Woman of the Hour

Coming into this, I was a little apprehensive. I hadn't heard great things about it -- good, but just good -- and, knowing enough about Rodney Alcala and his case, I also knew that his appearance on The Dating Game was a blip on the radar. Sheryl Bradshaw, the bachelorette on the game, didn't go on the trip with him, and had no further interaction with him. While it was a curiosity that he appeared on a national game show in retrospect, it doesn't really figure into the case other than from a "wow, ain't that weird" perspective. Cleverly, Anna Kendrick as director uses this as the backdrop for a larger examination of misogyny in both society in general and Hollywood in particular in the 1970's, and how it relates to Alcala. Sheryl is an aspiring but struggling actress, and after failing to land a number of parts (especially after casting agents treat her body like a commodity), her agent suggests going on The Dating Game as a way to get seen, and that's where she crosses paths with Alcala, who is one of the contestants. At this point, he'd already been a prolific serial killer, usually posing as a photographer, flattering people into posing for him and then springing the trap. The dating show was just a new means to an end. Part of what makes Woman Of The Hour interesting is its steadfast refusal to be a "true crime" movie. WotH is not meant to be a psychoanalysis of Rodney Alcala's motivations or his mental state. He is given no depth at all, in fact; he is portrayed as what he was, a remorseless killing machine. The few times we see him commit one of his crimes, it doesn't indulge in lurid rubber-necking. They are monstrous, violent, invasive, and terrifying, meant to help illustrate the deviance and horrific nature of this maniac, his patterns, and what leads to his downfall. While it's telling that part of Alcala's story, Sheryl's takes place on the stage, in front of the world. The show's producers and host want a bubbly but air-headed girl. The host wants her in a dress that shows off her body. Sheryl is an intelligent, well-read woman who wants to make it on talent. She does not want to be objectified or be known for what's under her shirt. When, at the encouragement of make-up artists during commercial, she rewrites the questions for the second segment into more intelligent, provocative queries, the host gets irritated. Two of the three bachelors get flummoxed by her standing up for herself and showing her real personality. The system does not like her striking back. Even the audience doesn't know how to respond. Wisely, the movie never portrays this as some kind of pivotal moment for equality and women's rights, because we all know the struggle continues here in 2024. Equally, and more importantly, Woman Of The Hour never feels like a "YASSSS QUEEN GIRLBOSS" movie. It doesn't have to be strident and annoying and riddled with cliches to portray a strong woman with her own morals and convictions, and it doesn't have to have neon arrows pointing at her with "LOOK AT THIS STRONG WOMAN THAT IS STRONG". Sheryl's personality, her beliefs, her morals, and her hopes and dreams are illustrated in a way that gets across how strong she is as a person. Where Woman Of The Hour falters in its messaging is tying these two things together. I get the feeling there was some intention of drawing a parallel, or even a causal relationship, between the misogyny present at the time in the world and Alcala's ability to lure in his victims. The problem is, he didn't need misogyny to do that. He used flattery to get what he wanted, and he didn't do it to just women; he had male victims, too. Alcala used the promise of becoming a model and finding fame and fortune. He played to the ego. Gender was of no consequence to him. Life was of no consequence to him. All he saw when he looked at a person, male or female, was a victim. This makes the connection between the two tracks non-existent. If the movie is trying to say that an environment of sexism and devaluing of women allowed Alcala to become what he was, it never connects and doesn't really make sense. If it's trying to establish connective tissue between his crimes and the sexism in Hollywood and southern California, that doesn't make sense either since Alcala murdered men and women all over the country, and long before he got to SoCal. These two concepts just never connect. The other major nitpick I have is the movie's structure. For some reason, Kendrick decided to make this non-linear. The "present day" (the game show) is interrupted by not only flashbacks to previous murders and encounters Alcala has, but a flash-forward to the one that finally got him on the police's radar. I know non-linear storytelling is popular now, and there are times where I think it works. I quite enjoy Pulp Fiction, and I think it would lose a lot of its impact if it was told in chronological order. But not every story needs it or can support it, and I don't think it benefits Woman Of The Hour in any way. It doesn't ruin the movie by any stretch, but the constant jumping forwards and backwards in time gave me whiplash. Never mind that the movie chooses to end not on the main character but on the teenage runaway who helped bring Alcala to justice, and it's not a short sequence. I get why, but since this person is given far, far less screen time than Kendrick's Sheryl, the choice comes off odd. Those flaws aside, this is still a really strong directorial debut for Anna Kendrick, and shows a whole different side of her as an actress. I appreciated that this managed to use true crime for something other than obsessing over the murders or the murderer. It conveys its themes through building strong characters and a lived-in world. And it doesn't overstay its welcome either, clocking in at just about an hour and a half. What few faults I found are not enough to be cautious in recommending it. I do so easily.