Ingrid Jungermann takes a dark and morbid approach to her feature film debut about two ex-lovers who continue their wildly successful podcast on women serial killers in Brooklyn. I couldn't help but notice a very strong Woody Allen presence throughout the picture, but it never once felt like she was ripping him off. Instead, she utilizes the strengths of Allen's work (strong characters, dry quick wit and humor, and using NYC as a character itself) and stands on her own two feet to deliver a wonderfully original work.
To go more into detail about the film, Morgan (Jungermann) and Jean (Ann Carr) work well together as hosts of their semi-famous true crime podcast because they didn’t work, at all, as a couple. When Morgan strikes up a relationship with the mysterious Simone (Sheila Vand, importing substantial menace from her breakout role in "A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night") their professional interest boils over into a cycle of suspicion, paranoia, and fear. Thankfully, Morgan has a confidant (maybe not her first choice given that she is in prison for murder). "Women Who Kill" is an adept and wry comedy on modern romance’s hollow results set in an LGBTQ Brooklyn that pulls ample humor from awkward and, perhaps to confirmed Park Slopers, all-too-familiar situations.
Jungerman, like Robert Eggers and Rod Blackhurst have done, uses genre to help tell an incredibly twisted love story about fear of commitment and finding oneself vulnerable. It dives into the NYC LGBT community and how a group of lesbian friends and acquaintances remain tightly knit, and grows incredible suspicious when there is a new face in their midst. It does this without alienating the audience who isn't a part of the LGBT community and keeps the central themes of commitment at the forefront, which is relatable no matter what your sexual identity.
Jungerman also makes this a very NYC centric film, relying heavily on the Park Slope lifestyle to draw wit and humor from what we all associate as hipster culture. However, it does so in a way that we can all laugh and enjoy it while not totally hating Park Slopians (something the Internet does on a consistent basis alongside Williamsburg). But mainly, it's the reaffirmation that NYC is still the world's most premiere city to shoot indie films. With incredible talent from Jungerman coming out of this new wave of NYC indie filmmakers, the future of indie film looks strong.