
The majority of the story is set in and around the Aokigahara Forest, a forest at the northwest base of Mount Fuji in Japan known as a popular destination for suicide. Sara Price (Natalie Dormer), an American woman, receives a phone call from the Japanese police telling her that they think her troubled twin sister Jess Price (also Dormer) is dead, as she was seen going into Aokigahara forest. Despite the concerns of her fiance, Rob, she journeys to Japan and arrives at the ho... (Full plot summary below)
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The majority of the story is set in and around the Aokigahara Forest, a forest at the northwest base of Mount Fuji in Japan known as a popular destination for suicide. Sara Price (Natalie Dormer), an American woman, receives a phone call from the Japanese police telling her that they think her troubled twin sister Jess Price (also Dormer) is dead, as she was seen going into Aokigahara forest. Despite the concerns of her fiance, Rob, she journeys to Japan and arrives at the hotel where her sister was staying. At her hotel, Sara meets a reporter named Aiden. They drink together, and she tells him of her parents' death. In reality, her father killed her mother, then committed suicide, but she tells him they were killed by a drunk driver. Her sister saw the bodies, but she didn't look. Aiden invites her to go into the forest with him and a park guide, Michi, so she can look for her sister..
Leave your thoughts about The Forest.
| The Mail on Sunday (UK)Matthew BondDormer is a refreshing presence but the film is short of genuine, grown-up scares. |
| SF WeeklyJeffrey EdalatpourSomeone made the decision to economize on story and amp up the chase sequences. |
| Assignment XAbbie BernsteinIt has ghosts, it has atmosphere, it's well-acted and scary. Yes, it tries too hard in some respects, but it's a respectable effort, and it works well enough to be worth watching. |
| Salt Lake City WeeklyAndrew WrightA good setting can do wonders for a genre film, and director Jason Zada has landed a beaut here. |
| Chicago Sun-TimesBill ZweckerWith a nice, unexpected twist at the end, The Forest delivers as a healthy dose of psychological cinematic terror and an impressive first feature directing effort. |
| AV ClubJesse HassengerThe movie seems to be conceived as a slow burn, but it's more like a faucet dripping lukewarm water. |
| Entertainment WeeklyChristian HolubPerhaps the biggest problem with The Forest is that it’s ultimately not very scary. |
| One Guy's OpinionFrank SwietekBased on a promising premise but quickly devolves into a grab bag of routine "gotcha" moments embedded in a plot that slides into incoherence and torpor. |
| The AtlanticLenika CruzWith no compelling characters, scares, or plot points to redeem The Forest, the best option for those curious about Aokigahara is probably to watch a 20-minute 2005 VICE documentary about it. |
| StarburstPaul MountAlthough the movie's hardly destined to figure on anyone's 'top ten horror movies' list, it's guaranteed to provide a few thrills and spills for the ninety-odd minutes you spend in its company in the multiplex. |