The Forest (2016 American film)

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The Forest
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJason Zada
Written by
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyMattias Troelstrup
Edited byJim Flynn
Music byBear McCreary
Production
companies
Distributed byGramercy Pictures
Focus Features
Release date
  • January 8, 2016 (2016-01-08) (United States)
Running time
93 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$10 million[2]
Box office$37.6 million[3]

TThe Forest is a 2016 American supernatural horror film directed by Jason Zada, based on a screenplay by Ben Ketai, Nick Antosca, and Sarah Cornwell. The film stars Natalie Dormer, Taylor Kinney, Yukiyoshi Ozawa, and Eoin Macken.

The film was released in the United States on January 8, 2016, by Gramercy Pictures. It received negative reviews from critics but was a commercial success, grossing $37.6 million worldwide against a reported production budget of $10 million.

Plot

Set primarily in Aokigahara, a forest at the base of Mount Fuji known as a common site for suicides, the film follows Sara Price, who receives news from Japanese authorities that her twin sister, Jess is presumed dead after being seen entering the forest. Despite her fiancé, Rob's concern, Sara travels to Japan and checks into the hotel where Jess was last staying.

At the hotel, she meets Aiden, a travel journalist, and confides in him about her sister and their troubled family history. While she claims their parents died in a car crash, the truth is that her father committed a murder-suicide witnessed by Jess. Aiden offers to accompany her into the forest along with a local guide, Michi. Michi warns that people who enter Aokigahara often carry emotional pain and may be vulnerable to supernatural forces.

While searching the forest, the group finds a yellow tent that Sara recognizes as Jess’s. As night falls, Michi advises them to leave a note and return in the morning, but Sara insists on staying. Aiden stays with her. That night, Sara hears noises and follows them, encountering a mysterious girl named Hoshiko, who warns her not to trust Aiden before fleeing. Sara tries to follow but becomes lost.

The next day, Aiden and Sara become disoriented in the forest. Suspicious of Aiden, Sara takes his phone and sees a photo of Jess, leading her to believe he is involved in her disappearance. She flees and falls into a cave, where she encounters Hoshiko again - now revealed to be a yūrei, a malevolent spirit. Sara narrowly escapes and finds a flip camera showing footage of her father’s suicide. Aiden later helps her out of the cave, and the two continue searching.

Meanwhile, Rob arrives in Japan and joins Michi and a search party to locate the sisters. Aiden leads Sara to a ranger station he claims to have found. Inside, Sara hears Jess’s voice calling from a locked basement and finds a note suggesting Aiden is holding her captive. Believing he is lying, she stabs and kills him, only to realize that she was hallucinating - Aiden was innocent, and the voice and note were manifestations of the forest’s influence.

Alone, Sara confronts a vision of her father’s ghost and manages to escape by severing his fingers. She runs through the forest and sees Jess approaching the search party in the distance. Sara calls out but is not heard. It is then revealed that she never escaped the basement and that her encounter with her father’s ghost was another hallucination. In reality, she had fatally injured herself and dies in the basement as yūrei drag her into the ground.

Jess, still alive, is found by the search party and expresses that she no longer feels her sister's presence - suggesting she senses Sara’s death. As the group departs the forest, Michi notices a dark figure watching them from the trees, revealing Sara has become a yūrei herself.

Cast

Production

The concept for The Forest originated with producer David S. Goyer, who was inspired after reading a Wikipedia article about Aokigahara, a forest in Japan associated with a high rate of suicides. Surprised that a horror film had not yet been set there, Goyer developed a rough outline for the story.[4] Director Jason Zada became immediately interested in the project, particularly due to the real-life setting of Aokigahara.[5] He described becoming “obsessed” with the location, conducting extensive research, including watching a Vice documentary.[5] Prior to filming, Zada visited Aokigahara, stating, "There's no way I felt that I could make a movie about a real place, and not go visit it," later describing the forest as "a very frightening place" and "not a place where I wanted to spend the night."[5]

In October 2014, Natalie Dormer joined the cast in the dual roles of Sara and Jess Price.[6] Dormer was drawn to the project by the challenge of portraying twin sisters, calling the experience "surreal" and noting the difficulty of making character choices without having another actor to play off of.[7] In April 2015, Taylor Kinney was cast in a supporting role.[8] He cited his interest in the story's psychological elements, the opportunity to shape his character, and the chance to work with Dormer. Kinney described the film as "more cerebral than gory slasher films," comparing its tone to that of The Shining (1980).

Filming

Principal photography began on May 17, 2015, in Tokyo, Japan.[9] However, due to restrictions on filming within Aokigahara itself, the production used a forest near Tara Mountain in Serbia to stand in for the Japanese location.[10]A dditional scenes were filmed in Belgrade and at PFI Studios for interiors. The shoot in Serbia was impacted by persistent bad weather, which forced the crew to relocate several scenes to a repurposed warehouse.[11]

Release

In May 2014, Focus Features acquired domestic distribution rights to the film.[12] On May 20, 2015, Focus Features relaunched their Gramercy Pictures label for action, horror, and science-fiction movies, with the film being one of its releases.[13] The film was released in the United States on January 8, 2016.[14]

In May 2014, Focus Features acquired the domestic distribution rights to The Forest.[12] On May 20, 2015, Focus relaunched its Gramercy Pictures label to distribute genre films, including action, horror, and science fiction titles, with The Forest announced as one of its initial releases under the revived banner.[13] The film was theatrically released in the United States on January 8, 2016, and was later released on DVD and Blu-ray on April 12, 2016.[14]

Reception

Box office

The Forest grossed $26.6 million in the United States and Canada and $12.2 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $38.8 million against a production budget of $10 million.[3]

The film was released on January 8, 2016, alongside the wide release of The Revenant, and was projected to earn between $8 million and $10 million from 2,451 theaters in its opening weekend.[15] It earned $515,000 from Thursday night previews and $5 million on its opening day, including those early screenings.[16] The film went on to debut with $12.7 million over the weekend, finishing fourth at the box office behind Star Wars: The Force Awakens ($41.6 million), The Revenant ($38 million), and Daddy's Home ($15 million).[17]

Critical response

The Forest received generally negative reviews from critics.

On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 10% based on 138 reviews, with an average rating of 4.1/10. The website's consensus reads: "The Forest offers Natalie Dormer more than a few chances to showcase her range in a dual role, but they aren't enough to offset the fact that the movie's simply not all that scary."[18] On Metacritic, it has a weighted score of 34 out of 100, based on 30 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews."[19] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C" on an A+ to F scale.[17]

Brian Truitt of USA Today gave the film two out of four stars, describing it as a "mostly scare-free zone" that fails to capitalize on its intriguing premise.[20] Peter Keough of The Boston Globe criticized the film’s writing but praised the performances, stating that the characters’ psychological shifts felt unconvincing despite the actors' efforts.[21]

Alonso Duralde of TheWrap faulted the script for lacking emotional investment and called Taylor Kinney's performance "wooden," though he credited Dormer with delivering a committed dual performance.[22] Neil Genzlinger of The New York Times offered a more favorable view, calling the film a "decently executed creeper" anchored by Dormer’s convincing work.[23] Justin Chang of Variety echoed this sentiment, noting Dormer’s sympathetic portrayal and praising Zada's occasional effectiveness in crafting suspense through sound and framing.[24]

David Ehrlich of Slate criticized the film’s release strategy and quality, citing it as part of a January trend of underwhelming horror films. He compared the practice to the Japanese myth of ubasute, calling the film’s release a cinematic abandonment.[25]

Controversy

The Forest attracted criticism for its depiction of Aokigahara, with some commentators accusing the film of trivializing suicide and showing insensitivity toward those who have died in the real-life forest.[26][27] Kevin Maher of The Times criticized the film for what he described as "racial insensitivities" and a lack of genuine horror, calling it "a dumb and dreary horror movie" notable only for casting Natalie Dormer in a dual role with minimal distinction between the characters.[28]

The film's premise drew comparisons to The Suicide Forest, a 2011 comic book written by El Torres and illustrated by Gabriel Hernández, which also centers on supernatural events set in Aokigahara.[29]

See also

References

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  2. ^ McNary, Dave. "Box Office: Leonardo DiCaprio, 'The Revenant' to Clash Against 'Star Wars'". Variety. Archived from the original on November 1, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
  3. ^ a b "The Forest (2016)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on March 29, 2016. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
  4. ^ BENARDELLO, KAREN (21 December 2015). "Interview: David S. Goyer Talks The Forest (Exclusive)". Shockya. Archived from the original on 21 February 2016. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
  5. ^ a b c BENARDELLO, Karen (4 January 2016). "Interview: Jason Zada Talks The Forest (Exclusive)". Shockya. Archived from the original on 27 January 2016. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
  6. ^ McNary, Dave (October 21, 2014). "'Game of Thrones' Actress Natalie Dormer Joins Supernatural Thriller 'The Forest'". Variety. Archived from the original on December 24, 2014. Retrieved October 30, 2014.
  7. ^ "Natalie Dormer finds acting challenge in 'The Forest'". USA Today. Archived from the original on 2023-05-12.
  8. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (April 20, 2015). "'Chicago Fire's Taylor Kinney Lights Up 'The Forest'". Archived from the original on October 21, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  9. ^ "Filming Starts for The Forest, Starring Natalie Dormer and Taylor Kinney". comingsoon.net. May 17, 2015. Archived from the original on May 19, 2015. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  10. ^ "Toronto Sun- Filming". Archived from the original on 2016-11-26. Retrieved 2016-01-08.
  11. ^ "Shockya.com Interview". 4 January 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-01-12. Retrieved 2016-01-08.
  12. ^ a b The Deadline Team (May 22, 2014). "Cannes: Focus Features Acquires U.S. Rights To Supernatural Pic 'The Forest'". Archived from the original on October 11, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  13. ^ a b Petski, Denise (May 20, 2015). "Focus Features Revives Gramercy Pictures Label For Genre Films". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 17, 2019. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  14. ^ a b Lincoln, Ross A (September 30, 2015). "'The Forest' Trailer – A Trip Into Japan's Notorious "Suicide Forest"". Archived from the original on October 4, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  15. ^ "'The Revenant' Will Bear Through Box Office Weekend Dominated By 'Force Awakens' – Preview". Deadline Hollywood. 5 January 2016. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  16. ^ "'Revenant' & 'The Forest' Begin B.O. Journey On Thursday; 'Force Awakens' To Cross $800M This Weekend – Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. 11 January 2016. Archived from the original on 8 January 2016. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  17. ^ a b "'Force Awakens' Crosses $800M On Saturday & Holds No. 1, 'Revenant' Taking No. 2 With $38M". Deadline Hollywood. 11 January 2016. Archived from the original on 8 January 2016. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  18. ^ "The Forest (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Archived from the original on July 14, 2019. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
  19. ^ "The Forest reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on March 10, 2016. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
  20. ^ "Review: This 'Forest' is a mostly scare-free zone". USA Today. Archived from the original on 2022-12-06.
  21. ^ "Boston Globe". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 2017-11-30. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
  22. ^ "The Wrap". 7 January 2016. Archived from the original on 2019-11-13. Retrieved 2019-11-13.
  23. ^ Genzlinger, Neil (7 January 2016). "Review: 'The Forest' Centers on the Search for a Twin at a Suicide Site in Japan (Published 2016)". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2022-06-16.
  24. ^ "Film Review: 'The Forest'". Variety. 2016-01-07. Archived from the original on 2023-04-09.
  25. ^ Ehrlich, David (January 8, 2016). "The Forest". Slate. Archived from the original on January 12, 2016. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
  26. ^ Cruz, Lenika (9 January 2016). "The Forest: The Problem With Trying to Make Suicide Spooky". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on 7 April 2016. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
  27. ^ Alexander, Damian (14 January 2016). "'The Forest' Plays Suicide for Cheap Scares". Pacific Standard. Archived from the original on 14 December 2017. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  28. ^ Maher, Kevin (26 February 2016). "The Forest". The Times. Archived from the original on 15 April 2016. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
  29. ^ Piñón, Manuel (15 January 2016). "¡Han pirateado mis cómics!". Cinemanía (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 13 May 2016. Retrieved 11 May 2016.