“Sensational, in-your-face storytelling.”—Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter
Ali Abbasi’s (director of the Oscar-nominated Border) returns to tell the true story of the female journalist Rahmi (Zar Amir Ebrahimi, winner of Cannes Best Actress award for the role) goes undercover to investigate the case of the Spider Killer who murdered 16 prostitutes in the city of Mashhad, Iran in 2000 and 2001. Abbassi has crafted a nail-biting story of misogyny as the killer is heralded as a national and religious hero who was seen as “cleansing’ the city, the site of religious pilgrimages, of vice.
Rahmi’s decision to go undercover is promoted by the inaction of the police and the public who view the murdered women as dispensable. Her presence in the city is suspect and carefully controlled as the morality of a woman traveling alone is put in question. She’s a committed journalist determined to find the killer and break the story.
Holy Spider is a gripping crime thriller and a daring indictment of a society in which rough justice is routinely a fact of life. A selection of the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, and the Toronto International Film Festival. 2022, Denmark, DCP, in Persian with English subtitles, 117 minutes. Recommended for 18+.