Film Review: Woman of the Hour

1.5/5 stars

One of the strangest trends in entertainment is this recent obsession with true crime stories. It seems every other month, Netflix releases a new film or miniseries delving into the life of some killer or sensational crime. And now Anna Kendrick tries her hand at the phenomenon with her directorial debut Woman of the Hour. The film tries to be both a haunting true crime story and a light-hearted tale of feminist empowerment, making the tone shockingly jarring.

In 1978, aspiring actor Sheryl Bradshaw (Kendrick) was offered a guest spot on The Dating Game. She must ask questions to three men who she can’t see and based on their answers, decide which one she would like to go on a date with. One of those men was Rodney Alcala (Daniel Zovatto) who, a year later, was revealed to be a serial killer.

Kendrick tells the story out of order, framing it with The Dating Game juxtaposed with Alcala’s crimes committed before and after the show. So on one side we have a harrowing story of the ways the system has failed women and allows a killer like Alcala to go unpunished for so long. In between these scenes of real violence against real women we have a comedic tale full of witty “girlboss” retorts and applause lines. The result is a tonal inconsistency bordering on offensively tasteless.

The story of a killer appearing on a game show is fascinating but there isn’t enough to maintain interest even in a film this short. Kendrick gives us occasional directorial flourishes (the scene where Sheryl finally meets Rodney is absolutely chilling) but it’s too little too late. There is a compelling story buried somewhere in this cartoonish spectacle, but it won’t be found here. Woman of the Hour is now available on Netflix. 

Directed by Anna Kendrick // Written by Ian McDonald //Starring Kendrick, Daniel Zovatto, Nicolette Robinson, Autumn Best, Pete Holmes, Kathryn Gallagher, Kelley Jakle, Matt Visser, Jedidiah Goodacre, Rob Morton, Dylan Schmid, and Tony Hale // Netflix // 95 minutes // Rated R