Blood Flower is a simple tale of possession, and coming of age film. It's housed in a structure that speaks largely of morality, both good versus evil but also taking responsibilities for one's actions.

Iqbal is an adolescent with supernatural powers, as does his mother. She with the father act as exorcist in Malaysia, and are Muslim. (I mention this only to separate this film from the American assumption of Catholicism/Christianity as the religion for possession films.) It opens with them starting to train Iqbal to become an exorcist as well. But, not all goes well.

The rest of the film is various examples of good versus evil across a spectrum of dimensions of people residing in a large apartment complex, asaumed for lower income families. This tale has many storylines that all intertwine based upon the characters' close proximity. All are simple stories based on that good-bad characteristic and the choices that are made.

Engaging simple story is watchable and overall I was entertained. It was well made, but it's not a complicated film.

I am a fan of Malaysian horror and this was right on brand with what I'm familiar with. Many of them tend to lean towards folk horror and this one was in that same vain.

The story was spooky and intriguing but I don't think it needed to be quite as long as it was... although it didn't really drag much surprisingly. It did have a light sense of maybe being geared towards a younger audience but also had some pretty dark and gruesome subject matter.

The special effects and gore were actually pretty cool and gnarly, while the actual monster looked a bit silly most of the time and the flowers looked like play-doh. The acting also appeared to come across quite well to an English speaker at least.

All in all this was a good bit better than I was expecting it to be, while still delivering what I have come to expect from Malaysian horror. Would recommend.

I recently watched the Malaysian film ?? Blood Flower (2023) on Shudder. The plot centers on a young man with supernatural abilities and visions, which is dismissed by others as madness. However, when gruesome murders plague his community, he becomes their unlikely savior, tasked with uncovering the truth and protecting them.

Directed by Dain Said (Interchange), the film features performances by Brent Palarae (Nova), Idan Aedan (Zombitopia), Remy Ishak (Pulang), and Nadiya Nissa (Nova).

This is a movie where you have to shut your brain off, forget there's a story, and just go for the gore; because that's all this film was, an excuse to cram as much gore into a film as possible. There are times where the horror elements rely too much on CGI, like the ghost and spirit scenes. However, there are some amazing kills that were really impressive and there's a ton of blood splatter, appendages flying and creative mutilation. WARNING: there are some eating scenes that's a bit much. The ending with the machete was absolutely wild.

In conclusion, Blood Flower caters to gore enthusiasts, offering little beyond its visceral spectacle. I'd give it a 4/10 and recommend it only to those prepared for its graphic content.