I was told, disturbing and gory so I had to search for this Indonesian flick. Simple, it's on Netflix. Seen it I have to agree that some shots are gory.

Starts a bit slowly with a great start after 30 minutes I thought is this it and just when I thought to stop this flick slowly the eerie atmosphere comes in. And once the possession is out there this turns into a rather good horror.

Disturbing, not for me but i do understand that the creepy possessed people can be to much for some. One shot is indeed full of gore and well done.

Above mediocre but not one that will stuck to mymind, still if you like them dark and scary, watch it.

Gore 1/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 3/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 0/5

Director Timo Tjahjanto is the man behind a couple of my favourite action films of recent years - Headshot and The Night Comes For Us - and, along with Gareth Evans, he co-directed a fun story for horror anthology V/H/S/2. Naturally, I was pumped to see May the Devil Take You, which some have described as an Indonesian The Evil Dead.

I can certainly understand the comparison - both are fast, frenetic, gory tales of possession that, for the most part, take place in an isolated rural building - but Tjahjanto's film cannot hold a candle to Sam Raimi's cult classic: although it features some well handled individual scenes, a messy, unfocussed plot makes it a confusing tale that is definitely less than the sum of its parts.

The basic plot revolves around a young woman, Alfie (Chelsea Islan),who goes to see the ailing father she hasn't seen in ten years. On discovering that he has left an old villa in her name, Alfie pays a visit to the building, where an evil presence lurks in the cellar. When her stepmother and step-siblings also turn up, the malevolent spirit is freed and, in one of the film's most effective moments, possesses the stepmother. One by one, the family members fall victim to the evil at large...

Superbly executed scenes of suspense (the girl with the hammer behind her back) rub shoulders with derivative Asian spooky nonsense (what is it with Asians and haunted hair?),while predictable scares fail to do the trick. At no point was I tempted to turn off or catch some Zzzzzs - a brisk pace ensured that - but I did find the uneven, jumbled nature of the whole thing frustrating. I certainly expected better from Tjahjanto.

The 2018 Indonesian horror movie "May the Devil Take You" (aka "Sebelum Iblis Menjemput") turned out to be a rather enjoyable surprise of a movie. I must admit that as I sat down to watch it, I didn't really expect much from writer and director Timo Tjahjanto, as I hadn't even heard about the movie prior to sitting down to watch it in 2021. And also, the movie's cover wasn't just exactly particularly interesting to behold.

The storyline was nicely constructed, albeit at times fairly straight forward and almost generic for a horror movie. But there was just something about the storyline that worked well in favor of the overall enjoyment of the movie.

The acting performances in the movie were good. Now, I wasn't familiar with anyone on the cast list here, but then again, I am not overly familiar with the Indonesian cinema at large. But I will say that the performances in the movie were good, especial Chelsea Islan (playing Alfie) and Ruth Marini (playing the priestess).

Visually, then this is where "May the Devil Take You" really impressed me. The special effects and make-up in the movie were really good, and came off as being rather realistic-looking. And that was something that carried a lot of worth with it, because it added so much to the movie. I especially liked the make-up on the possessed mother.

"May the Devil Take You" feels like a good old classic foray into the horror genre. The movie offers enjoyment to seasoned horror veterans such as myself, but also serves as a good movie to introduce the horror genre to new audiences. So thumbs up to writer and director Timo Tjahjanto on that accomplishment.

This is a horror movie that I can and will warmly recommend you take the time to watch, especially if you enjoy the Asian horror cinema. My rating of the 2018 movie "May the Devil Take You" lands on a well-deserved six out of ten stars.