Holy Spider

2022 1h 58m FA

👍

7.2

SOLID

★7.2TMDB · 550

ThrillerDramaCrime

Synopsis

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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.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Where to watch · US

Cast

Zar Amir Ebrahimi
Rahimi
Mehdi Bajestani
Saeed
Arash Ashtiani
Sharifi
Forouzan Jamshidnejad
Fatima
Sina Parvaneh
Rostami
Nima Akbarpour
Judge
Sara Fazilat
Zinab
Alice Rahimi
Somayeh

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ali Abbasi
Writers: Afshin Kamran Bahrami, Ali Abbasi, Jonas Wagner
Languages: Persian
Countries: Denmark, Jordan, France, Germany, Sweden

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Released 4 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 5 countries: Denmark, Jordan, France, Germany, Sweden.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Ali Abbasi, shot by Nadim Carlsen. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Martin Dirkov. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Olivia Neergaard-Holm shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Zar Amir Ebrahimi and Mehdi Bajestani and Arash Ashtiani carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt18550140 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ali Abbasi directs. Nadim Carlsen behind the camera. Martin Dirkov scores. Olivia Neergaard-Holm cuts. Produced in Denmark, Jordan, France, Germany, Sweden. Dialogue in Persian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 4 years ago.
2International production across 5 countries: Denmark, Jordan, France, Germany, Sweden.
3Directed by Ali Abbasi, shot by Nadim Carlsen. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Martin Dirkov. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Olivia Neergaard-Holm shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Zar Amir Ebrahimi and Mehdi Bajestani and Arash Ashtiani carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt18550140 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Released under 16 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Nadim Carlsen
Original score: Martin Dirkov
Editing: Olivia Neergaard-Holm
Production design: Lina Nordqvist
Costume design: Hanadi Khurma
Sound: Gregor Bonse
Stunt coordinator: René Lay
Runtime: 118 min · 1h 58m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Box office: $1,252,637
Original language: FA
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Holy Spider (2022)

Awards

Robert Award for Best Cinematography
Robert Award for Best Director
Robert Award for Best Score
Robert Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Robert Award for Best Danish Film
Robert Award for Best Screenplay
Robert Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Robert Award for Best Sound Design
Robert Award for Best Visual Effects
Danish Writers Guild Best Screenplay Award

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Ali Abbasi

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-01-23
★ 7/10
Over a relatively short period of time, over a dozen dead women are found bundled by the roadside - and the police are baffled? The women have not been sexually assaulted, but strangled using a knot tied in their headscarves. Not convinced that everything is being done by the authorities, investigative journalist "Rahimi" (Zar Amir-Ebrahimi) decides to get to the truth. Meantime, we follow the life of taxi driver "Saeed" (Mehdi Bajestani) and his daily life helps us to realise that the deceased were prostitutes. Not that he uses them, but pretty soon we realise that the stories are connected. At this point the plot rather falls away - we get to the bottom of the murder-mystery a little too simplistically for my liking; but actually as that plot develops we realise that the whodunit element of the narrative is not the most important one. It rapidly becomes an evaluation of a judicial process - and of vocal popular opinion - that may just indicate that these killings are in someway justifiable. These women, were - after all, sinful and irredeemable. Can the killer capitalise on this zealousness and escape justice? It's quite an intriguing film that looks at how religious faith can butt - head to head - with civic justice; of how the ordinarily law-abiding public themselves can; of how a person can genuinely believe he is doing good by removing "stains" from his community... I cannot believe anyone from the West would watch this with anything other than a feeling of abhorrence at the offences, but this film does attempt to put both sides in a thought-provoking fashion. Though it didn't change my opinion, it did offer a balance that makes the last twenty minutes or so a lot less fait accompli than we might expect. Bajestani is good here and this is more than just a good vs. evil crime drama. Well worth a watch. Telly will be fine, though.
Louisa Moore - Screen Zealots2023-04-23
★ 7/10
By: Louisa Moore / www.ScreenZealots.com “Holy Spider” is a disturbing crime thriller that’s based on the true story of the “Spider Killer” Saeed Hanaei, a man who murdered 16 female sex workers in Iran in the early 2000s. It’s a chilling tale of the intersection of religion, culture, social status, and sexism, and despite director Ali Abbasi sometimes crossing the line into more sordid territory, it’s a genuinely alarming film with a distressing universal message about the value of women. Female journalist Rahimi (Zar Amir-Ebrahimi) travels to the Iranian holy city of Mashhad to investigate a serial killer who is targeting local prostitutes. With skill and determination, every day brings her one step closer to exposing the perpetrator. When it’s discovered that the murderer is a charismatic family man named Saeed (Mehdi Bajestani), it seems like a cut-and-dried, slam dunk of a case, especially when he admits to his crimes. But when the killer brags that he is holy man who is on a divine mission from God to clean up the streets by ridding the city of corrupt, “dirty women,” he’s embraced by many as a hero. Shockingly, Saeed isn’t seen as guilty, making justice even harder to come by. Amir-Ebrahimi’s lead performance is wholly engrossing, and she portrays Rahimi with a forceful grace and intellect. She’s terrific as a journalist who is seeking justice yet trapped in an intense game of cat-and-mouse with a deranged serial killer who uses religion as an excuse to carry out over a dozen horrifying murders of women. Amir-Ebrahimi displays a composure that masks an underlying rage, and her strong performance carries the film. While the story is based on real events, co-writers Abbasi and Afshin Kamran Bahrami have crafted a work of fiction for the sake of entertainment. This is imagined storytelling and not the actual truth, even though parts of this story really happened. It’s alarming and unsettling, especially when the film recreates the murders in shocking fashion, and even more so when Rahimi is faced with the stark realities of deeply-rooted traditions of misogyny that are rampant in Iranian society (and quite frankly, around the globe). “Holy Spider” is an aggressive, unflinching film that will anger and enrage. By telling the story from a female’s point of view, it feels all the more disturbing and timely.