Review: ‘Boston Strangler’ Is A Dull True Crime Misfire

Mar 27

BOSTON STRANGLER (2023)

A riveting true story brought to life through quite fine acting becomes buried in a film that painfully drags the audience along for every development before portraying the conclusion in anticlimactic fashion.

When reporter Loretta McLaughlin (Keira Knightley) links multiple murders of women in Boston to one another, she and her colleague (Carrie Coon) dive deeper in the fray in order to identify and bring the perpetrator(s) to justice. Riveting this is not, a film that hits the ground running and should be a fascinating journey, but instead is presented in dull fashion with even duller aesthetics. The acting is inspired from all, especially Knightley is a rather solid performance that was refreshing to see. Coon and other costar Alessandro Nivola are both at the top of their game, as well, but it all is much ado about nothing as the film fails to get to the core of what makes the story so interesting. Writer/director Matt Ruskin has crafted a film that ultimately is less about the mystery at hand and more about the powerful journalists that fought for the story and the women at its core.

There are interesting ideas explored here, yet never expanded upon, primary of which is the failure of the Boston PD to take acton early. We’re treated to a few exchanges that seem to point towards pitting the journalistic integrity against investigatory failure, but that never comes to fruition. The excitement about this type of story just isn’t baked within the screenplay; no level of acting from even the most talented performers can rescue that. Usually I am ready to take on the world and research everything I can about the truth behind a film like this, but Boston Strangler left me disinterested and bored.

Boston Strangler is now streaming on Hulu.

Rating: 2/5