May the Devil Take You [org. title Sebelum Iblis Menjemput] is a new Indonesian horror movie on Netflix. With heavy influence from Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead, it’s not without definite potential.

May the Devil Take You is out on Netflix now and seems like the kind of horror movie you need to check out. The original title is Sebelum Iblis Menjemput and the story takes place in Indonesia.

One of the more recent Indonesian horror movies, I’ve seen, was the brilliant Satan’s Slaves. I’ve already seen several people compare May the Devil Take You to that particular movie, but that’s too much for this one.

It cannot hold up to that comparison.

Also read: Read our review of the amazing horror movie Satan’s Slaves right here >

Inspired by Sam Raimi

Another obvious comparison is Sam Raimi’s style. Particularly that of Evil Dead or maybe even Drag Me to Hell and those are valid comparisons.

Not in terms of story or quality, but more when it comes to the overall style.

I was so very happy (and impressed) with the amount of practical visual effects. From the very first scene, you get a feeling that May the Devil Take You has a very high production value. The effects are a huge part of this.

Only later in the story does a few CGI elements appear. Nothing too crazy though, since the practical make-up effects are used instead.

May the Devil Take You (2018) Netflix

Great effects but problems with acting

This movie does win a lot of points with its effects. One particular scene was so brilliantly done that I was so damn impressed, I feel like recommending this movie to everyone.

It was a certain face splitting scene done with rather simple – but very effective – practical effects. 

In general, May the Devil Take You could easily have gotten at least one more star (or blood splatter, as it is) from us.

So why didn’t it? The acting is pretty bad in a lot of scenes. At some points, it does get embarrassingly bad. And it’s not just because the actors tend to overact… a lot!

Instead, a big part of the problem is the inclusion of scenes that serve no real purpose.

Quite a few scenes seem like they’re included to have some cool effects rather than move the story along. And that is a damn shame. Also, this means the story drags on for too long. A good 20 minutes could (and should) have been cut from the movie.

May the Devil Take You on Netflix

The writer and director of May the Devil Take You is Timo Tjahjanto. He’s done segments for two of the most popular horror anthologies this decade. He wrote and directed a short film for V/H/S/2 (the one called Safe Haven) and also directed L is for Libido for The ABCs of Death.

Other than this, he’s also done a few movies as part of “The Mo Brothers”, but is now working on his own.

He has another movie out this year called The Night Comes for Us and I’ll definitely have to watch that as well. I just hope he’ll get better at tightening up the story along the way.

May the Devil Take You [org. title Sebelum Iblis Menjemput] is out on Netflix now!

Details

Director: Timo Tjahjanto
Cast: Pevita Pearce | Ray Sahetapy | Ruth Marini | Samo Rafael | Nicole Rossi | Chelsea Islan | Kinaryosih | Hadijah Shahab | Karina Suwandhi | Clara Bernadeth

Plot

Hoping to find answers to her estranged father’s mysterious illness, a young woman visits his old villa and uncovers a horrifying truth from the past.

I write reviews and recaps on Heaven of Horror. And yes, it does happen that I find myself screaming, when watching a good horror movie. I love psychological horror, survival horror and kick-ass women. Also, I have a huge soft spot for a good horror-comedy. Oh yeah, and I absolutely HATE when animals are harmed in movies, so I will immediately think less of any movie, where animals are harmed for entertainment (even if the animals are just really good actors). Fortunately, horror doesn't use this nearly as much as comedy. And people assume horror lovers are the messed up ones. Go figure!
Karina "ScreamQueen" Adelgaard
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