The classic scenario of a hard-nosed reporter trying to convince a skeptical editor to run a big story is a familiar one, often depicted in movies like All the President's Men. In the new film

Boston Strangler, this dynamic is played out once again, with Chris Cooper as the editor and Keira Knightley as the persistent reporter who won't take no for an answer.

The film centers around the real-life case of the Boston Strangler, a serial killer who terrorized the city in the early 1960s. At least 11 women were sexually assaulted and killed between 1962 and 1964, and the case made national headlines. However, it wasn't until two female reporters from the Record American newspaper, Loretta McLaughlin and Jean Cole, linked the murders to a single suspect that the case began to gain traction.

McLaughlin and Cole were working in a male-dominated industry at a time when women were still fighting for equal rights and opportunities. In January 1963, they published an article with the headline "Two Girl Reporters Analyze Strangler," which helped to bring attention to the case and their investigation.

McLaughlin was particularly passionate about the case, and it was the fourth murder that "galvanized her attention." She was frustrated when an editor dismissed the story as not being newsworthy because the victims were "nobodies." For McLaughlin, the fact that these women were "sisters in anonymity" made their murders all the more compelling.

Although McLaughlin passed away in 2018 at the age of 90, her family is excited to see her work depicted on the big screen. Her son, Mark McLaughlin, who was too young to fully understand what was happening at the time, says that "most people don't imagine that a chapter of their parents' career is going to be portrayed in a major film and by such a well-known actress."

The Boston Strangler is written and directed by Matt Ruskin, and it is the first film to focus on the reporters who played a key role in the investigation. The film highlights the challenges that McLaughlin and Cole faced as women in the industry, as well as the tenacity and dedication that they brought to their work.

The Boston Strangler case has been the subject of numerous books and films over the years, but this new film offers a fresh perspective by shining a spotlight on the reporters who helped to crack the case. With strong performances from Knightley and Cooper, Boston Strangler is a gripping and engaging drama that pays tribute to the important work of investigative journalists.