Directors: Aharon Keshales, Navot Papushado
Starring: Lior Ashkenazi, Rotem Keinan, Tzahi Grad
Running Time: 110 minutes
Certificate: 18
Quentin Tarantino has held a lot of sway when it comes to international cinema. Due to his much appreciated efforts we’ve seen films that the likes of Harvey Weinstein would have gladly locked away in vaults until the end of time. So when a film gets to slap “Best film of the year” quotes over its publicity campaign courtesy of the RESERVOIR DOGS and DJANGO UNCHAINED director, then the hype is understandably high.
BIG BAD WOLVES is a child abduction revenge tale along the lines of another 2013 film, PRISONERS. It tells the story of a suspected child abductor, Dror (Keinan), taken captive by the father, Gidi (Grad), of the missing girl and tortured for information. He’s not the only one involved in hoping to extract information though, as we also have a cop, Micki (Ashkenazi), who loves taking matters into his own hands. Where BIG BAD WOLVES and PRISONERS differ though, is that rather focusing on the drama, BIG BAD WOLVES is a grim and violent affair with a comedic edge and surreal atmosphere. This works for the most part, as it creates an uncertain and uneasy tone which goes well with the fractured mindset of the individuals.
The title and tagline, ‘Some Men Are Created Evil’, obviously suggest that evil waits inside all of us, and the film draws uncomfortable parallels between the three men, often juggling with our perception of who the real villain is. Unfortunately the film falters on one major issue. It never convinces us as to the apparent guilt of Dror, nor the certainness of Gidi and Micki. All we know is that Dror was seen with the girl before she went missing, but being a school teacher this hardly seems as a reason to be so convinced of his guilt. The film obviously wants us to change where our sympathy lies throughout the run time, but to offer so little in the way of explaining characters’ actions makes it a hard film to penetrate.
The three leads give terrific performances, and each scene and method of torture creates the required nail biting tension. These aspects paired with the tone make it a surprisingly enjoyable film, but one that doesn’t become more than a torture, revenge thriller. The film, like its main characters, is rash and hot headed, never really thinking before it takes action. Enough for a solid night of gritty entertainment but hardly “Best Film Of The Year.”
[usr=3]BIG BAD WOLVES is released on DVD on 28th April.
