A lurid and purposefully nasty piece of work, writer-director Ali Abbasi’s “Holy Spider” tells the true story of Saeed Hanaei, a construction worker and decorated veteran of the Iran-Iraq ...

Based on the Spider Killer’s 2000-2001 crimes in Iran, Holy Spider takes place in the dark underbelly of Mashhad. Rahimi (Zar Amir-Ebrahimi) is a journalist who enters the city with the intent ...

The gripping Iranian serial killer film, "Holy Spider" is set in the holy city Mashhad, where Saeed (Mehdi Bajestani) is murdering sex workers. (The pre-credit sequence depicts his ninth victim).

Zar Amir Ebrahimi (also known as Zahra) should be basking in the glow of her best actress win at Cannes for “Holy Spider.” Instead, she’s in a reflective mood when she sits down with Variety ...

That’s meant to be the chilling upshot of “Holy Spider,” a capably acted, resourcefully made and ultimately self-defeating thriller about Hanaei’s crimes and the widespread culture of ...

“I always had a very specific sense of urgency with this idea,” said Holy Spider director Ali Abbasi of wanting to make a film noir based on the true story of the “Spider Killer” Saeed ...

Or is a devout Muslim waging jihad against prostitution? Holy Spider is based on the true story of Saeed Hanaei, who murdered 16 women in Mashhad in 2000-2001. Dubbed the Holy Spider, Hanaei was ...

Is murdering prostitutes in modern-day Iran the work of God? It is if you are the madman and religious fanatic carrying out a reign of serial-killer terror in the ...

Among these habits, alas, is the knee-jerk objectification and exploitation of women, a practice in which “Holy Spider” repeatedly engages. Within minutes, Saeed’s first victim is shot ...

Any best picture lineup of any industry organization that does not include A24’s “Close,” Utopia’s “Holy Spider” and the doc “Sr.,” which is still seeking a distributor ...