I am a fan of horror films. My father loved horror films which means that from a young age, I was subjected to “Night of the Living Dead” and “Halloween.” When I read that Anna Kendrick is making her directorial debut with a horror film called “Woman of the Hour,” I was shocked. Kendrick is an actress whose films include “Pitch Perfect” – I love “Pitch Perfect” so this is no shade – so this was surprising, to put it mildly.
After watching the trailer for “Woman of the Hour,” it was clear that I had to watch it. My boyfriend and I settled into bed with my laptop and pressed play. I was captivated within moments. The action in “Woman of the Hour” unfolds in the 1970s and revolves around a down-and-out actress Sheryl, played by Kendrick, who tries to gain some fame and recognition by participating in a dating show. On the show “The Dating Game,” she is paired off with three men and chooses to go out with the serial killer Rodney Alcala, who is acted out by Daniel Zovatto.
The film focuses on the life of Cheryl Bradshaw who matched with Alcala on “The Dating Game” in 1978, which is set out to be true. The film also incorporates other crimes Alcala committed during the 1970s. The movie begins with Alcala filming a woman in a desert who had recently undergone a painful breakup. After getting under her skin, Alcala starts to choke her. After stopping, he resuscitates her, only to strangle her again.
The plot now shifts to focus on Bradshaw, whose agent persuades her to participate in a Bachelor-style show called “The Dating Game” which she considers sexist. When she comes for the shoot, Bradshaw, like many other women, tops the list of people to be demeaned, especially by the show's master of ceremonies Ed Burke, portrayed by Tony Hale.
During the remaining part of the first round, she commences with the questions using the primitive sexist phrases provided for her. Afterward, in between breaks, show’s the makeup artist encourages her to take a more creative approach. When the show resumes she poses the spectacular and novel inquiry, “what is girls for?” Response of the first two bachelors wasn’t convincing and was unsure.
The third bachelor, which the audience knows is Alcala, manages to impress Bradshaw by responding: u201cI guess Iu2019d have to say thatu2019s up to the girl.u201d
Interspersed with the main storyline, the audience sees how Alcala’s numerous rapes and murders play out. A woman named Charlie is moving into a new apartment in 1971 New York City. Upon seeing a man taking photos across the street, she calls out to him and asks if he would help her. After assisting her, he goes on to assault and kill Charlie.
In 1979 San Gabriel, the audience is introduced to Alcala. He meets a teenage runaway by the name of Amy, and offers her the chance to model for him on the condition that she lets him take her picture. He abducts Amy, drives her out to the desert, takes her picture and then attacks her.
As the show goes on, an audience member Laura recognizes Alcala as the man who murdered her friend. She tries to alert a security guard, and he, having been instructed, pretends to take her seriously and tricks her to wait to speak to the show’s “executive”, who turns out to be a janitor.
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Once Alcala is selected by Bradshaw as the final contestant, they head off to Carmel for another vacation where they go out for drinks.
They are having a friendly chat when Alcala’s mood changes abruptly when Bradshaw tries to joke with him. He continues ordering more drinks after Bradshaw declines. The waitress, noticing Bradshaw’s interest, cuts Alcala off from the drinks.
Bradshaw starts to stride toward her car, and Alcala states that he wants to walk her to the front. When he tries to pull up her number, she doesn’t answer, angers, and threatens. Bradshaw hurriedly runs for the driver’s side door and is stalked by Alcala to the side of the vehicle. A bystander steps over the ward internationally and convulsively, and Bradshaw scuttles off at that moment as a crowd passes. He subsequently leaves town.
The movie finishes with runaway Amy, showing her waking up in the middle of the desert, bound, beaten, and in the early stages of undress. Cried next to her, Alcala. In an attempt to convince him for her freedom, she assures him that she needs to go back to his apartment. She dials 911 on the locomotive’s phone. After screaming, “Get BACK,” we anticipate the space next to the gas station booth.
“Woman of the Hour” is perhaps one of the first recent horror or thriller films that looks unlike any I have ever watched. Tense and dramatic scenes were incredibly well executed in terms of acting and direction. My heart rate really accelerated during multiple moments throughout the film.
The film showcases how predators exploit the societal conditioning women are brought up with to be polite, submissive and accommodating to men, even going as far as ignoring their discomfort and instincts. Alcala is just a regular guy. He doesn’t have a boogeyman persona like Michael Myers – he is depicted as a human being, which makes the terrible things he does all the more unsettling. We even see him cry during the film.
One important thing to comment on is that the film does not focus on the male killer. It focuses on his victims. Even though we get a glimpse of these women at the end of their lives, they are real people rather than statistics or a name tossed around in a true crime podcast.
“Woman of the Hour” has solidified a position in my best movies of the year and, personally, I would recommend it to anyone looking out for a new thriller with an engaging story.