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January 31, 2016

THE FOREST

(2016) 93 Minutes, Rated PG-13




A.C.’s Review: You can always count on there being at least one horror movie released per month as the genre has an audience to satisfy. The January 2016 offering is THE FOREST. The basic set up is that in real life there is a forest at the base of Mt. Fuji in Japan where thousands who have lost hope for one reason or another have gone to commit suicide over the years.

A west coast business woman named Sarah learns that her twin sister Jess who is living in Japan and teaching English to students has gone into the forest and has not returned. Hopping a jet she travels to the forest in search of her sister. She is joined by an American reporter who may or may not be as trustworthy as he seems and perhaps even may have had something to do with Jess disappearance.

Sarah is repeatedly warned by the locals that the forest is haunted and will play tricks with the mind making things that aren’t real appear as if they are very real indeed. Undeterred Sarah and the reporter set about the search. And as you would expect things quickly devolve into paranoia and terror as the couple spends the night in Jess’s abandoned tent.

I didn’t go in expecting to be scared…and I wasn’t. I was more interested in this movie for the sole reason that the twins are played by Natalie Dormer. This young British actress is best known for playing Cressida in the last two HUNGER GAMES movie. This actress just exudes appeal…there is something very striking and unique about her face that the camera just seems to love. She’s a natural and did not disappoint. I hope to see her in more lead roles in the future.

Back to the movie itself. There are worse ways to spend an hour and a half. I didn’t walk away dissatisfied…it was…I guess the word I’m looking for is adequate for its entertainment value. The best I can say about it was is Dormer was great and the atmosphere appropriately creepy for the subject matter.

Best Scene: Sarah paranoid about the reporter flees from him and falls down into an ice cave.

A.C.’s Rating: Matinee




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