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Mudborn

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6 / 10

1 Review

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Overview

Hsu-Chuan, who works at a game company, accidentally brings home a broken clay doll from a haunted house while developing a new horror VR game. Unexpectedly, his pregnant wife, Mu-Hua, a cultural relic restorer, develops an obsession with the doll and relentlessly tries to repair it. As strange things begin to happen in the house, Mu-Hua's condition deteriorates, and Hsu-Chuan, at his wits' end, seeks help from a spiritual medium, Ah-Sheng. Meanwhile, the horrifying secret hidden behind the clay doll begins to surface.

Media

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泥娃娃｜ Mudborn | Official Trailer | 正式预告片

Cast

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Tony Yang

Cecilia Choi

Derek Chang

Tracy Chou

Director:

Shieh Meng-ju

Writer:

Huang Yen-chiao

Release Date:

2025-10-09

Run Time:

111m

Genres:

Horror Thriller

Financials and Popularity

Budget: Not Declared $

Revenue: 111.00 $

Vote Average: 7.0/10

Vote Count: 34 Votes

Movie Popularity: 29.3949

Spoken Languages: Mandarin

Review

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Insomniacs Reviews
- 23 April 2026 at 12:10 am

6 Based on 1 Votes

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⭐ Insomniacs Rating: 6/10 THE SUMMARY Also known as Mudborn (released late 2025 in Taiwan and hitting Netflix in April 2026), this is a creepy blend of old-school folk horror and modern tech. Hsu-chuan is a VR game developer who inadvertently brings home a broken clay doll from a haunted scan-site. His pregnant wife, Mu-hua—an art restorer who clearly didn't get the memo about "creepy cursed objects"—becomes obsessed with fixing it. Soon, the boundaries between their home, their nightmares, and the virtual world of Hsu-chuan’s horror game begin to bleed together. It’s inspired by the famous, unsettling Taiwanese nursery rhyme "Mud Doll" (Ni Wa Wa). THE PROS The atmosphere is a "Guaranteed Banger." The film does a fantastic job of making you feel claustrophobic, using security cameras and VR headsets to create a sense of "digital voyeurism." Cecilia Choi is a Masterpiece in the role of the wife; her physical deterioration and "glitchy" possession are genuinely disturbing to watch. The fusion of traditional folklore (clay dolls and spirit possession) with cutting-edge technology gives it a fresh edge over your standard "haunted house" flick. The practical effects and "bloody moments" in the second half are top-tier for fans of the genre. THE CONS It falls into some "Predictable Potholes." Despite the cool VR gimmick, the core story is a fairly standard possession narrative we’ve seen plenty of times before. It’s a 6/10 because it suffers from being "too dark"—literally. Some scenes are so dimly lit you’ll be squinting at your screen trying to figure out if that’s a ghost or just a coat rack. The pacing is a bit of a "head-scratcher" too; it starts as a slow-burn psychological thriller but suddenly pivots into a frantic, CGI-heavy exorcism finale that feels like it’s from a different movie. It misses the 9/10 mark because it lacks the tight, coherent vision of a classic like Incantation. THE VERDICT A 6/10. It’s "The Business" if you’re looking for a solid, spooky night in with a "high-tech haunt." It’s "The Garbage" for anyone who hates jump scares or expects a revolutionary plot twist. It’s a respectable addition to the 2026 horror lineup, but maybe keep a flashlight handy for the scenes where the lighting budget seemingly ran out. INSOMNIAC TRIVIA The nursery rhyme the film is based on, Ni Wa Wa, has been a source of nightmare fuel in Taiwan for generations because of its lyrics about a doll with "no father and no mother." Also, the director, Shieh Meng-ju, spent months researching real-life cultural relic restoration to make Mu-hua’s workspace look authentic. Fun fact: The "VR horror game" seen in the film was actually built out as a playable tech demo for promotional events in Taipei to promote the movie’s 2025 release. THE VIBE Like a corrupted save file. It’s familiar territory, but there’s a persistent, digital "wrongness" that keeps you on edge, making you wonder if the thing you’re seeing on screen is actually in the room with you.

Videos

泥娃娃｜ Mudborn | Official Trailer | 正式预告片

Cast

Tony Yang

Cecilia Choi

Derek Chang

Tracy Chou

Puff Kuo

Chen Wei-min

Li Kuan-yi

Mountain Kao

Lindsey Huang

Po Yen-hua

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Mudborn

Comment (1)

Insomniacs Reviews
- 23 April 2026 at 1:10 AM

⭐ Insomniacs Rating: 6/10

THE SUMMARY

Also known as Mudborn (released late 2025 in Taiwan and hitting Netflix in April 2026), this is a creepy blend of old-school folk horror and modern tech. Hsu-chuan is a VR game developer who inadvertently brings home a broken clay doll from a haunted scan-site. His pregnant wife, Mu-hua—an art restorer who clearly didn’t get the memo about “creepy cursed objects”—becomes obsessed with fixing it. Soon, the boundaries between their home, their nightmares, and the virtual world of Hsu-chuan’s horror game begin to bleed together. It’s inspired by the famous, unsettling Taiwanese nursery rhyme “Mud Doll” (Ni Wa Wa).

THE PROS

The atmosphere is a “Guaranteed Banger.” The film does a fantastic job of making you feel claustrophobic, using security cameras and VR headsets to create a sense of “digital voyeurism.” Cecilia Choi is a Masterpiece in the role of the wife; her physical deterioration and “glitchy” possession are genuinely disturbing to watch. The fusion of traditional folklore (clay dolls and spirit possession) with cutting-edge technology gives it a fresh edge over your standard “haunted house” flick. The practical effects and “bloody moments” in the second half are top-tier for fans of the genre.

THE CONS

It falls into some “Predictable Potholes.” Despite the cool VR gimmick, the core story is a fairly standard possession narrative we’ve seen plenty of times before. It’s a 6/10 because it suffers from being “too dark”—literally. Some scenes are so dimly lit you’ll be squinting at your screen trying to figure out if that’s a ghost or just a coat rack. The pacing is a bit of a “head-scratcher” too; it starts as a slow-burn psychological thriller but suddenly pivots into a frantic, CGI-heavy exorcism finale that feels like it’s from a different movie. It misses the 9/10 mark because it lacks the tight, coherent vision of a classic like Incantation.

THE VERDICT

A 6/10. It’s “The Business” if you’re looking for a solid, spooky night in with a “high-tech haunt.” It’s “The Garbage” for anyone who hates jump scares or expects a revolutionary plot twist. It’s a respectable addition to the 2026 horror lineup, but maybe keep a flashlight handy for the scenes where the lighting budget seemingly ran out.

INSOMNIAC TRIVIA

The nursery rhyme the film is based on, Ni Wa Wa, has been a source of nightmare fuel in Taiwan for generations because of its lyrics about a doll with “no father and no mother.” Also, the director, Shieh Meng-ju, spent months researching real-life cultural relic restoration to make Mu-hua’s workspace look authentic. Fun fact: The “VR horror game” seen in the film was actually built out as a playable tech demo for promotional events in Taipei to promote the movie’s 2025 release.

THE VIBE

Like a corrupted save file. It’s familiar territory, but there’s a persistent, digital “wrongness” that keeps you on edge, making you wonder if the thing you’re seeing on screen is actually in the room with you.

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