Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Tzahi Grad | ... | ||
Lior Ashkenazi | ... |
Micki
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Rotem Keinan | ... | ||
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Doval'e Glickman | ... |
Yoram
(as Dov Glickman)
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Menashe Noy | ... | |
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Dvir Benedek | ... |
Tsvika
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Nati Kluger | ... |
Eti
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Kais Nashif | ... |
Stranger on a Horse
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Ami Weinberg | ... |
Principal Meir
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Guy Adler | ... |
Eli
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Arthur Perry | ... |
Ofer
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Gur Bentwich | ... |
Shauli
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Yuval Nadborany | ... |
Arik
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Alisa Vaisburd | ... |
School Girl
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Guy Shefa Pesso | ... |
School Boy
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A series of brutal murders puts the lives of three men on a collision course: The father of the latest victim now out for revenge, a vigilante police detective operating outside the boundaries of law, and the main suspect in the killings - a religious studies teacher arrested and released due to a police blunder. Written by Anonymous
In the Israeli crime thriller "Big Bad Wolves," a bereaved father and a demoted cop take the law into their own hands when they team up to torture and murder a man they suspect of being a serial child killer. And, oh, by the way, the movie is a comedy - at least of sorts.
With its grim subject matter and relatively graphic torture sequences, "Big Bad Wolves," written and directed by Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado, is clearly not for every taste or audience demographic. However, the rich vein of dark humor that runs through the work - a humor derived primarily from the juxtaposition between the mundane concerns of everyday life and the horrific nature of the deeds being performed - mitigates some of the more distasteful elements of the film. The movie also effectively raises some intriguing questions about the effect vigilante justice has on the individual who's engaged in it.
The screenplay deliberately shuns the trite and the formulaic, as it challenges audiences to evaluate their own moral proclivities at every stage in the drama. The filmmakers draw sharp performances from their cast (Rotem Keinan, Lior Ashkenazi, Tzahi Grad and Doval'e Grickman) and always keep us wondering where exactly this gruesome, but often oddly funny, little tale of criminal comeuppance is headed. That the destination turns out to be a mite flatfooted when it finally arrives isn't enough to blunt the overall effectiveness of the film.