One shocking true-crime story that has surprisingly not received significant coverage in the media has been that of the infamous Dating Game Killer,Rodney Alcala, aTed Bundy-esque serial killer who assaulted and murdered scores of young women throughout the 70s. It appears that is about to change withWoman of the Hour,a period crime drama film that is the directorial debut ofPitch PerfectstarAnna Kendrick. The film premiered last year at theToronto International Film Festivalto rave reviews and earlier this year won Kendrick the Palm Springs International Film Festival Award for Directors to Watch. Netflix quickly snapped up the rights to the film in a pricey deal and now, we have our first look at the movie, which is expected toarrive on the streamer later this year.
Rodney Alcala was a rapist and serial killer who perpetrated several crimes but somehow managed to evade capture for several years. Pretending to be a photographer looking for models, Alcala manipulated and lured unsuspecting young girls before striking, brutally raping, and murdering them. Midway through his murder spree, he appeared on the ’70s dating game show,The Dating Game,which used the blind-date approach to match a contestant with one of three bachelors who are hidden from the woman’s view as she asks amusing questions to make her choice.
Alcala won a date withCheryl Bradshaw, who after meeting with him, refused to go on a date with him because she found him to be creepy. Alcala was eventuallyconvicted of his crimesin 1979, a year after his appearance on the show. While he was found guilty of murdering 8 women, further investigations point to the possibility that his victims were over 130.
As with most adaptations of true-crime stories,Woman of the Hourtakes creative liberty with its depiction. The movie primarily centers on the period when Alcala was on the show but also jumps back and forth to years before and after. The movie imagines Bradshaw as an actress (played by Kendrick) who is compelled by her agent to go on the show for visibility. Rather than focus solely on Alcala’s gruesome crimes,Woman of the Hourequallyexamines the dynamics women often have to deal withwhen meeting and interacting with men.
‘Woman of the Hour’ Is a Solid Directorial Debut For Anna Kendrick
Kendrick’s directorial vision has received near-unanimous praise with a 90% onRotten Tomatoesand, asColldier’sRoss Bonaminenotes in his review, “proves she has a strong career ahead of her behind the camera.” He further writes:
“Woman of the Hour is a tight, smartly handled thriller that may stumble at times with its thematic ideas, but wins you over with its deft handling behind the camera. If this is only Kendrick’s first try as director, it’ll be very exciting to see what she does next.”
Kendrick directed the movie from a script written byIan MacAllister McDonald. The movie stars horror stapleDaniel Zovatto(It Follows) as Rodney Alcala,Nicolette Robinson,Tony Hale, (Arrested Development)Kathryn Gallagher,Kelley Jakle(Pitch Perfect), andAutumn Best. Kendrick also produced alongsideRoy Lee,Miri Yoon, J.D. Lifshitz,andRaphael Margules.
A release date is yet to be set forWoman of the Hourbut stay tuned for updates.
