Sorry, but I've never played the game.

Rating: 5/10 (24 August 2006)

Stating outright that I have never played the video game "Silent Hill" before seeing the movie might be an odd way to start this review, but I feel that it must be said. I just know that every negative comment I make from now on will probably be countered by a hardcore gamer who insists that I have no right to my own opinion of the movie version of "Silent Hill" because I am unfamiliar with the source material. Yes, I am unfamiliar with the source material, and that was one reason why I was looking forward to seeing this movie. I came into it as someone who just wanted to see a good horror movie. That being said, while I don't think "Silent Hill" is a complete disaster, I can honestly say that I've seen much better.
The plot of the movie (which I understand is pretty true to the game) involves a woman named Rose who travels to the abandoned town of Silent Hill believing it to have some connection to her adopted daughter's strange behavior (not only does she sleepwalk, but she constantly mentions the town by name while she does it). When Rose gets to the town, her daughter disappears, and Rose is left to deal with the strange and nightmarish things that plague Silent Hill.
The best part of this movie by far is the fact that it manages to maintain a very creepy atmosphere almost from beginning to end. As I said before, I have never played a "Silent Hill" game, but I've played games like it, and I can honestly say that the most effective parts of this movie are the ones that inspire the feeling of dread and isolation that persists throughout most good survival horror-style games. Everything seems to be shot from camera angles that seem to suggest that something scary could be just around the corner waiting to tear apart our heroine (who is as alone and practically defenseless as any hero of a typical "Resident Evil" game). The soundtrack is also very effective, with the kind of minimalist atonal music that sounds more like ambient noise than what most people would call real music. It adds a certain intensity that I'm sure would be lacking if the movie had a different soundtrack.
Unfortunately, a creepy atmosphere seems to be just about all that this movie has going for it. There is some really weird and creepy things happening throughout this movie, but most of what we see is left mostly unexplained (yes, I know that I should probably play the games for a good explanation). The things that attack the heroine seem appropriately unnatural and creepy, but we are left with little explanation as to what they are (the guy with the pyramid on his head is probably the coolest and scariest monster in the movie, but he/it disappears way too quickly and never really serves a purpose). Things start to improve a little bit past the halfway point when we are introduced to what can best be described as the true evil of Silent Hill, but when that happens the other threats to the protagonist seem to be all but forgotten. I don't want to go into spoiler territory, so I'll just say that what we are left with is a film that cannot decide what kind of horror movie it wants to be.
I can honestly say that I found this film to be rather disappointing. It has a great look and a suitably creepy atmosphere, but there are too many things left unexplained and too many missed opportunities for me to really recommend this movie to anyone.