Netflix viewers are saying a serial killer’s act in the opening scene of a newly dropped movie on the streamer is ‘one of the most chilling things they’ve ever seen’.
This is an incredibly high bar, because those who follow horror and thrillers know that the worst of the worst out there in films goes to a very extreme level.
If you ask me though, it’s not the out there crazy kills that make me uncomfortable.
The real thing that makes my skin crawl is when it’s close enough to reality to make you shiver in your spine.
This is an experience I shared with Netflix viewers watching Woman of the Hour, and the more I read about the real case that inspired the movie, the more valid this instinct felt.
The film focuses on the true story of Rodney Alcala, a serial killer in the 70s who was found guilty of murdering eight women and girls – though the number he killed is thought to be as high as 100+.
Alcala appeared on The Dating Show, a blind date show in which he was chosen to go on a date with a woman called Cheryl Bradshaw.
Bradshaw – who is played by the film’s director Anna Kendrick – got an instinct, however, which resulted in her cancelling the date with him.
Anna Kendrick and Daniel Zovatto in Woman of the Hour (Netflix)
But what got viewers feeling churned up was the first scene of the film, which showed Alcala – who worked as a photographer – taking photos of a woman in a remote part of the desert.
After the pair share an emotional conversation, things take a turn when Alcala suddenly jumps on her and strangles her.
He is then shown resuscitating her. She tries to wriggle away before he drags her back and continues his sadistic torture, with the film thankfully cutting away before this begins.
The scene is incredibly haunting and unsettling, and has left many watching unnerved.
Alcala would often resuscitate his victims to continue his torture (Netflix)
In an official discussion of the film, one viewer commented saying: “I was not expecting someone to be resuscitated to be further tortured in just the first scene…”
Another replied saying: “I told my wife from the other room that I was glad she decided not to watch that part. I think that’s one of the most chilling (i.e horror) things I’ve ever seen.”
The thing most horrifying about the scene is that this was something that Alcala is reported to have done to several of his victims.
Speaking to Digital Spy about the opening, Kendrick said: “I was frankly shocked with myself for being so firm.
The opening scene is bold if unsettling (Netflix)
“I think I said something along the lines of, ‘If it’s really important to you guys that the movie open in a nightclub and have a certain feeling, that’s fine, but I don’t know how to make that movie’.
“I was like, ‘I can’t believe I’m saying this. This is like my first directing opportunity and I’m being kind of ballsy’.
“So, there was a part of me that was like, ‘Who do I think I am saying this?’ But yeah, I love that opening scene.
“I also feel like I have to say that, of course, when you really, really fight for something, then at least you feel very, very happy with the result.”