WOMAN OF THE HOUR
Starring: Anna Kendrick, Daniel Zovatto, Tony Hale, Nicolette Robinson, and Autumn Best
Director: Anna Kendrick
NICK
There’s a lot that works great about Woman of the Hour. Much like Patricia Arquette’s directorial debut, Gonzo Girl, Anna Kendrick shows great sensibilities behind the camera as she covers renown murderer Rodney Alcala’s appearance on The Dating Game, but with the focus placed on his victims. The only hiccup is the performance of Daniel Zovatto as Alcala. Not only is he lacking the necessary charm, but he fails to feel truly menacing in the tense moments. Don’t get me wrong, this is still a very solid feature, but I would have liked to see where someone else would have taken things with the role.
ADRIANO
Colour me surprised because Woman of the Hour is quite good. Some moments certainly feel like they were only there to pad the runtime since they didn't add anything we didn't already know or because they felt unearned, but Anna Kendrick's direction gives way to not only a freakishly intense final twenty minutes, but also a thrilling commentary on how men are able to manipulate women. Kendrick is as delightful as she always is, and Daniel Zovatto is as charming as he is creepy, and though not without its flaws, Woman of the Hour is a hell of a debut.
KATIE
Woman of the Hour is an impressive directorial debut from Anna Kendrick, who is also very compelling in the lead role as amateur actress Cheryl Bradshaw. Her direction builds chilling suspense, utilising a non-linear narrative to drip-feed information about the heinous crimes of Rodney Alcala, played by a deeply unsettling Daniel Zovatto. She achieves this without being exploitative, ensuring the victims are humanised characters, a disappointingly common issue in films about serial killers. Kendrick also cleverly highlights the all-too-familiar experience of women passively smiling and laughing off potentially unsafe situations, giving the film a timely, relevant feel despite its 1970s setting.
PAIGE
Woman of the Hour is a chilling film that attempts to explore misogyny, but just misses the mark for me due to it being too surface-level of a story. While Daniel Zovatto delivers a quite unsettling performance as Rodney Alcala, the movie’s nonlinear and fragmented structure holds it back from truly being suspenseful. Don’t get me wrong, this is a solid directorial debut from Anna Kendrick, and I’m eager to see what she does next behind the camera. However, with a tighter script, this could've been a more prominent thriller.
AMARÚ
I wrote HERE that I would love to see Anna Kendrick play a Quentin Tarantino villain one day, and her directorial debut, Woman of the Hour, proves just how dark and twisted she can get. Her excellent use of score, lighting, and blocking escalates the tension for intertwining time jumps that, while doing a great job of setting up an otherwise tight script, left a little bit to be desired on the story front. However, once the film settles into a single timeline, Kendrick’s charmingly awkward performance alongside Daniel Zovatto’s spine-tingling creepiness carry the film to an interesting finish.
PRESTON
The fact that the story behind Woman of the Hour is true carries the film a long way. Anna Kendrick (Sheryl Bradshaw) does all the right things in her directorial debut, but the story still comes across as a bit anemic. It’s unlayered approach causes some of the nuanced character portrayals and the old-timey, misogynistic messaging to fall flat. Daniel Zovatto (Rodney Alcala) does a fantastic job of giving serious, creeper vibes throughout the film, and the crazy outcome does manage to escalate the pulse. A solid first outing for actor, and now director, Anna Kendrick.
MORE REVIEWS TO COME!
This film was reviewed by Nick and Adriano as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival.