The Forest

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The Forest

PG-13

2016

1h 33m

Horror

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

10%

Tomatometer

135 Reviews

22%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

When her twin sister disappears in Japan, a young American named Sara becomes determined to find out what happened to her. Sara's investigation leads her to the legendary Aokigahara Forest, located at the base of Mount Fuji. Accompanied by expatriate Aiden, she enters the mysterious wilderness after being warned to "stay on the path." Her investigation plunges her into a dark world where the angry and tormented souls of the dead prey on those who dare to explore the forest.

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Critics Consensus

The Forest offers Natalie Dormer 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.

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Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

Aug 16, 2016

2/4

The film feels more like an expertly crafted missed opportunity, a suspense opus filled with some solidly intriguing ideas that for some reason it refuses to investigate.

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Roxana Hadadi

Chesapeake Family Magazine

Aug 2, 2016

1.5/5

Disturbingly manipulative and yet totally conventional, The Forest is more memorable for being opportunistic than for being truly frightening.

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Donald Clarke

Irish Times

Mar 6, 2016

2/5

We are packed onto a poorly designed ghost train and hurtled past a randomly arranged array of stuff that would fail to frighten even the frailest infant.

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Jordy Sirkin

Jordy Reviews It

Feb 22, 2023

It’s not scary, slightly cheesy, and a little confusing (but not in a good way). While there’s an interesting twist at the end, you can’t help but feel completely robbed of time when this movie is over.

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Apr 23, 2022

1.5/4

Instead of turning the forest into a place where Japanese people find some kind of sad and disturbing comfort on a mass scale, the filmmakers have chosen to turn the place into a haunted house.

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Nick Levine

NME (New Musical Express)

Jun 8, 2021

2/5

Playing both sisters, Natalie Dormer gives a compelling dual performance but she's saddled by the script's simplistic dialogue, which is often as wooden as the forest itself.

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Melissa L

@Agent99 Mar 17, 2026

I didn't find it very scary. I did like the ending.

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Blobbo X

@Blobbo Dec 7, 2025

Not so bad. Interesting way to spend time. Blobbo think ending not happy enough for some. Ok, some loose ends left, too. Still ok overall.

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Martin R

@mrosendhal Oct 19, 2025

If you are a real horror movie connoisseur I think you will enjoy it - despite some flaws it also has some nice touches and it is underrated as a unique scare film. Natalie Dormer was excellent - I really felt she played the personalities of the twin sisters uniquely. And the taut cat and mouse tension between her and Taylor Kinney was built up well. The actor who played the Japanese Guide was also good. The film had several solid jump scares and I found the ending moving. It does at times seem like The Grudge has moved to the Forest; and Sara's refusal to listen to warnings can feel like the Geico commercial parody ( when you are in a horror movie you make bad decisions). But I watched it several times and found it worthwhile - in fact I picked up some subtle touches and followed the ending better on a second viewing.

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John W

@RT18279564 Sep 26, 2025

The characters behave in a way that is hard to understand, and the whole film is so extremely forgettable. It doesn't really bother you, but it also has nothing that stands out.

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Lloyd S

@Lloyd93 May 31, 2025

The writers should go and hang themselves in that forest after this terrible and unwatchable movie

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Carnello H

@RT42476020 Jan 12, 2025

I think theres someone hanging right there

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Jason Zada

Director

Natalie Dormer

Sara

Taylor Kinney

Aiden

Yukiyoshi Ozawa

Michi

Eoin Macken

Rob

Stephanie Vogt

Valerie

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Synopsis

When her twin sister disappears in Japan, a young American named Sara becomes determined to find out what happened to her. Sara's investigation leads her to the legendary Aokigahara Forest, located at the base of Mount Fuji. Accompanied by expatriate Aiden, she enters the mysterious wilderness after being warned to "stay on the path." Her investigation plunges her into a dark world where the angry and tormented souls of the dead prey on those who dare to explore the forest.

Director: Jason Zada
Producer: Tory Metzger, David S. Goyer, David Linde
Screenwriter: Ben Ketai, Sarah Cornwell, Nick Antosca
Distributor: Focus Features
Production Co: Lava Bear Films, AI-Film, Phantom Four Films
Rating: PG-13 (Disturbing Thematic Content|Disturbing Images)
Genre: Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 8, 2016, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 6, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $26.6M
Runtime: 1h 33m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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