Streaming: Keira Knightley in "The Boston Strangler"
Thursday, March 16, 2023 at 9:00AM by Matt St Clair
Dynamic of an actress as she may be, Keira Knightley remains quite stuck in the past. As she brilliantly makes each role she plays her own, she consistently transports us into different time periods whether it’s WWII (Atonement, The Aftermath), 5th century AD (King Arthur), or 18th century England (The Duchess). This time around, Knightley is taken to the early 1960s in Boston Strangler, the new journalism crime drama written and directed by Matt Ruskin (Crown Heights)...
Based on the true events that also inspired the 1968 Tony Curtis drama The Boston Strangler, which focused on a detective and the titular serial killer, this new film takes a much different approach. It follows the story of Loretta McLaughlin (Knightley), a journalist for the lifestyle section of the Record-American newspaper looking to cover more integral stories. Loretta decides to investigate the string of murders of over a dozen women in the Boston area between 1962 and 1964. Despite his own apprehensions, her editor Jack MacLaine (Chris Cooper) sends her out on the field with the help of investigative journalist Jean Cole (Carrie Coon).
As the investigation takes place, Loretta must not only combat the sexism in her workplace, but in her home life as well. Her husband James (Morgan Spector) tries being supportive, yet he wants her to be more active in her role as both a mother and wife. Even with the growing tensions between them, the persistent Loretta prioritizes her pursuit of the truth. Knightley portrays Loretta with the familiar yet flawless tenacity shown in such roles as her Oscar-nominated work as Joan Clarke in The Imitation Game and Katharine Gunn in Official Secrets.
Surrounding Knightley is a troupe of dependable character actors. Chief among them is Carrie Coon as the hard-headed Jean who possesses a similar grit to Loretta with a greater willingness to stand up to her superiors. Meanwhile, Bill Camp impresses as Edmund McNamara, the chauvinistic commissioner of the Boston Police Department rattled by Loretta’s mere presence in the case. Just as stellar is Alessandro Nivola as Jim Conley, a homicide detective aiding Loretta in her pursuit, and Chris Cooper as the no-nonsense Jack.
Boston Strangler serves as a capable filmmaking exercise as well as an acting one. The sequences where the strangler orchestrates his reign of terror, thrive on Matt Ruskin’s skilled direction. During those scenes of the strangler claiming his victims, Ruskin forces the viewer to imagine the violence that’s transpiring as it’s mainly heard through apartment walls and behind literal closed doors. Ben Kutchins’ chilly cinematography gives the sequences yet more unease.
Although the screenplay often falls into the conventions of the procedural crime drama, it is Ruskin’s filmmaking, and the performances, that help make Boston Strangler a tense viewing experience and worthy entry in the canon of Keira Knightley period pieces. If you’re a fan of Knightley, and seeing underrated greats like Carrie Coon and Alessandro Nivola make every project they’re in even better, this is worth a watch. B
Boston Strangler comes to Hulu on Friday, March 17th
Reader Comments (3)
I'm always excited for Keira.
i will probably watch this given the cast but i cant say that "Capable filmmaking" is much of an incentive ;)
Hmm. I'm surprised this rates a "B". It's okay, but just barely in line with the long list of true-crime stories, where dogged female journalists (and not the police) get shit done. Considering the cast, and the money spent on period sets and costumes, it's just meh. Plus, it certainly wasn't a topic on the top of my radar screaming "this story needs a film adaptation."
Personally, I would have preferred seeing more of Keira and Carrie at the pub, complaining about how men suck, then falling in love with each other. But maybe that's just me. Those two actresses are endlessly watchable.