Matthew McConaughey Joins Drama Set in Japan's Suicide Forest

Prepare to visit one of the most unsettling locations on the planet.

The Wrap reports that Matthew McConaughey (True Detective) will star alongside Ken Watanabe (Inception) in the upcoming film Sea of Trees. Gus Van Sant, director of Milk and Good Will Hunting, will helm from the screenplay written by Chris Sparling, who wrote the claustrophobic thriller Buried.

Sea of Trees was voted to the 2013 Black List, a list comprised of the best scripts of the year that, for one reason or another, didn't get produced.

Matthew McConaughey in HBO's True Detective.

The movie "follows an American man (McConaughey) who takes a journey into the infamous 'Suicide Forest' at the foothills of Mount Fuji with the intention of taking his own life. When he is interrupted by a Japanese man (Watanabe) who has had second thoughts about his own suicide, and is trying to find his way out of the forest, the two begin a journey of reflection and survival."

Many of you may already be familiar with the Aokigahara forest through the popular Cracked article "The 6 Creepiest Places on Earth." The forest has become the cite of hundreds of suicides, prompting the Japanese government to perform annual body sweeps and post signs throughout the forest begging people to reconsider their lives.

While it appears Sea of Trees will not rely on horror in any way, the narrative potential made possible by setting a drama in such a dark, tragic place is intriguing, to say the least.

Talk to Jared on Twitter at @Larson_Jared.

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