"Silent Hill"- - A more than decent video game adaptation...

Rating: 8/10 (20 August 2006)

"Silent Hill" is a film I was not looking forward to. With the recent trend in video-game inspired films, especially those of director Uwe Boll, ("House of the Dead"/"Alone in the Dark"/"BloodRayne") I had very low expectations for this film.
Imagine my surprise when I saw the movie, and realized it was not just a hollow shell of violence and CGI images, struggling to be scary. The film packs suspense, emotion, and some genuine story.
Rose, a frantic mother, is dealing with the strange night terror episodes of her daughter Sharon. In her sleep, she wanders away from her room, and speaks of a mysterious town she has never even visited before - Silent Hill. Rose, being a get-it-over-with type of person, decides that perhaps the best way to fight these episodes is to visit the town of Silent Hill and find out just what it's connection with her daughter is.
Before arriving, she is in a horrible car wreck, and awakens alone, Sharon missing. She stumbles to her feet and walks into the dark void that is Silent Hill, where she must face horror and risks beyond imagination to save her daughter.
That, of course, is the basic storyline. And while it may seem hokey, in the course of the film, it works. We believe Rose and her struggle to help her daughter, and we understand why she would chose to go to the town and confront what needs to be confronted.
But there are some downsides to the film.
My first complaint is that the film just isn't very scary, but rather is more suspenseful. However, I can understand this. Part of the horror of the "Silent Hill" video game franchise is the fact that "you" are the main character. It is "your" life on the line. When translated to film, we loose this crucial piece of the puzzle. However this can be forgiven.
Another downside is the use of special effects. Several times during the film, we see Computer Generated Images that are just not necessary, or scary. Take for example, a scene where a mannequin-like creature attacks the main character. The CGI work on this scene was alright, but it made the character less threatening. Poor judgment on the part of the filmmakers there.
My final complaint is the usage of the famous/infamous Silent Hill villain "Pyramid Head", whom shows up several times in the film. While it is fun for us fan-boys to see him on the big screen, he is without purpose, as his role in video games ("Silent Hill 2" specifically) is to be a metaphor and contrast to the character of James Sunderland. A metaphor of his sexual frustration, and his sadness, and his emotion towards his wife. It doesn't make sense that he appears in the film.
However, despite these complaints, I found "Silent Hill" the movie to be a thoroughly enjoyable, and even very-well-done film in the genre of Video-Game inspired film, and the realm of modern horror/suspense. It is also great for the fan-boy gamers such as myself to see and hear references to not only the video game series, but Komani in general.
Overall, I would recommend this film to anyone who would like a good, mildly creepy, suspenseful ride into oblivion.