By: Lana K. Wilson-Combs
Keira Knightley shines in the riveting crime drama
"Boston Strangler" from director/screenwriter
Matt Ruskin ("Crown Heights").
"Boston Strangler," which is streaming on Hulu, is based on the shocking true story of the famed Boston Strangler, who in the 1960s murdered 15 women in Boston, Massachusetts.
The police initially seemed to drag their feet on the case until a feisty and determined reporter named Loretta McLaughlin (an excellent Knightley) kept digging, and along with veteran reporter Jean Cole (Carrie Coon, TV's "The Gilded Age"), broke the story for the Boston Record-American.
As much as the film lays out the grisly details surrounding the murders, "Boston Strangler" also spotlights the overt sexism the women faced as journalists.
Lorretta was always intrigued with the case. She began connecting the dots that the police couldn't. Even so, her editor Jack Maclaine (a terrific Chris Cooper, "Irresistible") who didn't want to make the police look bad, believed that Knightley wasn't cut out for that story and should stick with writing pieces on household products for the women's section of the paper. Lorretta's ideas weren't valued and were often dismissed.
It took a lot of persuasion and stone-cold evidence to convince her editor that she was on to something. Over time, he realized that this story was growing and simply too big to ignore. Women throughout Boston were understandably frightened, especially the elderly and those who lived alone since they were the primary targets of the Boston Strangler.
Lorretta's persistence finally paid off. She was teamed with her fellow reporter Cole (Coon) who also had to contend with sexism on the job and even while dealing with law enforcement.
Surely two women couldn't be smarter and work harder than the lead investigators, Det. Conley (Alessandro Nivola, ("Amsterdam") and Det. Donovan (Michael Malvesti, "Free Guy"). Det. Conley was however, more receptive to Loretta. He had his doubts about the police investigation. He quietly worked with Loretta and gave her tips on the case to pursue.
Their journalistic integrity and truth seeking came with a price especially for Lorretta. Her all in at all hour’s research on the case affected her marriage. Her supportive husband, James (Morgan Spector, "Nanny") believed she was putting their lives at risk.
Like most people when the police arrested Albert DeSalvo (David Dastmalchian, "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania") for the murders and he was sentenced to life in prison in 1967, James thought it was over and things would get back to normal for them.
Yet, Lorretta wasn't convinced DeSalvo was the murderer and kept pursuing the story even when everyone suggested it was time to move on.
The Boston Strangler story is fascinating. The debate regarding Albert DeSalvo's guilt or innocence has been a topic of interest ever since the release of the 1968 movie "The Boston Strangler" starring Tony Curtis as DeSalvo and Henry Fonda as John S. Bottomly, the chief detective who obtained DeSalvo's confession.
With "Boston Strangler," director/screenwriter Matt Ruskin has made a stylish and captivating crime drama that will likely bring the conversation to the forefront once again.
Editor's Note: Be sure to catch my N2Entertainment.net movie talk segment on the Kitty O'Neal Show Fridays now at 5:17 p.m. and 6:47 p.m. on radio station KFBK 93.1 FM and 1530 AM.
Look At This Trailer For
"BOSTON STRANGLER"
Lana K. Wilson-Combs is a member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA), The American Film Institute (AFI), and a Nominating Committee Voting Member for the NAACP Image Awards.
