If you're expecting a straight up mystery thriller or horror film you'll be disappointed. However, if you keep an open mind you will be rewarded with a poignant & romantic story about moving on.
Failing actress Sweetpea (Dree Hemingway) travels to a music video shoot in rural Japan to break up with her neglectful rock star boyfriend (Francois Arnaud). Arriving at the remote location, she discovers he's gone missing. Is he just trying to avoid her? OR is there something more malevolent behind his disappearance? Looking like a Project Runway Jake Gittes, Sweetpea teams up with local forest warden Mak (Jai West), who has his own hidden agenda, to find her lost love. As the story meanders around the creepy forest, Sweetpea slowly realizes solving her boyfriend's missing persons case isn't the point. She's a typically self-obsessed young woman who can't see the forest from the trees. All the clues are there yet she remains oblivious to their meaning. Is she just protecting herself from the hard truth?
This is a finely crafted, assuredly directed film where all the small parts elegantly come together. The acting is great all around, with the elegant Hemingway and understated Jai West being true discoveries. There's also a delightful cameo by Pamela Anderson, who plays with and against type as an aging supermodel who may know more than she lets on. Technical credits are solid with the production design complementing the austere cinematography. Kate Bush's "Running up that Hill" lends an effective coda to the proceedings.
Definitely worth a look if you get a chance.