Holy Spider - Movie review

A journalist descends into the dark underbelly of the Iranian holy city of Mashhad as she investigates the serial killings of sex workers by the so-called Spider Killer, who believes he is cleansing the streets of sinners.

Movie Plot :

The movie is set in the Iranian holy city of Mashhad and follows journalist Arezoo Rahimi as she delves into a series of murder cases of local sex workers. The killings are committed by a serial killer named Saeed Hanaei, who picks up the women on a motorcycle and strangles them with their headscarves. The film opens with the last moments of one of Hanaei's victims, and throughout the film, Rahimi must navigate the cultural misogyny she encounters during her investigation.

As she delves deeper into the case, she forms a working relationship with a male journalist, Sharifi, and they uncover Hanaei's motive for the murders. He believes that he is cleansing the city in the name of Imam Reza and feels that the sex workers are corrupt and unclean. Hanaei's personal life is also portrayed, showing his devotion to his family, despite the brutality of his crimes.

With the help of Sharifi, Rahimi sets a trap for Hanaei, but she is quickly discovered. After a struggle, she manages to escape and bring evidence to the police, leading to his capture and trial. Despite public support for Hanaei's brutal crusade, he is found guilty and sentenced to death.

The film ends with a touching moment between Rahimi and Sharifi before she returns home, and as she travels, she reviews the evidence she gathered, including an interview with Hanaei's son, Ali, who proudly describes his father's killings.

Overall Review:

The film's cinematography is top-notch, capturing the mood and atmosphere of the holy city in a way that is both beautiful and haunting. The film's score is also noteworthy, adding to the overall intensity and emotional impact of the story.

In particular, the Iranian actor who plays the serial killer is entirely believable and portrays a monstrous human being but a human being nonetheless. It’s also a well-paced film which, a bit like the Law and Order TV series, deals the crimes, the investigation and then the criminal trial. Except, of course, that this is done in the context of a society that, let’s be generous here, has issues with female autonomy.

Holy Spider is a serial killer procedural which takes the procedure further than usual, despite its deployment of some pretty familiar tropes. It goes beyond the denouement and the arrest, extending the murderer’s conceited theatre of cruelty to the police cell, the law courts and the media arena.

This is a fictionalised true-crime drama-thriller based on Iranian construction worker Saeed Hanaei, nicknamed “Spider Killer” in the press, who in 2001 was arrested for the murder of 16 sex workers in the northeastern city of Mashad, and became a folk hero to the religious right for claiming to be on a holy mission to cleanse the city of prostitution.

Zar Amir Ebrahimi's performance garnered widespread critical acclaim, winning her the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress.

The film premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival on 22 May 2022, where it received a seven-minute standing ovation at the end of its screening.

It was released theatrically in France by Metropolitan Filmexport on 13 July 2022, in Denmark by Camera Film on 13 October 2022, and in Germany by Alamode Film on 12 January 2023.

In May 2022, Utopia acquired North American rights to the film and released it to select theaters on 28 October 2022, expanding to nationwide US theaters on 13 January 2023. Mubi acquired the film for the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, and Malaysia.

Overall, the film is a must-watch for anyone interested in crime dramas, social justice issues, and complex human behavior. It's a well-crafted and thought-provoking film that will leave a lasting impression on its viewers."

Rating : 8/10.