Why ‘Woman of the Hour’ is a Modern Day Horror
Anna Kendrick hits the nail on the head in this spine-tingling exploration of female fear.
Credit: Netflix
A serial killer playing a game show in front of a live audience sounds like some sick fever dream. But the premise of this film is all too real. Rodney Alcala had already murdered five women at this point, and would murder many more before he finally got caught charged in 1980 (after being arrested and released a few years prior). He was sentenced to death in 2010, for the third time.
However, Rodney is not the main focus of this piece. The main focus is Anna Kendrick, and her incredible direction of the film, resulting in a disturbing depiction of female fear. What do I mean by this? I mean the scene in the parking lot. If you’ve watched the film then you know the exact scene I’m talking about. The scene that made the hair on the back of every woman’s neck stand on end. The scene of a situation every woman knows all too well. That heart-sinking moment when you realise that you are not safe.
What this film brought to mind is Gavin de Becker’s 1997 book on fear and survival.
“It is understandable that the perspectives of men and women on safety are so different--men and women live in different worlds...at core, men are afraid women will laugh at them, while at core, women are afraid men will kill them.”
― Gavin de Becker
De Becker examines the notion of ‘female intuition’. He asserts that yes, women have a better gut feeling because they are programmed to spot danger more than men are - we “live in different worlds”. We are constantly scanning for danger because we are used to being the less strong opponent. We walk faster when it’s dark out, we keep our keys in our fists, we leave our drinks with friends we trust.
One of my main take-aways from this book is the idea that we do not have to be nice. De Becker gives the example of a situation where you are about to get in a lift, the doors open and there’s a man in there. Your gut pangs, telling you not to get in this enclosed space alone with a male stranger, but you don’t want the man to think you’re rude, or to make him feel bad, so you get in the lift despite your gut telling you not to. No other creature in the animal kingdom would ignore danger in order to be ‘nice’. That really stuck with me.
“I encourage people to remember that "no" is a complete sentence.”
― Gavin de Becker
That moment in Woman of the Hour where we see on Anna Kendrick’s face the moment she realises that she is no longer safe is the exact moment your gut tries to protect you from. I think this is what makes this directorial debut so brilliant. Most horror films, directed by men, assume that the ‘worst’ part of the encounter is the kill; the blood splatters, the gore, the moment of death. But Kendrick recognises that this is not the worst moment for women. The worst moment is realising that you are in danger.