Rent Holy Spider (2022)

Chilling - Holy Spider review by sb

FILM & WATCHED Just out on MUBI so only general details - a seriel killer is cleaning the streets of prostitutes claiming he is undertaking Gods work. What gives the film its edge is its based on a real case in the Holy City of Mashhad in Iran and as the film unfolds it’s revealed that public opinion is wholly behind him - it’s only the determined work of journalist Rahimi (Ebrahimi) who forces the authorities to finally take action.. The killer is revealed straight away and we see a devoted family man with 3 children but who is driven to clean the filth off the streets - a kind of Iranian Travis Bickle with a loving family. Both leads (Banestni as the killer ) are very good with Ebramimi picking up best actress at Cannes. With the subject matter is is fairly grim throughout but very good at skewering the misogyny and hypocrisy of a society where woman sell themselves only because men buy them - powerful stuff - 4/5

Iranian Islamic Version of Taxi Driver based on a Real Case - Holy Spider review by PV

There have been many movies about disturbed men (usually) on a mission to cleanse society of, often, female prostitutes. So far, so derivative. But this is different enough to work, and it is well-acted (the main actress won the Cannes award for that and the film was on the Oscar shortlist), well-filmed, well-written and authentic.

It is closely based on a real case: the true story of Saeed Hanaei, a serial killer who targeted street prostitutes and killed at least 16 women from 2000 to 2001 in Mashhad, Iran who was hanged in 2002 aged around 40 so younger than the killer here, though he was a construction worker, was married with 3 kids and had been in the Iraq-Iran war. He was called the "Spider Killer" by the press for the way he lured his 16 prostitute victims back to his home before strangling them. It was a controversial case as some religious extremists expressed support for his self-described fight against "moral corruption" at the time.

A film such as this would no doubt get condemned by the usual prissy pofaced metoo feminist activists in the UK/US for making all victims young women and showing graphic detail of murders (and sex too). Thing is, this is absolutely necessary and not gratuitous, so fine, esp as it is based on a true story where the victims were young women, many of them heroin/opium addicts (as many men are in the region too).

What makes this different is how the director shows how women can be devoutly religious and so approve of someone cleansing the streets of prostitutes, NO western TV company would ever do that - they'd just blame men, set the MANBLAME default as per usual, So the film is different for that truth.

I loved this Danish-Iranian director's film BORDER so recommend that too as 5 stars.

This is 4.