Woman of the Hour Ending Explained: What Happened to Rodney Alcala?

The final stretch of Woman of the Hourstrikes a delicate balance. There’s a moment of triumph, as teen runaway Amy (Autumn Best) escapes from serial killer Rodney Alcala (Daniel Zovatto) and turns him in to the police. But there’s also tragedy: As the film’s end titles reveal, Alcala will be released on bail and kill again.

Both of those feelings are present in the film’s final moment, a tortured gasp from Amy that’s interrupted as director Anna Kendrick cuts to black. “As incongruous as it is, that’s Sondheim,” Kendrick, who also stars in the film, tells Tudum, referring to legendary composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim. “That’s the chord resolving at the end of Into the Woods, and then one last ‘I wish’ ringing out. Because there isn’t a perfect resolution: That character has survived, but it’s not as simple as ‘She...