Rarely have the benefits of the buddy system been more clearly demonstrated than in “The Forest,” a new horror movie that does some authentic gooseflesh-raising.
If you are venturing into Japan’s infamous suicide forest, it really is a good idea to take along a trusted friend. Not only could you use a pal to fend off the demons that lurk there, but going into the woods with people you’ve only just met seems like a dodgy proposition.
Nevertheless, our heroine, Sara (“Game of Thrones” regular Natalie Dormer), heads for the forest when her twin sister, Jess, turns up missing. Everybody warns her not to go into Aokigahara, because of the bad mojo associated with the place.
Aokigahara is real — a dense forest at the base of Mount Fuji — and it does attract suicides. Reports of demon activity have yet to be confirmed, but that doesn’t stop director Jason Zada from summoning up a few ghostly creatures.
Sara doesn’t go it alone; she meets a travel writer, Aiden (Taylor Kinney), and a local guide, Michi (Yukiyoshi Ozawa), who take her into the forest itself. After being told approximately a dozen times not to stray off the path, they stray off the path, and … well, demons.
“The Forest” has its examples of characters doing dumb things just to keep the plot moving. (See “traveling to haunted forest alone,” as noted.) But while it’s just another horror movie in basic ways, it does provide some good jolts.
I liked the movie’s touch with eerie foreshadowings; a scene where Sara reluctantly follows someone down into a mysterious basement is truly creepy. The film’s treatment of Kinney’s character is also intriguing, but I can’t talk about why because it might spoil something.
There’s also a flashback to childhood trauma — the moment when the twins supposedly went down different paths of light and dark — that plays fair with later revelations. You might be able to guess some of those surprises, but the film doesn’t cheat.
Dormer isn’t a compelling presence, but at least she looks like she could handle herself in a hand-to-hand fight with an unhappy ghost. Because there’s no Bruce Campbell around from the “Evil Dead” pictures to help out, this is going to be a tall order.
The real Aokigahara forest has previously been the stuff of urban legend and spooky documentaries, but this movie will undoubtedly increase its appeal as a dark-places tourist destination. Enjoy, but please: Stay on the path.
“The Forest” (2½ stars)
A spooky little horror picture, about an American woman (Natalie Dormer) traveling into Japan’s haunted Aokigahara forest in search of her lost twin sister. Some of the jolts are pretty good, and the movie doesn’t cheat with its big revelations. With Taylor Kinney.
Rating: PG-13, for violence, language
Showing: Alderwood Mall, Everett Stadium, Galaxy Monroe, Marysville, Meridian, Oak Tree, Woodinville, Cascade Mall
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