true crime genre, the film tells the story of serial killer Rodney Alcala. Despite being based on a true story, this telling is a fictionalized account following several of the women he targeted throughout the 1970s. It is a haunting and thoughtful take showcasing the unease and wariness women are burdened to feel as they navigate a world dominated by men. The warm-colored aesthetic lends well to the period as the years progress. The just over 90-minute runtime keeps viewers engaged with balanced pacing and cinematic shots.
The movie opens with a photographer, Rodney (Daniel Zovatto), shooting photos of a woman in a deserted area of California. What starts as a benign scene quickly escalates when the man maliciously springs forward, launching an attack on the woman. She fights valiantly for her life only for him to win, the opening scene already highlighting the injustices women face at the hands of men.
We quickly shift to follow aspiring actress Sheryl Bradshaw (Anna Kendrick) as she misses role after role before her agent lands her a spot on The Dating Game, a TV show where she interviews three men to find a match. Sheryl’s chance at a budding career gets interrupted from time to time by the stories of three other women. Amy (Autumn Best), a young woman who seemingly ran from her home, is asked by Rodney to be a model for him to photograph. Charlie (Kathryn Gallagher) is a stewardess moving into a new apartment completely on her own. Rodney happens to be across the street and lands a spot helping her move in her furniture. Laura (Nicolette Robinson) is an audience member watching the live recording of Sheryl’s episode of The Dating Game. These four women have varying experiences with the killer himself.
Sheryl begins her questioning as instructed; with a smile on her face while reading off her cue cards. We are introduced to an ignorant Bachelor #1 (Matt Visser) and an overconfident Bachelor #2 (Jedidiah Goodacre) before revealing Bachelor #3 as Rodney Alcala. Instantly we feel Laura’s unease rise as she is trapped in the audience. As the crowd starts to swoon for the bachelors Laura has a battle within herself as we flashback to a beach bonfire with Laura, her best friend, and Rodney the night before her friend turned up dead. Present day Laura rushes out of the studio, unable to confront the man who murdered her best friend. Despite her initial shock, she finds it in herself to find a security guard and tell him there is a man on the show who should not be there. The guard falsely tells her to wait and meet with a producer but leaves her alone with no intent of providing any help.
We get further scenes of the other girls, uncovering Charlie’s fate as she is attacked by Rodney. Charlie is murdered inside her own home and we see Amy now with Rodney in his car, her apprehension rising.
Back on stage, Sheryl loses her ditzy persona and decides to have fun with her questioning, revealing Bachelor #3 as the only one capable of answering, winning the favor of both her and the audience. His confidence and supposed charm secure him the win. Sheryl is pleased with her time on The Dating Game and gets whisked off stage and out of the studio with just a brief warning from Bachelor #2 that Rodney is an asshole, only to be met with Rodney waiting for her outside the door. She agrees to a drink with him but quickly clocks that something is off and only narrowly manages to escape him.
Ultimately Sheryl decides to give up her acting pursuits and move from her apartment. Laura goes to the police once again to report Rodney but to no avail. We end with Amy, assaulted by Rodney, and doing whatever she can to get away. She manages to contact the police and with what should be a satisfying ending, Rodney gets arrested. A palpable weight is left crushing the viewers with the harsh reality many women have faced.
I found myself holding my breath as the eeriness seemingly sank into my bones on more than one occasion. The two main standout performances to me were without a doubt Autumn Best as Amy and Nicolette Robinson as Laura. Both women expressed so much complexity and emotion in every scene, only building up the pit that had already settled into my stomach. Woman of the Hour pushes forth once again to the viewer that we need to believe women. Through the text filling us in on the true end of Rodney Alcala’s life, we are struck with one last punch that the true number of his victims is unknown.
According to Entertainment Weekly, director and star, Anna Kendrick, has donated all her profits from this film to RAINN and the National Center for Victims of Crimes.
Source:
Entertainment Weekly. “‘Woman of the Hour’ Director Anna Kendrick Donated Profits to Charity, Felt ‘Gross’ Making Money.” EW.com, 2024, ew.com/woman-of-the-hour-anna-kendrick-donated-profits-charity-8736599. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.