Taglines: Everyone comes here looking for a way out.
“The forest is very dangerous – do not leave the path.” Gramcery Pictures has debuted a second trailer for the supernatural horror thriller The Forest, starring “Game of Thrones” actress Natalie Dormer as a woman who heads to the mysterious forest in Japan to find her sister.
As explained for the first trailer, the forest she goes to is Aokigahara Forest in Japan (a very real place), which is also the same place where the film The Sea of Trees directed Gus Van Sant takes place (due out later in 2016). The full cast includes Taylor Kinney, Eoin Macken and Yukiyoshi Ozawa. This doesn’t really make me any more interested than the first trailer, but maybe it’ll appeal to more horror fans. It all seems a bit too cheesy for my liking.
The Forest is an American supernatural horror film directed by Jason Zada and written by Ben Ketai, Nick Antosca, and Sarah Cornwell. It stars Natalie Dormer and Taylor Kinney. The film was released on January 8, 2016 in the United States by Gramercy Pictures.
About the Story
The story is set in the Aokigahara Forest, a forest at the northwest base of Mount Fuji in Japan where people go to commit suicide. Sara Price (Natalie Dormer), a young American woman, arrives at the forest in search of her twin sister, who mysteriously disappeared. Despite warnings not to “stray from the path,” Sara enters the forest to discover the truth about her sister’s fate, only to be confronted by the angry and tormented souls of the dead who now prey on unsuspecting victims.
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 the suicidal.
Sara Price, an American woman, receives a phone call from the Japanese police telling her that they think her troubled twin sister Jess is dead, as she was seen going into Aokigahara forest. Despite the concerns of her fiancé 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 a drunk driving accident. They were actually killed in a murder-suicide initiated by her mother, which her sister witnessed, but Sara did not. Aiden invites her to go into the forest with him and a park guide, Michi, so she can look for her sister.
As the three enter Aokigahara, Michi tells Sara that Jess has most likely killed herself. Deep in the woods, the group discovers a yellow tent that Sara recognizes as Jess’s. With nightfall approaching, Michi suggests they leave a note for Jess and leave. Sara refuses, and Aiden volunteers to stay with her through the night.
That night, Sara hears rustling in the bushes and, believing it may be Jess, rushes into the woods after them. Sarah finds a Japanese girl, Hochiko, who claims to know Jess. The girl warns Sara not to trust Aiden and flees at the sound of his voice. Sara attempts to chase after her but falls and loses her.
The next day, Aiden and Sara become lost and begin to walk around the forest. As they walk, Sara’s suspicions are raised and she demands Aiden to give her his phone and finds a picture of Jess on it. Aiden denies any involvement with Jess, but Sara runs into the forest alone. While running she begins to hear voices telling her to turn around. She appears to be unfazed by this until she hears the voice directly behind her.
She turns around to see a hanging body and continues to run away. She then falls into an underground cave and goes unconscious, later she wakes up and discovers that she is in the cave with Hochiko, who turns out to be a yūrei. Aiden soon finds her and helps her out of the cave and, with some convincing, they continue to walk together. Elsewhere, Michi discovers the tent abandoned and organizes a search party.
Aiden brings Sara to an old ranger station he’d discovered while looking for her. Inside, Sara hears her sister’s voice and finds a note which implies that Aiden is holding Jess captive in the basement. Sara attacks and kills Aiden with a small kitchen knife. As he dies, Sara realizes that Aiden was telling the truth and that the picture on his phone, the voice at the basement door and the note had all been hallucinations.
The Forest
Directed by: Jason Zada
Starring: Natalie Dormer, Taylor Kinney, Stephanie Vogt, Noriko Sakura, Nadja Mazalica, Yûho Yamashita
Screenplay by: Nick Antosca, Sarah Cornwell, Ben Ketai
Production Design by: Kevin Phipps
Cinematography by: Mattias Troelstrup
Film Editing by: Jim Flynn
Costume Design by: Bojana Nikitovic
Art Direction by: Jasna Dragovic, Kikuo Ohta
Music by: Bear McCreary
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for disturbing thematic content and images.
Studio: Gramercy Pictures, Icon Film Distribution
Release Date: January 8, 2016
Views: 72
