Aahana Swrup
‘Strange Darling’ is a horror film that aims to subvert expectations through a chronologically out-of-order depiction of a one-night stand that turns into a fight for survival. The film follows two central characters, the Lady and the Demon, who meet up for a fun night at a remote hotel. Naturally, the woman expresses her anxiety at the risk the encounter holds for her since the man could be a serial killer for all she knows. Still, it’s a surprise when their time together takes a violent turn the next morning. Thus, the two find themselves in a bloodied cat-and-mouse chase as the Demon hunts the Lady across a secluded forest.
The film maintains a mysteriously tense dynamic between Demon and Lady, compelling people to question their own biased assumptions as the duo’s story unfolds on a jumbled timeline. Consequently, the story achieves its big twist once the narrative reveals its true antagonist as Lady, a.k.a. The Electric Lady. Therefore, in following the skilled killer through her hunt after one of her last victims, the viewers must grow intrigued by the character and question her connections to reality. SPOILERS AHEAD!
The Electric Lady Holds Possible Inspiration in Reality
The concept of horror movies equipping the true story banner to intensify the plot’s scare potential is a long-held tradition within the genre. Even so, in some instances, such “true story” projects can possess an inciting real-life inspiration. ‘Strange Darling’ takes much the same route. Even though the film claims to be an account of an actual serial killer’s last killing spree dramatized for the screen through actual reports, the same is only partially the truth. In fact, ‘Strange Darling’ isn’t a true-to-life replication of a real serial killer’s story. Instead, it only potentially takes partial inspiration from reality.
The film’s writer/director, JT Mollner, has been intentionally vague about the real-life inspiration behind the film’s criminal plotline, unwilling to divulge any spoilers accidentally. Thus, in a conversation with Comic Book Resources, when the filmmaker was asked if he had taken real-life inspiration for the film, he replied, “Perhaps! (And) I would encourage you (the audience) to do as much research as you’d like and decide for yourself how much truth you feel like there is in the movie.” As such, the Electric Lady’s real-life entanglements remain more than a little obscure in reality. Still, through some on and off-screen clues, one can parse out a few possible inspirations behind the character.
The Potential Real-life Serial Killers who Inspired The Electric Lady
Filmmaker JT Mollner hasn’t divulged the exact inspiration behind ‘Strange Darling.’ For the same reason, it’s impossible to establish an official counterpart for the Electric Lady. Furthermore, the film intentionally obscures the character’s backstory as it focuses solely on her last serial killing spree. Therefore, little is known about Lady’s M.O. as a serial killer. Even so, the story establishes her identity as a female serial killer who exploits the historical context of gender-based violence for her own gain. Consequently, a potential parallel can be drawn between the Electric Lady and the real-life serial killer, Aileen Carol Wuornos.
Wuornos was a serial killer, active in 1989 and 1990. After she was arrested in 1991, she infamously owned up to killing multiple men but claimed she was acting in self-defense in all these instances. However, after she was sentenced to death in 1992, she confessed to having lied about her victims assaulting her and admitted that she had really only killed for her own pleasure. Even though Lady’s motives in the film remain a bit more nuanced, an evident connection persists between Wuornos and Electric Lady’s exploitative self-victimization. On the other hand, a few other female serial killers, such as Joanna Dennehy, can also be connected to the character due to the simple novelty of female serial killers. As such, it’s ultimately possible that real-life individuals inspire Electric Lady’s on-screen character.
Read More: Strange Darling Ending, Explained
