Silent Hill

First of all, Carol Spiers deserved an Oscar for her production design. I'm not joking at all. It was so creepy and unsettling. It's worth watching for that alone. Unfortunately the storytelling aspect of it was pretty meh. Not a great script with some pretty lazy dialogue. In spite of that, I really liked this movie... surprisingly.

Horror? Try psychological triller and you might be closer to understanding why is it that I found Silent Hill such an amazing piece of work.

With that in mind, the reason why Silent Hill worked for me was because it had a story to tell. Granted some of us are already familiar with the storyline and are frustrated with the pace of the film. Others may gripe at how much of a disappointment the movie was because of the lack of certain monsters, the lack of development in the characters they liked best, the lack of answers to puzzling questions, the fact that the storyline was too convoluted and confusing et cetera et cetera.

Yet, the heart of the film lies mainly on one simple idea - Silent Hill is first and foremost, a physical manifestation of a child's mind that is shattered, tainted and shackled by an abuse so terrible that one is unable to articulate it into words. (Ever wondered why Silent Hill is called "Silent" Hill in the first place? If you think along the lines of language being an ineffective medium in the expression of "truth", *cha-ching*! You're right!)

In this light, I cannot understand why so many people had a problem with the pacing of the movie because in the first place, such apparent "meandering" is necessary to the entire film. And why not? The inability for any one character to get to the heart of the problem is prevalent during the entire narrative framework of the film *No one* character dared to talk about it and those who sought the truth are met with an air of secrecy. The "truth" therefore, is oppressed by a *complete breakdown of words* and all that is left is to "show" and let the people "experience" what had happened themselves. (Such is the path that Rose must take because she "chose" to seek out the truth surrounding her daughter's psychological problem and since language fails in Silent Hill can the "truth" cannot be communicated through "words" it must be "shown".)

The same rule applies to Christopher. He tried to uncover the "truth" but was thwarted by people who are reluctant to talk about the town. Everyone who had prior knowledge of the town was unable or unwilling to describe what happened because they 1) are suppressing their guilt 2) are afraid of opening up a can of worms that is best left forgotten. Even Rose and Cybil are faced with a group of people who were so adamant into seeing things in their point of view that they have "blinded" themselves to the atrocity of what has taken place in Silent Hill. (Notice how most of the monsters i.e. Nurses, Pyramid Head, Janitor, are in a state of blindness? Coincidence? I think not.)

And still at the heart of all THAT, a child's horrifying story is desperately waiting to be told. The meanderings are not meant to be a flaw in the plot, in my opinion, but an attempt to show how the outside world tried to suppress and confine the deepest desire of a little girl - the desire for "truth" to be known. Therefore the "truth" cannot be "told" because words will ultimately fail in Silent Hill. It must be "shown". That was why Rose had to go through all the various stages of her journey to seek out the "truth". That was why it was crucial the narrative had to be mapped out thus and it reached its summit in the dramatic finale where the fanatics were reluctant to accept the "spoken truth" but was forced to accept it nevertheless through a physical manifestation of "truth" - the manifestation of their past deeds.

Hence in my opinion, this film isn't about monsters, busty characters, bloodshed, storyline or whatever it is that one normally looks out for in a film of this genre. This film is about a little girl's story that is struggling to surface in a world dominated by a viciousness she could not comprehend but fall victim to nevertheless. Think about it. To be thoroughly abused in a world that you never fit in and cannot comprehend. And later to want to seek vengeance for the wrongs that had been done to you but are unable to articulate it into words because there is no one out there who understands or listens to you. The intense hatred due to the complete lack of control that one is forced into, the desire to achieve "satisfaction" at any cost and the obsession with "vengence" - now that's a scary thought for a little girl of 10 to have, wouldn't you say?

So was it good? Heck yeah. And I'm going for another round of this when my next paycheque comes in.

I don't think that a video game has been adapted in such a manner before. It's as if you're watching the video game in front of your eyes. And although I only have played one Silent Hill, I know that they achieved to transport the game on your screen (theatre) literally!!

But that is also the downfall of the movie (imo). It is very compelling in the beginning, but when it reaches a certain point (let's say the middle of the movie), the scares don't work anymore. The effects still remain great, but I'm just not feeling it. As a game that would work, because you're actively involved, but as a passive viewer, you get bored. So the best adaptation yet, shows us that there is more to the adaptation process, than filming a game ...

I remember I sat down to play Silent Hill a couple of years ago because the mystery genre intrigued me and the game had an interesting look to it, so I started running through the abandoned town of 'Silent Hill' as the main player. I stopped playing very soon because, in truth, not a whole lot was happening. It was mostly an uncomfortable experience, eerily lit and hauntingly scored. I could feel an intense build-up in that foggy place but I never reached the culmination, so I gave up. OK, fine - I was scared.

Years later this film adaptation is bravely made by Christophe Gans and, even though I'd played less than ten minutes of the game, I immediately recognised the haunting visuals of the abandoned city. So 'well done' here is an understatement. It is superbly breathed new life into.

The plot has been glossed over slightly in a Hollywood fashion, but captures the essence of its characters and storyline - which is: as a last resort, a mother takes her ill daughter to a place she often mentions in her sleep - a place near where she was adopted from. But the hope the mother has for her daughter's recovery quickly shatters and turns into despair when the little girl vanishes in the misty mysterious old town.

I truly cannot credit the atmosphere of this film enough. Christophe Gans has successfully captured the eerie mood of Silent Hill and it is a nightmarish place - a fog-enshrouded hell that shifts between two modes: barren ashen daylight and a gruesome decaying state with fiery ember, demons and enhanced by chilling (and very sudden) sound effects. It's strangely fascinating, surreal and above all frightening.

The problems of Silent Hill (2006) are that there are not nearly enough build-ups. They should have been used not only to stay faithful to the video game upon which it was based but to wield tension in the right way and shock us when the build-up finally culminates. But here we are introduced to horrid creatures early on and often without much foreshadowing devices. Because they are presented to us so generously and clear-viewed, they are not that scary. At all. Some even manage a raised eyebrow, like the crawly CGI cripples.

In the end, I think this is quality horror entertainment and probably one of the better game-to-film adaptations, abut it is much too chaotic - too many monsters and too often and too clearly to be frightening. The mood and atmosphere are what is frightening and so it should have been used even more in Silent Hill, but instead the director feels pressured to introduce creatures to satisfy mainstream audiences' need for bloody gorefest and kinetic action.

7 out of 10

First off, the downsides: Some parts of the movie seemed a little drawn out, the film was two hours, and at certain times, you could feel that. It's far-fetched, and I can imagine some people rolling their eyes at the storyline, and there WILL be some people walking out saying "that was a stupid movie". (As many people responded to Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.) Of course, some of them will be saying that in response to the sheer amount of gore and violence, which brings me into the 'upsides': This movie certainly had it's 'wow' moments with shock, anticipation, and gore, especially near the climax. Scenes and even alleyways and monsters from the games were almost identical. If you've played the games you will get a lot of deja vu. (For example, the camera goes crooked at exactly the same time and place it does in one of the scenes in the game.) Also, a lot of the sounds and music tracks from the games are used, and so are the monsters. The entire feel of the games is preserved in the film, and you will have trouble keeping your feet on the floor the entire movie. The creepy presentation works, and if you haven't played any of the games, this movie will scare you in new ways.