The popularity of true crime has incited a lot of scolding about our collective voyeurism. More productively, it has also inspired stories told from new perspectives — those of the victims or survivors of famous crimes rather than their perpetrators. Actor Anna Kendrick makes her directorial debut with just such a movie. Woman of the Hour, now streaming on Netflix, foregrounds the actual and potential victims of Rodney Alcala, the so-called "Dating Game Killer," who was convicted of seven murders and died in prison in 2021. He was known for using his photographic hobby to lure victims, and investigators believe he may have killed many more than we know about. The deal In 1977 Wyoming, Rodney (Daniel Zovatto) photographs a young woman (Kelley Jakle). He coaxes her into a heartfelt confession and then strangles her. In 1979 California, Rodney picks up a teenage runaway (Autumn Best). In 1971 New York, he attacks a woman after helping her move furniture. These stories frame the central narrative, which takes place in Los Angeles in 1978. Struggling actor Sheryl (Kendrick) is tired of male casting directors who think her vibe is too "angry." But she wants exposure, so she reluctantly agrees to her agent's suggestion that she appear as a bachelorette on the cheesy but popular show "The Dating Game." Sheryl's dating options leave something to be desired, even by reality-show standards. Bachelor No. 1 doesn't know the difference between an astronomer and an astrologer. Bachelor No. 2 is a chauvinist boor. Bachelor No. 3 is Rodney. Will you like it? A serial killer getting a slot on "The Dating Game" is one of those stranger-than-fiction occurrences that inspire Hollywood to reflect on its own culpability in the true crime ecosystem. Screenwriter Ian McDonald has situated Woman of the Hour in a twilight zone between fact and fiction; while most of the characters are based on real people, their names have been altered. Hollywood illusions wield dangerous power in this story. "The Dating Game" host (Tony Hale) instructs Sheryl to hide her intelligence ("Boys are babies," he explains) and smile, smile, smile as she trades double entendres with the bachelors. Rodney evokes the power of the silver screen to entice his victims, name-dropping Roman Polanski (like him, a convicted sexual predator) and suggesting that his photos could be their first step to stardom. The real Alcala evaded the consequences of his…