Official Competition review - THE RED SPIDER by Marcin Koszałka

The Red Spider is a dark coming of age drama mixed with a clever examination of the figure of the serial killer ala Dostoevsky. It takes place in Krakow, Poland in the late sixties. The city is presented by director Marcin Koszalka, in his fiction feature directorial debut, as dreary and desolate. To make matters worse, it is haunted by the titular serial killer who, with his seemingly unstoppable killing spree, is spreading terror to an already mistrustful society and widely emotionless setting - certainly not a place for a young man like the central character in the film to nurture hopes, dreams and ambitions. 

We follow his story at a significant turning point in his life, as he discovers a fascination with death and at the same time awakens to the pleasures of love - the first represented by his encounter with the serial killer and the second by a female photographer who approaches him for a photoshoot celebrating his victories on the diving board.

Director Koszalka also took care of the cinematography, something he has a prominent background in. His experience clearly shows in the film's stylistic approach. The visual style in fact opts for greys and browns, dull and dark colours that echo the coldness and political oppression of the setting. The director also makes use of precise camera movements and a relatively slow rhythm to build up a sinister and ambiguous atmosphere that gradually and relentlessly descends into one of downright perversion. 

This style is also conveyed by the choice to keep the characters at a distance. In fact, there is no fully likeable character in The Red Spider, and this reading is strengthened by the rigid performances that make the events in the film seem all the more enigmatic. 

The most interesting aspect of the film is that it seems to be readable on two prominently parallel levels. On one, the examination of the oppression of Communism in Poland in the late sixties heavily casts a shadow on the depiction of its society. On the other hand, however, it resents a timeless examination of the media attention and resulting celebrity of a serial killer, which in the context of the film seems far more interesting in the eye of the public than the young man's hard earned victory as a diver.