Woman of the Hour

~ MaryG

An insightful post by Singing Gecko reminded me that I recently watched—and highly recommend—Woman of the Hour on Netflix. It stars Anna Kendrick, who also directed it. Quite a feat. She is extremely talented.

I think men especially should watch it.

We all know that the vast majority of men are not serial killers…or rapists…or even misogynists (despite the election results), but they’ve really never walked in our shoes. The “trapped” feeling when alone in an unlit area with a large man lurking is hard to describe in words. The mixture of fear, self-doubt (am I overreacting?) and calculation (what if I run to the stairs? will someone hear me if I scream?) is extremely well-portrayed in Woman of the Hour.

Woman of the Hour is a dramatic, bizarre and entertaining true story that helps explain why so many women recently said they’d choose the bear.

Even better, one of the major settings of the film is The Dating Game—a classic TV game show that elder GenXers like me will remember from childhood, especially if your parents let you watch tons of TV like mine did.

Tony Hale, Anna Kendrick and Daniel Zovatto in one of The Dating Game scenes in “Woman of the Hour.”

17 thoughts on “Woman of the Hour”

      2. Got a whole lot more than I bargained for! Kendrick was tremendous, as usual. Did you go find the real dating game episode after and watch? I did. Cheryl was really flirty on the show. Isn’t that wild that he went on national television? I thought the film was well made. Several viewers were disappointed that the story didn’t focus more on that savvy young woman who escaped. But I think the movie was a very good retelling of the story. I don’t think I was allowed to watch the dating game. What a horrifying concept. Ask a few questions of a few strangers and then go out with one?! Wow.

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      3. Oh no! I hadn’t even thought of that Susan. Of course the actual Dating Game episode from the 70s is out there on YouTube. I just watched a bit of it. You’re right, she was very flirty, but that was the whole vibe of the show (as I recall) TONS of sexual innuendo. It was truly cringe TV! I can’t believe my parents let me watch. Thanks for letting me know you watched! The escapee scene at the end was the most difficult to watch but WOW

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  3. Thanks for the shout out, Mary! Another friend said I should definitely watch this, but I’ve been hesitating since I’m still in a kind of heightened state. I’ve heard that you can really feel the difference in direction, so I’m very curious to compare with how a man may have directed the same story (based on a billion other stories).

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  4. I’ve been considering watching that. Thanks to your post, I think I might.

    My wife didn’t like it when I parked next to a van. I didn’t understand until she explained to me why – when she was single, she feared the possibility of being abducted without anyone noticing. Whoa. It totally makes sense. We men don’t think about those things.

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    1. Oh right! Vans were scary and to be avoided. (I forgot about that.) There were many stories of girls being abducted in vans. I remember a friend and I once bought knockoff purses in NYC from the back of a van and we had to get INTO the van to pick them out. I remember thinking I’m going to die for a fake Gucci bag. What a dumb way to go.

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  5. I watched Woman of the Hour yesterday. Anna Kendrick is really really talented. You are right. We never walked in your shoes. AND… there were so many times in the movie where the men discounted women.

    I’ll have to look up the actual show just like Susan did. I can’t imagine what it will be like. I will say I watched the show as a kid. Classic Gen X game show… it just has a bit of a dark side now.

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    1. Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts! You’re right about the discounting. That scene when the girl tries to report him to the network and they send in the janitor was so heartbreaking. I remember watching both Dating Game and Newlywed Game – cringe TV of the highest order!

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