Director: Navot Papushado, Aharon Keshales.
Starring: Lior Ashkenazi, Rotem Keinan, Tzahi Grad.
Running Time: 110 minutes.
Certificate: 18.
Synopsis: The lives of three men from different walks of life collide during an investigation into a series of brutal child murders. After impulsive Police Detective Miki (Lior Ashkenazi) bumbles an interview with prime suspect Dror (Rotem Keinan), he decides to take matters into his own hands. Whilst trying to undercover evidence that implicates Dror, he meets grieving father Gidi (Tzahi Grad).
BIG BAD WOLVES is an Israeli thriller brought to us by Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado, the joint minds behind Israel’s first ever horror film, RABIES. Their debut had an impressive reaction when released in 2011, and thanks to its success the duo have paired up again to tackle BIG BAD WOLVES.
The story is thus: there is a child killer on the loose, a really sadistic one, who after torturing the victim to death, removes their heads to keep as trophies. Having a young daughter himself, Detective Miki becomes overly emotionally involved in the case. After being responsible for the lead suspect’s release, Miki becomes consumed with proving he is the killer. He plots to kidnap and extract a confession from the suspect, but is beat to the punch by a father of one of the victims. The two then become unlikely allies in their quest for justice and the location of the victim’s missing body part.
What follows is some of the most intense scenes of torture you will have ever seen on the big screen. The gore, however, is kept to a minimum, with the intensity stemming from the audience’s own imagination, which as we all know is far more creative than seeing something play out on-screen.
The great thing about BIG BAD WOLVES is that you are never given too much information. We do not know who the killer is, so, as the viewers are kept in the dark, so our two protagonists may well be torturing an innocent man. This causes a lot of discomfort; if we knew for certain the man tied-up was the sadistic killer then we would not feel much empathy, yet by remaining completely unaware, it’s hard to not start to feel something for the kidnapped man.
The unexpected element that runs through the film is the comedy. Yes, you read that right, comedy. At the heart of BIG BAD WOLVES is a visceral study of what people are willing to do to get justice, however, coursing through its veins is a steady pulse of dark humour. An example of this would be when a torture session gets cut short as Gidi has to take a call from his mother who is concerned he isn’t eating. A comparable film, in terms of dark subject matter mixed with humour would be FOUR LIONS.
As with any foreign film that has a strong story there will inevitably be talks of an English-language remake, though they needn’t bother as this year’s PRISONERS is pretty close in terms of subject matter. BIG BAD WOLVES is an engaging and compelling film with visuals that will stay with you for days. Not one for those with weak stomachs or sensitive dispositions, but a definite must-watch for world cinema and horror fans alike.
BIG BAD WOLVES is released in selected UK cinemas on Friday 6th December.
