The Forest

Le scénariste lui-même ne savait probablement pas distinguer les scènes issues de l'esprit de l'héroïne de celles issues de la réalité. Ou du moins, quelles scènes avaient une influence sur la réalité et si c'était le cas, quelle influence. Tout comme il ne savait probablement pas ce qui se passait exactement à la fin. Le film cherche à effrayer avec des interventions fantomatiques à la manière de la version américaine The Grudge, le thème des esprits en colère des suicidées de la forêt est lui aussi emprunté aux originaux japonais Ju-on: The Grudge. Mais il lui manque de la clarté et un équilibre entre la réalité, les démons de l'enfance et les illusions effrayantes dans la forêt, ainsi que, étonnamment, la finesse visuelle de la caméra et du montage, à laquelle nous sommes habitués avec les bons films d'horreur. Ce petit en-cas médiocre gaspille le potentiel élevé du sujet (cette forêt des suicides existe vraiment au Japon). (14/04/2020)

The Aokigahara Forest caused visions not only to the main character of this film, but also to me, the viewer. While the screen was showing an average, unambitious American horror film, what I saw was mainly the squandered potential and the fog-shrouded, excellent film that could be made on the basis of that place. But for that, Jason Zada would’ve had to try a little harder and build things on something more than several, and to a great extent cheap jump scares; to play with heavy paranoia, anxiety and insecurity. Or to al least find a somewhat scarier place, because the pine forest they’ve used is actually antiscary. Even that would be enough, see for example the recent The Hallow or The Witch. But, even though I’m rather critical, the horror year of 2016 could have begun a lot worse. This is just about nothing. Watched, standard, carry on. (07/01/2016)

The Forest is a film with great potential, a film that could create a place for legends, not only in real life but in the film world as well. And although the filmmakers tried very hard to make it have the right WTF effect at the end, unfortunately, the excitement doesn't really come, and it's pretty gross in places. There is not a single character - except perhaps the Japanese ones - that I like in any way. Very much a missed opportunity. (19/08/2017)

The only mystery about this film is why it’s supposed to be a horror movie or a thriller. For me, the beginning was a boring and protracted preparation of a future victim for what might happen to them while running around the woods, followed by some similarly tedious running around the aforementioned woods, complete with predictable jump scares and an even more predictable ending. Now that I know what the Japanese wells and forests can hide, I can’t wait to see what’s next to come. Some sort of a mysterious cave or stream perhaps? (13/04/2017)