Last Updated on October 18, 2024 by
Woman of the Hour is a 2023 true crime Movie directed by Anna Kendrick, written by Ian McDonald. The film stars Anna Kendrick, Daniel Zovatto, and Tony Hale, with a runtime of 2h 33M, and was released on October 18, 2024.
Woman of the Hour is a true crime show aimed at presenting the biography of Rodney Alcala, a man who went by the moniker of the “Dating Game Killer.” Alcala was a murderer who participated in a well-known and popular dating show in the 1970s and nobody knew about it. The film is also directed by Anna Kendrick who is also an actress, she has acted in movies such as Pitch Perfect. It is odd to wonder why Kendrick wanted to embark on the directorial project with a serious theme; the narrative portrays many victims and disappointing cases where the police could not apprehend Alcala.
In the film, Kendrick portrays the character of Cheryl Bradshaw, who is one of the contestants in the show Dating Game. During the film, as she flirts with him and quizzes him, the viewers do not know that Alcala is a killer. By merging a funny game show atmosphere with a rather ominous background, the contrast is quite vivid. As is expected of Kendrick’s comedy, there are scenes such as the awkward audition scenes and the scenes with obnoxious neighbors. Though the show is undeniably funny at times, it feels somewhat jarring when applied to the gravity of Alcala’s crimes.
The film was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival and garnered attention as one of the films to check out among other new films directed by actors. This bright and emotionally charged film is compared to the Oscar-winning drama Promising Young Woman which also touches upon topics like sexual violence, however, Woman of the Hour is rather different from the aforementioned film. Hayes notes that although Promising Young Woman is centered on a powerful main character who avenges men who hurt women, Woman of the Hour is about the real-life victims of Alcala and does not portray a heroine figure.
In The Woman of the Hour, the incidents switch between different females who are transformed into Alcala’s victims including a runaway teenager, a flight attendant, and Cheryl. Kendrick reveals Cheryl, a struggling actress in Los Angeles, who faces various instances of harassment by men. Since she has a dream, something ominous happens, suspense as the audience can see how naive she is regarding Alcala.
It also has an effective opening scene showing how Alcala worked which immediately presents the unpleasant image. Other female characters in the story are not portrayed in detail; they are introduced to and transformed into sexual objects within a short span. This approach can be misleading as they are portrayed mainly for the sake of emphasizing their untimely deaths.
Particularly, his critics have noted that others have depicted violence in the same manner as Kendrick. Despite the numerous filmmakers depicting crime more aesthetically, Woman of the Hour employs traditional horror movie techniques, illustrating crying victims and stressing their scariness. This representation can be upsetting because it erases real women’s lives and replaces them with thinly veiled cautionary tales about Stranger Danger.
Continuing the classification dialogue, many directors and spectators desire to emphasize victims while avoiding the glorification of the killers. Alcala’s inspiration and actions as known by Kendrick are not shown, and he is depicted as someone who capitalizes on social vices like hatred for women. While attempting to present an interesting narrative, the film fails to provide a fresh perspective on the issues it raises, including danger to women and inefficiency of the police.
It has, however, not been free of controversy, particularly concerning the latter’s conclusion. It gives a fake ending that doesn’t depict what happened in the real world. Rather than depicting real-life situations where police often fail, the movie depicts a situation where they arrive just in time, saving the situation, which was not a typical observation.
Ultimately, Woman of the Hour appears to have a clear message: men are presented as violent offenders with complete disregard for other’s lives or as bumbling fools, and women are presented either as victims or passive observers of crimes. When Cheryl asks the men on the dating show, “What are girls for?” Finally, the film fails to offer an answer to the question, and even the characters of the movie fail to do so as well.
All in all, despite the effort to explore more significant problems, Woman of the Hour fails to deliver a compelling story like the one in Promising Young Woman.
Woman of the Hour 2024 Parents Guide Age Rating
Woman of the Hour is not rated because it has not undergone the official rating process by the Motion Picture Rating (MPA).
