[Fantasia ’25] ‘Haunted Mountains: The Yellow Taboo’: Creepy Taiwanese horror movie

Haunted Mountains: The Yellow Taboo is a Taiwanese horror movie making its international premiere at Fantasia. Chia Ming plans to propose to Yu Hsin during a hiking trip. A mysterious force soon targets and repeatedly takes her life. As Chia Ming is forced to relive the horrifying day, he tries to figure out how he can save the woman he loves.

Inspired by the Taiwanese urban legend about Mountain Gremlins, the story also focuses on love, grief, and redemption. The Yellow Taboo does an excellent job of showcasing the love Chia Ming has for Yu Hsin. Everything he does or says is out of concern for her. Even though her deaths are done in an oddly quick montage that takes away the full impact, Chia Ming’s feelings always come through.

As he fights to prevent Yu Hsin from dying again, more characters become involved. This is a risky decision since up until this point all of the attention as been on Chia Ming and Yu Hsin. Thankfully, it works and they add another layer of sentiment that makes this more than just another horror movie. It is easy to care for the characters in The Yellow Tabbo’s weaving storyline.

This same attention to the relationship is also the movie’s biggest shortcoming. As easy as it is to become invested with everyone in The Yellow Taboo, it also muddles the ending. There are great scares and emotions up until the third act. It is at this point that the story begins to feel bloated. The final moments are especially frustrating as there are essentially two endings that are in conflict with each other.

Haunted Mountains: The Yellow Taboo is an engaging Taiwanese horror movie that is more about the people involved than the actual terror. And, for the most part, it works. There is an emotional investment that is not often found in these types of films. Even when things become harder to follow towards the end, it remains an enjoyable watch.