Elijah van der Fluit is a writer for The Hollywood Insider based in California with aspirations to write and direct films for a professional career. In his spare time, Elijah enjoys watching and discussing movies of all genres as well as reading, hiking, spending time with family, and being one with the world. Elijah believes that art, whatever form it may take, has the ability to inspire and broaden people’s perspectives in a positive way and he hopes to use his work in film and writing to do so.
Nov 10, 2024
Table of Contents
It is far from rare to see well known actors transition into film directing as many well known actors such as Jonah Hill and Jordan Peele have risen from their acting career to bring a story they care about to the big screen from the director’s chair. There have been varying results to come from this but in the case of Anna Kendrick, known for franchises such as ‘High School Musical’ and ‘Twilight’, uses her freshman debut, ‘Woman of the Hour’ (2024), as a director to bring to the big screen a chilling fashion a retelling of the real life Dating Game show participant Sheryl Bradshaw (spelled Cheryl in the film) and her acquaintance with the infamous serial killer Rodney Alcala.
Anna Kendrick was not originally planning to direct ‘Woman of the Hour’ as Chloe Okuno was initially set to direct and Kendrick to star. However, when the project was dropped by Netflix and Okuno was no longer involved, Kendrick bravely stepped in to take over what was an intimidating task to her as she had no experience in film directing. The final result of the film proves her initiative paid off as the film is full of wonderful directing all around. The lighting is crisp and appropriate for each scene. The production and costume design is greatly evocative of 1970s Los Angeles without coming across as self indulgent as other directors might degrade to. More notable is the editing which, aside from a handful of creative transitions between scenes, seeks to interweave the story of Sheryl Bradshaw and the separate pursuits of Robert Alcala. If anything, the approach makes the film more suspenseful, gradually showing other victims of Robert Alcala leading to his acquaintance with Cheryl.
Aside from bringing a compelling visual aesthetic to her debut, it is Kendrick’s experience in a seven year long abusive marriage that elevates her voice in this story. She previously injected her experience to inspire her performance in ‘Alice, Darling’ (2022), but it is in ‘Woman of the Hour’ where her pain from such an experience is woven into the whole movie. Performing as Cheryl Bradshaw, Kendrick takes the opportunity to present her beliefs on feminism and society’s expectation of women. The struggles a hopeful young girl experiences in Hollywood which lead to disillusionment. It must have been quite fun for her to play a character who defies such presumptions, embarrassing and deconstructing the men on the show. Yet perhaps the standout scene of the film is where Cheryl is being followed and cornered by Robert Alcala at night. Without spoilers, this sequence is a great display of suspense, build up, and release to tension from a filmmaking standpoint. More importantly, it portrays a situation that specifically all women have a tremendous fear to find themselves in. All of this is presented in a terrifyingly realistic light because Kendrick who channeled her abusive experience in relationships brought an authentic perspective and ability to portray how men can treat women. This is not to suggest that great stories can only be told if the director has suffered, but it does signify that experience in life is needed to bring heart and authenticity to the film.
As a society, we can’t get enough of what ‘Woman of the Hour’ brings to the table. True crime stories in media are very popular and serial killers are such engaging figures to learn more about. But, it is a fascination rather than a disgust that shapes this interest within us. Typically, they are also far in the past which hints that these kinds of psychopaths are not ones we have to deal with now. For ‘Woman of the Hour’, a different approach is taken as ‘Woman of the Hour’ does not focus on the mystery of the murderer’s identity or an exploitation of violence. Instead, Kendrick manages to place Robert Alcala, the infamous murderer of many young women, in an environment ridden by sexism and deplorable men. With help from actor Daniel Zovatto’s incredibly subdued performance, Alcala manages to be a scary figure for reasons different from most serial killers. He advertises himself as someone considerate of women only to later reveal himself as a murderous monster. It does not portray Alcala as a fascinating individual or resort to shock value to maintain engagement. Kendrick manages to use this approach to instill a disturbing nature to the film without the common exploits seen in film.
By taking this approach, ‘Woman of the Hour’ transcends most true crime stories and seeks to question our expectations of men and how to act. The three men on the Dating show who Sheryl Bradshaw, played by Kendrick herself, is to choose from represent three different presentations of men that are either deplorable or pathetic. One cluelessly unconfident at a loss for words and evidently less competent. The other blatantly misogynistic and perverted. The third is Robert Alcala himself who is perhaps the most terrifying as he pretends to be a comforting and thoughtful individual who knows what women are for and respects their boundaries. Yet we know he is really harboring monstrous tendencies. The truly terrifying qualities of evil people are not what they externally present but what they conceal. It is also quite compelling how ‘Woman of the Hour’ explores the expectations society sets for both women and men where women are counted to have nice looks, good personalities, and be subservient while the lack of expectation for men has caused similar conflict for them. Many great pieces of media explore both of these concepts, but ‘Women of the Hour’ manages to bring discussion to both. In what ways can we lessen our harmful assumptions of what women should be and how can we hold men more accountable for their attitudes? ‘Woman of the Hour’ does not provide a concrete answer to these questions for who really knows? But, it is certainly a topic for discussion that would be worth having.
Cast: Anna Kendrick, Daniel Zovatto, Pete Holmes
Director of Photography: Zach Kuperstein | Editor: Andrew Canny | Writer: Ian McDonald | Producers: Roy Lee, Miri Yoon, J.D. Lifshitz, & Raphael Margules | Director: Anna Kendrick
By Elijah van der Fluit
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Elijah van der Fluit is a writer for The Hollywood Insider based in California with aspirations to write and direct films for a professional career. In his spare time, Elijah enjoys watching and discussing movies of all genres as well as reading, hiking, spending time with family, and being one with the world. Elijah believes that art, whatever form it may take, has the ability to inspire and broaden people’s perspectives in a positive way and he hopes to use his work in film and writing to do so.
Elijah van der Fluit is a writer for The Hollywood Insider based in California with aspirations to write and direct films for a professional career. In his spare time, Elijah enjoys watching and discussing movies of all genres as well as reading, hiking, spending time with family, and being one with the world. Elijah believes that art, whatever form it may take, has the ability to inspire and broaden people’s perspectives in a positive way and he hopes to use his work in film and writing to do so.
Elijah van der Fluit is a writer for The Hollywood Insider based in California with aspirations to write and direct films for a professional career. In his spare time, Elijah enjoys watching and discussing movies of all genres as well as reading, hiking, spending time with family, and being one with the world. Elijah believes that art, whatever form it may take, has the ability to inspire and broaden people’s perspectives in a positive way and he hopes to use his work in film and writing to do so.
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