The Forest is a 2016 American supernatural horror film directed by Jason Zada and written by Ben Ketai, Nick Antosca, and Sarah Cornwell.

The majority of the story is set in and around Aokigahara, a forest at the northwest base of Mount Fuji in Japan known as a popular destination for those wanting to die by suicide.

Sara Price 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.

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.

Sara then runs back towards the cave's opening, where she finds a flip camera and sees the scene where her parents die and her father jumps up in the slide of photos.

Sara hears her sister's voice coming from a locked basement and finds a note that implies that Aiden is holding Jess captive there.

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.

As the search party leaves, Michi suddenly sees a dark figure at the edge of the forest and realizes that it is Sara who has turned into a vengeful yūrei.

[5] He was most attracted because the "suicide forest" in Aokigahara was a real place, which he became "obsessed with", reading as much information as he could about the location, including watching an online Vice documentary.

"[8] Kinney cited a confluence of reasons for accepting the role - the story and its location, the ability to tweak his character, and the attachment of Dormer.

[12] On May 20, 2015, Focus Features relaunched their Gramercy Pictures label for action, horror, and science-fiction movies, with the film being one of its releases.

The site's critical consensus reads, "The Forest offers Natalie Dormer more than 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.

He echoed the complaints of most critics, saying, "Had Zada strayed more from the generic path into such unknown territory, The Forest might have had genuine depth and darkness.

"[21] Alonso Duralde, writing for TheWrap, voiced these gripes, as well, faulting the writing in saying, "By the time screenwriters Ben Ketai, Sarah Cornwell, and Nick Antosca unpack the inevitable third-act reversals and twists, it's too little, too late, especially since those revelations rely upon an investment in the characters that the movie has expended too little effort in creating."

"[23] Justin Chang of Variety also allotted the film a positive review, writing, "Dormer is sympathetic enough in her double scream-queen roles, and Zada shows an occasional aptitude for generating suspense through framing, music and sound design, even if the beats he hits are often tediously familiar.

"Every year, during the first proper weekend of January, the studios' niche labels trot out the horror movies they know have nothing to contribute to society and leave them for dead in your local multiplex," he wrote.

[25] The film attracted controversy for what some believed to be trivializing the issue of suicide in Japan, as well as disrespecting the people who have died in the real-life forest.

[26][27] Critic Kevin Maher wrote in his review, "The Forest is a dumb and dreary horror movie that's notable only for its racial insensitivities, lack of horror, and for making Natalie Dormer from Game of Thrones play identical twins distinguished only by hair colour.

"[28] The film's plot has been compared to the 2011 comic book The Suicide Forest, also taking place in the Aokigahara, written by El Torres and illustrated by Gabriel Hernández.