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4

Compi24Jan 10, 2016

Yet another horror movie completely underdone by an absurdly unsatisfying conclusion. Crafty camerawork and plot devices might mislead you into thinking things are headed in the right direction, but don't let this January movie fool you. TheYet another horror movie completely underdone by an absurdly unsatisfying conclusion. Crafty camerawork and plot devices might mislead you into thinking things are headed in the right direction, but don't let this January movie fool you. The inconsistent pacing and insulting twists in the third act will ultimately leave you begging for your money back. Hopefully this director will lend his keen eye to a more worthy project, or at least anything that isn't a sequel to this.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

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4

horcrux2007Jan 10, 2016

Japan's Aokigahara "Suicide Forest" by itself is a creepy and gruesome place because of its reputation as one of the most notorious suicide spots in the world as well as its historic association with demons in Japanese mythology. ItsJapan's Aokigahara "Suicide Forest" by itself is a creepy and gruesome place because of its reputation as one of the most notorious suicide spots in the world as well as its historic association with demons in Japanese mythology. Its inherently scary atmosphere is perfect for a good horror movie, but The Forest mostly squanders its promise by degrading it to a hot spot for cheap jump scares. The Forest stars Game of Thrones star Natalie Dormer in a dual role as twins Jess and Sara. Jess has disappeared into the forest, and Sara travels to Japan to go into the forest to look for her, unaware of the demons that lurk in the forest. The film has a pretty interesting premise and could have worked if executed correctly. 2014's As Above, So Below took an intrinsically creepy setting, the Paris catacombs, and used an unsettling atmosphere and good scares to make one of the better horror films of that year. The Forest does not use its setting to its advantage. Any atmosphere created by the forest is frittered away by a dull jump scare. Despite all the loud noises and sudden shocks, the scares are just boring. That could have been helped by a good story, but once Sara actually reaches the forest, the plot just sort of stops. The last half of the movie is just her running through the forest while demons pop out from behind the trees. It's not until the end that the plot decides to move forward any more, but by the time the big twist happens, you don't really care. The Forest has a committed performance from Natalie Dormer and glimmers of an interesting movie but mostly wastes them on predictable jump scares and a bland story.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

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5

quincytheodoreJan 8, 2016

Hanging on the verge of mediocrity, "The Forest" is a resident of old horror spectacle.

Aokigahara, otherwise known as Suicide Forest, literally writes its own stories. It's a place where people go to end their lives, a real life horrorHanging on the verge of mediocrity, "The Forest" is a resident of old horror spectacle.

Aokigahara, otherwise known as Suicide Forest, literally writes its own stories. It's a place where people go to end their lives, a real life horror vista which has haunted many documentaries and videos. As creepy as the setting is, The Forest is still trapped on archaic horror gimmicks. It doesn't mean it has no merit, few of its moments are quite delightful, yet it spends most of the time wandering across predictable set-ups and mundane scares.

Sara (Natalie Dormer) goes to Japan to find her missing twin sister Jess (also Natalie Dormer). The search leads her to Aokigahara, the infamous forest. Unfazed by this revelation, Sara is still determined to search for her, almost stubbornly so. Natalie Dormer of Game of Thrones’ fame is definitely a draw as this is a different genre than her other works. She does put in the effort, her strong motivation persists although the character is stuck on typical scream queen stereotype.

It's insane how many times her character randomly strolls to dark corners or investigates weird occurrence alone even though ample warnings have been given. These are actions common sense would dictate as unwise, especially on a place called Suicide Forest, yet she performs them blindly anyway. It's pretty over saturated that the excuse of her being in trance because hypnotic forest made her do it is not sufficient anymore.

There are some good moments that are chilling and well presented, it even occasionally ventures to psychological perspective of the ordeal. However, the movie usually returns to average scares of oriental horror such as vague ominous warning or lost girl in peculiar outfit. It's a rigid showcase of horror, one that's been used since the days of Ju-On and arguably even before that.

While the draw of exotic location and appealing lead actress might interest visitors, they would only find basic horror in The Forest.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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4

BrianMcCriticApr 25, 2016

A fairly well made film that while unassuming really fails to deliver on anything new or exciting in the horror genre. Well not an absolute waste of time it's not worth much. C-

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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4

MrEpic012Mar 13, 2016

Despite the interesting location and solid performance by Natilie Dormer in a dual role. The Forest is your basic 21st century horror movie sh*t. No risks were taken, literally, who thought it would be a good idea to make a movie set in theDespite the interesting location and solid performance by Natilie Dormer in a dual role. The Forest is your basic 21st century horror movie sh*t. No risks were taken, literally, who thought it would be a good idea to make a movie set in the suicide forest PG-13? Aside from that, The story hits the same beats as a typical supernatural horror film released after 2010, As well as a disappointing script from David S. Goyer the writer of The Dark Knight trilogy.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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3

Unladenswallow0Mar 9, 2016

The ending to this movie will make you want to ask for your money back. Theres my review.

Also of note -was not scary -Jump scare extravaganza -the amazing cardboard actors -a story that had potential, especially the setting, but wasThe ending to this movie will make you want to ask for your money back. Theres my review.

Also of note

-was not scary
-Jump scare extravaganza
-the amazing cardboard actors
-a story that had potential, especially the setting, but was driven into the ground by not trying to do anything unique that we have not seen one hundred times before in every other horror film.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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3

badgerryan19May 19, 2017

Natalie Dormer does good and there are some good suspense moments, but overall everything else falls flat. Just another horror film in January that's not good

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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4

Rebecca31Feb 27, 2016

A horror movie about a woman traveling to Japan's Suicide Forest to search for her twin sister. Starring Natalie Dormer and a bunch of other actors you won't recognise from anything. Now with the words Japan and Suicide Forest you'd expect aA horror movie about a woman traveling to Japan's Suicide Forest to search for her twin sister. Starring Natalie Dormer and a bunch of other actors you won't recognise from anything. Now with the words Japan and Suicide Forest you'd expect a very creepy, suspenseful and terrifying movie right? All the right ingredients yes? Well you'd be wrong, very wrong. Starts off well, gets in its cheap jump scares wherever possible but slowly and surely descends into a chaotic mess that so many of these movies falls victim to. Not really recommended but I feel compelled to tell you that The Blair Witch Project will give you more laughs.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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4

EnterViewmentFeb 20, 2016

'The Forest' is a movie that simply doesn't live up to it's rather interesting setting and premise. The plot revolves around a young woman called 'Sara' (played by Natalie Dormer) who goes in search of her twin sister 'Jessie' who has'The Forest' is a movie that simply doesn't live up to it's rather interesting setting and premise. The plot revolves around a young woman called 'Sara' (played by Natalie Dormer) who goes in search of her twin sister 'Jessie' who has recently gone missing in the Japanese forest of 'Aokigahara', otherwise known as Suicide Forest. The film clearly wants to be a psychological thriller, however with it's consistently poor dialog coupled with numerous narrative shortcuts (including a very half baked sub plot concerning the twins parents) the film doesn't reach a level of depth in narrative or (more importantly) character development in order to provide a true sense of psychological intrigue. 'The Forest' is a movie that sits in an unsatisfying place where you can see exactly what they wanted to do but just under delivered.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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6

csw12Mar 25, 2016

The Forest will most likely be forgotten in a matter of days due to its classic horror movie cliches, but for the most part it was an solid, semi scary psychological thriller.

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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0

InglouriousAndyMay 18, 2016

The Forest is a soulless abomination capable of absolutely nothing. The plot twists are hackneyed, the performances lifeless, and the writing awful. The ending is offensive. After sitting through the painful running time, it ends with zeroThe Forest is a soulless abomination capable of absolutely nothing. The plot twists are hackneyed, the performances lifeless, and the writing awful. The ending is offensive. After sitting through the painful running time, it ends with zero closure and a particularly insulting jump scare. Don't watch this.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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10

calebowensmallJan 23, 2016

This movie was SCARY. The trailer looked scary, and the movie made me never wanna go into the woods ever again. One of my favorite horror films of all time. Don't get why the critics don't like it, but then again, like hate everything that's good

2 of 4 users found this helpful22

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10

AussieTEKJan 9, 2016

I loved this movie but I can understand low rating. This movie was more about mental scary not horror scary. Most of the critics that viewed this movie with low rating just didn't have the mental capacity to understand this movie. So ifI loved this movie but I can understand low rating. This movie was more about mental scary not horror scary. Most of the critics that viewed this movie with low rating just didn't have the mental capacity to understand this movie. So if you love a good mental scary movie when will probably enjoy this one.… Expand

10 of 23 users found this helpful1013

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10

RustCohleFeb 28, 2016

I really loved this movie! First of all my real rating would've been 8 but I want this movie to get the love it deserves. So off we go!

The trailer was really **** but the movie turned out to be great. Actually the first half startedI really loved this movie! First of all my real rating would've been 8 but I want this movie to get the love it deserves. So off we go!

The trailer was really **** but the movie turned out to be great. Actually the first half started really bad and boring for me. Yes the story was intriguing but i really thought that I was ready to agree with the critics. Then it started to grab me with the psychological horror as the movie starts to mess with your mind. There are some jump scares and yes they are mostly predictable but some of them still managed to scare the crap out of me even though I was prepared for it. The ending twist was really good in my opinion. As in overall the last 30 minutes just nailed me to my seat.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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3

BenTheBrownieJan 10, 2016

Well folks, this film was a painful reminder that it's January. This is the worst movie of 2016. I'm not saying this because the kids in front of me checking snapchat, instagram and even mocking the Japanese people talking in the film. I justWell folks, this film was a painful reminder that it's January. This is the worst movie of 2016. I'm not saying this because the kids in front of me checking snapchat, instagram and even mocking the Japanese people talking in the film. I just genuinely hated the movie. Aside from Natalie Dormer's performance and and a few cool scenes. There isn't any point in watching this movie. The acting was annoying especially since the actors don't work well with each other each other at all except for Natalie Dormer and Taylor Kinney. Their back and forth was at least watchable but for everyone else. I just wanted them to die! I was hoping the suicide demons would be like “Hey, come over here!” The actions and choices the characters made were unrealistic and clearly only made to keep the movie moving because if these characters were thinking logically the movie would've been like 10 minutes long and how awesome would it have been if this was a short film. The director has made many shorts in the past and the movies plot was stretched out to such an extent so I think making this a short would've been the better choice. There is a difference with having a formula that causes you to hit a part in the plot that would be deemed predictable once or twice. That's perfectly fine but having such a fully loaded agenda with nothing but cliches and annoyingly obvious jumpscares ruling the movie doesn't add anything good! It just takes away the audience and annoys everyone in the auditorium. In the end, The Forest was an obnoxious film with annoyingly obvious plot devices. The cinematography was good and there were some cool scenes but everything else made me cringe. Not a good start to 2016. I'm giving this one a 3.5/10.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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8

lelefoxx00Jan 30, 2016

I really liked this one. I have known about the "suicide forest" for many years after researching it and was excited to see a horror movie based off of it. They stayed true to the legend and many ways and some parts were pretty chilling. TheI really liked this one. I have known about the "suicide forest" for many years after researching it and was excited to see a horror movie based off of it. They stayed true to the legend and many ways and some parts were pretty chilling. The only reason I did not give this a 10 was because I felt it had one too many jump scares. I feel there needs to be an even balance between jump scares and actually scary moments to make a perfect horror movie. Overall, though, I loved it and would definitely recommend it.… Expand

2 of 7 users found this helpful25

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4

TheQuietGamerMay 8, 2016

Like many I was pulled in by the potentially awesome setting of Aokigahara (the "Suicide Forest") and it's lead actress Natalie Dormer (Hunger Games, Game of Thrones). I really wish I hadn't been. "The Forest" manages to miss out anyLike many I was pulled in by the potentially awesome setting of Aokigahara (the "Suicide Forest") and it's lead actress Natalie Dormer (Hunger Games, Game of Thrones). I really wish I hadn't been. "The Forest" manages to miss out any potential creepiness it's setting could have brought. All potential is squandered in what is just a really boring horror movie.

The big emphasis here is less on horror and more on telling a story. There are some interesting ideas floating around here and there, but the director doesn't know how to deliver them. What we get is a film that majorly consists of Dormer walking around Japan and eventually Aokigahara. There's a lot of talking going on while this is happening. It's just hard to care about it thanks to the subpar acting coming from everyone involved. Dormer looked just as bored with the material as I was.

When the movie does finally get around to trying to scare us it falls even shorter. We get a few glimpses of some ghosts or "Yūrei," but director Jason Zada is unable to make them scary. Mostly because all they do is just stand there. The rest of the attempts at horror consist of snapping branches and whispering voices. Wow. How terrifying.

I respect it's attempts to be a more psychological horror experience. It tries hard to be deeper than the average scary flick and Zada does try to capitalize on the creepiness of the setting. Unfortunately the movie just fails at both. The end results are a boring, poorly acted, unfrightening experience. One better left forgotten despite the talent in it's lead and setting.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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9

GinaKJan 10, 2016

I enjoyed this film, and I don’t understand why it got such terrible reviews. One of my fellow user reviewers was absolutely right (after giving it a 10) – it is “mental scary” and not “horror scary.” What I would say is that it isI enjoyed this film, and I don’t understand why it got such terrible reviews. One of my fellow user reviewers was absolutely right (after giving it a 10) – it is “mental scary” and not “horror scary.” What I would say is that it is psychological horror (that is, something like Hitchcock’s Psycho – the horror is Norman’s mind) instead of “place-based” horror such in Insidious. In some great horror films like The Haunting of Hill House, both types of horror appear – one of the characters is deranged but the house is also haunted. In The Forest, I thought the situation was interesting, the actors, especially Natalie Dormer (who seemed to get a good review no matter how much a professional critic hated the film), the locale was fresh and interesting, and the pace and direction was very good. To me the reviews of this film are another example of critics disdaining the horror genre simply because they don’t understand it.… Expand

0 of 4 users found this helpful04

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8

Meth-dudeJan 12, 2016

The movie is actually better than what the trailer shows.It was entertaining at best and the acting was actually good.The premise was interesting and the movie was well written.Sure,a lot of the decisions the characters takes are frustratingThe movie is actually better than what the trailer shows.It was entertaining at best and the acting was actually good.The premise was interesting and the movie was well written.Sure,a lot of the decisions the characters takes are frustrating but still. I would not recommend this movie but you should still give it a chance.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

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4

MattBrady99Feb 13, 2016

I bet Natalie Dormer gave all the trees wood.

The Forest is about the Aokigahara Forest in Japan is quiet, serene and large - and also a popular location to commit suicide. After her sister disappears amidst this forest, Sara goes to findI bet Natalie Dormer gave all the trees wood.

The Forest is about the Aokigahara Forest in Japan is quiet, serene and large - and also a popular location to commit suicide. After her sister disappears amidst this forest, Sara goes to find her - not knowing the horror that awaits.

"The Forest" isn't anything that special of a horror movie, as it ticks off all the horror tropes in horror films today. It's amazing how Hollywood can go this far and take an actual place like Aokigahara Forest where people actually do comment suicide into a lousy horror film, I mean it's like making a horror movie about the people who jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge or the Twin Towers, and what I'm saying may not seem too offensive, but just thinking about it and those who took their own lives, it's pretty embarrassing that Hollywood could do this for a quick buck.

The movie isn't scary, it's stupid, flat and forgettable. Natalie Dormer was decent in the movie, but that's really it.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

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3

SadHorrorJunkieJan 23, 2016

i really wanted this movie to be good but its not in fact its not even worth watching if you miss this film youre not gonna be missing much the story is bland the characters are dull especially the main character even the plot twist wasi really wanted this movie to be good but its not in fact its not even worth watching if you miss this film youre not gonna be missing much the story is bland the characters are dull especially the main character even the plot twist was disappointing i went into this movie blind and even i knew their was gonna be some time up plot twist at the end. the whole suicide forest angle is awesome i love it and i hope other directors dont shy away from this due to the forest. one thing i did like was the psychological approach the director try to take it was one of the only things that kept me interstesd. this movie mainly uses a couple of jump scares but does it poorly.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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3

OsoamigableFeb 3, 2016

PG-13 horror? Give me a **** break.
**** complete **** If you ever want to feel scammed, just watch this, the acting? Absurd. The plot? Trash. The characters? Bland. Every singgle actor performed horribly, Natalie Dormer was decent, althoughPG-13 horror? Give me a **** break.
**** complete **** If you ever want to feel scammed, just watch this, the acting? Absurd. The plot? Trash. The characters? Bland. Every singgle actor performed horribly, Natalie Dormer was decent, although not as good as they say. Not much else to say, but I wish I had gotten my money back.
Final Verdict:
Avoid, unless you like Natalie Dormer and are intrested in terrible horror films, if you're a fan of "good" horror films, I recommend you save your cash.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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1

IRONK1979Jan 30, 2018

This movie was so boring and not scary at all. I would have to say one of the worst movies I have ever seen.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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10

JAKEJACOBJORDSep 22, 2021

GOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOODGOOD

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4

DirigiblePulpDec 11, 2016

It's pretty average. It's amazing how complacent and content it is to not even try anything remotely new or unique. It just goes about its business in as rote a way as possible.

The Forest, The Sea of Trees, Aokigahara Forest deserved betterIt's pretty average. It's amazing how complacent and content it is to not even try anything remotely new or unique. It just goes about its business in as rote a way as possible.

The Forest, The Sea of Trees, Aokigahara Forest deserved better from films this year.… Expand