ALI ABBASI: HOLY SPIDER
Join us for select screenings of Holy Spider to celebrate the release of Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice. Holy Spider is a chilling thriller that, like The Apprentice, tackles disturbing themes of justice, crime, and morality in an unflinching narrative. Both films offer a gripping exploration of human darkness, pushing the boundaries of traditional storytelling.
Holy Spider is an unconventional thriller based on the true story of Iranian serial killer ‘the spider killer’. Award-winning director Ali Abbasi (Gräns) convincingly manages to combine a thrilling drama with insight into Iranian society and the position of women. Journalist Rahimi (Zar Amir Ebrahimi) arrives in Mashhad, Iran’s holiest city. Here she goes to investigate a series of murders of prostitutes, which are seen as sinful. She soon discovers that, as a woman, she needs to know her place. As the killer creates new victims, Rahimi takes ever greater risks to still find out the identity of the ‘spider killer’. Religious beliefs, lack of emancipation and a violent past can create a monster. Rahimi is the only one who sees the truth. Actress Zar Amir Ebrahimi turns the journalist into a hero of our time and was awarded Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival.
