The PERFECT game to film translation!

Rating: 10/10 (6 August 2006)

I'll be perfectly honest: I am a pure, obsessed fan of the Silent Hill game series. I have collected all the games, both in their PAL and NTSC incarnations (European and North American versions), collected the "Making of" documentaries that exist so far, have been collecting the comics, collected the soundtracks (except for the first game because I'm looking for a real Japanese import, not a Taiwan or Hong Kong bootleg), looking forward to at least collecting if not playing the up-coming Silent Hill Experience and Silent Hill Origins for the PSP, and anxiously awaiting the DVD release of the new Silent Hill film on DVD. It was Silent Hill that made want to get into the voice-acting business thanks to a strong inspiration from Aussie singer and voice actress, Donna Burke, who voiced Angela in Silent Hill 2 and Claudia in Silent Hill 3, and from Heather Morris who voiced lead character Heather in Silent Hill 3 and, supposedly (the voice actors were not credited, and IMDb can't always be trusted), voiced Eileen in Silent Hill 4: The Room, and Monica Horgan who voiced Mary and Maria in Silent Hill 2.
From the beginning I had faith in Roger Avery writing the script after reading him confessing that he was a die-hard Silent Hill fan (though definitely not up to my level) and learning that a director called Christophe Gans - also a confessed big fan - was selected to direct the horror epic. I went to see Silent Hill on opening day: April 21 2006 here in Scotland. I LOVED it, I went to see it four times in the cinema, and waiting patiently for the DVD release.
The film is loosely based on the first Silent Hill game. In the game, widower Harry Mason decided to take a late holiday/vacation to Silent Hill with his 7-year-old daughter, Cheryl, to the quiet sleepy town called Silent Hil. On the way, a figure suddenly appears on the road, forcing Harry to turn the wheel, crashes and gets knocked out. He awakes to find Cheryl missing and wanders into the fog-choked town of Silent Hill to find his daughter. With help from a police officer, Cybil Bennet from the next closest town Brahms, a terrified nurse, Lisa Garland,and a mysterious Prophetess-of-Doom type character called Dahlia Gillespie, and after following a trail of blood and mutilation through a dark world of Gothic imagery, a place that exists between reality and hell and inhabited with horrific creatures and monsters, Harry discovers the truth.
In the film, Rose DeSilva acts against her husband's wishes by deciding to take her troubled daughter, Sharone, to Silent Hill due to frequent sleep-walks and mutterings of the town's name. On the way, a figure suddenly steps on the road, forcing Rose to turn the wheel, crashes and gets knocked out. She awakes to find Sharone missing and wanders into the fog-choked town of Silent Hill to find her daughter. From then on, the film mixes story elements from the first game and liberties that Oscar-winning writer Roger Avery (Pulp Fiction) made. Only fans will know and separate the film and game differences and similarities as the plot flows differently from the game, including new characters.
Robert Rodriguez who directed the hit graphic novel adaptation, Sin City, called the film a "translation" rather than an adaptation. The same can be said about this film. It is literally Silent Hill ripped straight out of the game and made physical. The camera angles and movement, the lightning effects, the visual effects, everything is so beautifully recreated from the game. Add to that, all the music in the game comes from all the four Silent Hill games that exist so far, making the film experience all the better.
The cast is also very good and manage to pull everything. There are two people that steal the show from everyone else. First is Canadian actress, Deborah Kara Unger, who plays Dahlia Gillespie as a mother whose heart has been broken beyond repair, and she plays her so beautifully. The second is Pyramid Head, the Red Devil and Judge who appeared only in Silent Hill 2. The way he was brought to life in the film was so spectacular it was unreal. He looked EXACTLY as though he had been kidnapped from the game and given flesh and blood only to appear in the film. His look, design, and especially movement, were all perfect.
There is probably only ONE criticism I have and it's the fog. In the games, the fog is real mist, in other words it's water vapour which effectively creates a claustrophobic environment because you can't see very far what's infront or behind you or even what it is approaching you. Furthermore, it is what makes Silent Hill unique. Finally, it is what separates the real normal life from the cursed nightmare parallel dimension. In the film, however, the fog is actually the smoke and fumes from a great fire that happened years ago, while still separating the real world from the nightmare world. So changing the fog to smoke and ashes didn't do well for me. However, this is a small thing that is completely overshadowed and blown away by everything else.
Personally, I am forever grateful and thankful to Christophe Gans and Roger Avery for bringing Silent Hill to life. Gans' direction was so perfect it's not funny! I am sure that he will return to direct an inevitable sequel and I can't wait to see how he'll do it because Silent Hill 2 the game is his personal favourite. I only wish that I could thank him personally, as well as beg about auditioning as an extra or something. Silent Hill is truly a masterpiece of translating a game to film, and I can't wait for it to arrive on DVD.
Thank you Mr. Gans and Mr. Avery.