Geomi sup

"Spider Forest" is a South Korean movie which would be better classified as a psychological thriller, in my opinion. Some would say it's a drama. Others would argue that it's really a horror movie, depending on your interpretation.

And that's what this movie is about: Interpretation. Much like David Lynch's puzzle movies, this one is all about what's real or not, and it's up to you to decide what's happening.

Two things I can say about it - it's that the movie has a cyclical nature, and that there's no real closure on screen. The ending can be interpreted as hopeful or depressingly frustrating, or anything else entirely. It's up to the viewer to decide.

So, While "Spider Forest" has many elements borrowed from other movies ("Mullholland Dr", "The I Inside", and to a lesser extent "Memento" and even "Lost" in the forest scenes), they are done well here, and help make a quality movie that poses a lot of questions, answers them all only to have you wondering what really happened in the end.

If you like this kind of movie (I know I do), get inside the Spider Forest...

8/10

Well...what can I say about this film. I guess my initial thought was to mention a few movies that share a similar story or plot, but upon doing so I'd ruin the film. I just think that the concept although no tired yet, is getting a bit more common. I can count three to four titles I've seen in the last two years that use this concept to a certain degree within the storyline. This film is nothing new or original at all, and that in itself was a bit disappointing.

Let's put it this was. Within the first 15 minutes both my friend and I pretty much figured out was what going to happen. Why? There is a French horror film that came out (produced by a Korean studio also) that is close to identical to this film, except the main character is a woman. If you're interested message me and I'll pass the title along.

That being said, the story itself was still above average, but the execution was a bit poor in my opinion. I think the movie was just a bit too long for what it was trying to do (I think it was only 2 hours, but it felt like 3-4). The movie could have had the same impact if they cut off about 30 minutes. I keep thinking I missed something, or there was something more to this film...however there aren't any questions for me to ask...so I can't see how I could have missed something.

I saw this at the Toronto Film Festival, and I can't say that I was upset I saw it. I think it's worth a rental, but I wouldn't suggest anyone go out of their way to find this. It really had some potential, but again it just didn't execute in the areas it should have. Upon leaving the theatre all I was thinking was "I've seen this before...and I liked the other films a little more"

Not bad...but nothing to write home over.

Before seeing Spider Forest last night at the Toronto International Film Festival (agree with comments by cbranje, the ROM theatre is not the best at masking outside sounds, though the occasional rumble of the subway did add an extra shot of tension to some of the more suspenseful scenes), I'd heard it described as a film for those who liked 'Mulholland Drive' but found it too linear. While I don't think it's a very accurate statement, the film does invite comparisons to David Lynch. The creepy tone, gruesome murder scene, elliptical narrative structure, and ambiguous plot resolution are all Lynchian trademarks but I think Spider Forest is a little more straightforward or at least it lends itself more readily to a range of interpretations.

The set up: a man wakes in the forest, discovers the mutilated corpses of coworkers in a house in a forest, and pursues a man he believes to be the killer. Though most of the ensuing story is told in what may be hazy, and possibly wholly fictitious, recollections of the past, each memory recreates a moment of truth that one could easily see as happening to this man. We see him mourn the loss of his wife then hear other stories about death and loss and wonder, are these manifestation's of one event or separate incidents that actually occurred.

The film poses epistemological questions like: How do we know that we know? What differentiates consciousness from sleep? Is what we consider reality merely our continual reconstruction of our past experiences? For me, figuring out what's happened to the main character in 'Spider Forest' is akin to piecing together the fragments of a bizarre dream, but with the pleasure of seeing these fragments unfold in a series of beautifully shot frames.

Definitely recommend.

I also scoped this movie out at the Toronto Festival (Sept 14th). They showed it at the ROM theatre which has the unfortunately acoustic property of being directly over a subway.

I liked this movie a lot, more for its style than anything else. The tunnel scene has some of the coolest lighting I've seen in a while. The plot was a bit hard to follow and I did leave the theatre scratching my head a bit. I didn't know what to expect at all, so it took me a while to get with the flow. I'd like to see this film again to get a better handle on the story.

I definitely recommend this film for fans of visual, stylistic film making.

Spider Forest is one of those films that not everyone is going to like, but I for one thought it was excellent. Unfortunately it is difficult to describe the plot more than it already has been in other comments as knowing too much about this film will spoil it's magic.

This is a dark, intricate, intelligent, atmospheric and somewhat spiritual movie in my opinion. Certainly worth seeing for anyone who likes to walk out of a cinema with questions floating around their heads.

Great performances, characters, cinematography, direction, and one of the most interesting scripts I have seen in a while. This has probably been billed as some kind of horror or thriller genre film, but to me it is more human drama or art-house film. Korea is becoming the best place to find films that weave intricate human stories into other genres of film to elevate the stories above the competition.

Spider Forest is definitely a great piece of cinema that will make you think and will stay with you well after the credits roll.