Overview
We’ve been expecting you.
Rose, a desperate mother takes her adopted daughter, Sharon, to the town of Silent Hill in an attempt to cure her of her ailment. After a violent car crash, Sharon disappears and Rose begins a desperate search to get her back. She descends into the center of the twisted reality of a town’s terrible secret. Pursued by grotesquely deformed creatures and townspeople stuck in permanent purgatory, Rose begins to uncover the truth behind the apocalyptic disaster that burned the town 30 years earlier.
Review
You really can’t expect much from a movie based on a video game. Silent Hill, from a horror perspective, was not a great movie. However, some of the imagery and scenes were haunting. The foggy soot-shrouded gloom of the town of Silent Hill where ash fell like grimy snowflakes and the horde of dark nurses were highlights for me. There was some CGI that worked and some that really didn’t, cheapening the experience.
As a fan of horror movies, one who puts an emphasis on the story, this was a disaster. A mother wanting to cure her daughter of sleepwalking nightmares basically kidnaps her away to a toxic ghost town slowly burning from underground. She gets pulled over by a cop played by Laurie Holden, then flees putting her child’s life in more danger as she crashes through the gates of Silent Hill. Yes, this makes absolutely no sense. Especially why she does it alone, without the father. This is just bad writing. Also, the characters seemed as burned out as the giant trash fire smoldering beneath the town.
The average rating to Silent Hill was more than propped up by the gamers who appreciated seeing a game they played hitting the big screen. For any true horror fan, this would serve only as a feeble attempt, another poorly developed project to make some money off the gamer crowd.
Rating: ★★ (out of 5)
