Saturday 28 May 2011

Review - Silent Hill (2006 - Dir. Christophe Gans)




Now, I know this is not the most popular of films, even amongst horror aficionados and fans of the original game, but it is a film I keep coming back to again and again. 



I played the original Silent Hill game on the Playstation some years ago and can't remember it exactly; however the film does give me similar feelings to my recollections of the game. 



Radha Mitchell plays the mother of a young, sleepwalking girl who constantly witters on about a place called Silent Hill. She takes her there and promptly loses her in an atmospheric and confusing place filled with a mist made of ash. A great deal of disturbing monster filled mist action ensues, the highlight being Pyramid Head; you wish there was more of him. The original ending was going to include loads of Pyramid Heads but due to budgetary reasons was changed to the current ending.



One of the most maligned parts of the film is the role that Sean Bean plays as the husband. Yes, he is Basil Exposition. Yes, the director didn't really want to include the character. But he does add to the sense of poignancy in the final scene so I don't mind him too much. And he's from Yorkshire. 


I have one question about the film. How is it rated as a 15 when there is a intimate scene including razor wire and a lady's privities? The Evil Dead was banned for far less and is still rated an 18 now.




Easily my favourite video game film (admittedly, there's not much competition) but also one of my all time favourite films. Writing this review makes me want to watch it again...
9/10
evlkeith




If you like this you could try:
The Mist, The Fog (1980), Brotherhood of the Wolf, Crying Freeman.




4 comments:

  1. This is a one of the only good video game adaptations ever made and I've never understood why it's so maligned? None of the Resident Evil films can hold a candle to it and they go on and on!

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    1. It's good to see that someone agrees with me about Silent Hill. You might well be the only one.

      For such a violent, gory series of games I'm really surprised/disappointed that all of the Resident Evil films have been rated 15s. I've only seen the first and I can't remember any zombie heads exploding due to a close proximity shotgun blast. I don't think that Paul W.S. Anderson has made a good film yet. Maybe Event Horizon is his best?

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  2. I always thought it was a watchable film, it was a great, as usual, performance from Alice Krige.

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    1. Crikey, that's at least three people who like Silent Hill. A sequel is being made - sadly, not by Christophe Gans - and I'll probably give it a watch. I have to say my expectations are fairly low. You never know it might be a bit of a surprise.

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