Silent Hill should have been a silent movie

Rating: 7/10 (23 April 2006)

As a player of the games on which this film is based I firstly have to say that the director and design team nailed it completely. The wide streets, the darkly lit alleyways, the backtsreet garages; ALL were there. I was in Silent Hill. Unfortunately, I was also surrounded by 2D characters, pointless plot developments and flat dialogue delivered straight out of the dubbing booth.
The film is crammed with so many of the game's references, that it's difficult not to be impressed by the visual achievement; but a film the game is not, and while it provides a 'cinematic' experience whilst playing it, to directly transfer (it seemed to me) everything, every tiny element from the game's history, opportunities for originality and dramatic tension were lost. I did find odd little touches funny - Rose wandering into dustbins and school desks; elements that players have experienced many a time, by over-running down corridors, or through deceptive spatial awareness. I admire the way the writers used elements of the game play to further the story: Sharons drawings led Rose to SHs most well known areas, the 'glint' of the special item in the janitor's throat, and Rose's memorising of the hospital map (not the right one, by the way) leading to the final denouement.
Set pieces in the film will stay with me for a long time for pure visual audacity. Much has been made of the Pyramid Head character, and the creation does not disappoint, providing two of the most memorable scenes. In fact the film is fairly unflinching in it's violence, and much like playing SH it's anyone's guess who is next to meet their maker in blood-drenched 'game-over' style. Having said that, it wasn't nearly as disturbing as I thought it was going to be, or as the games can be and sometimes I wanted it to take me a bit further into the nightmare, to really leave me with no way out.
Music from the games seemed to have been used throughout and not always successfully. One of my favourite moments is from SH3; Heather being driven home by the mysterious detective. All of a sudden this Portishead-esquire dub starts up, and we are treated to the fantastic 'Letter - from the lost days'. When the intro cranked up early into the film, I got excited, but after about 5 seconds the song was reduced to in-car radio audio and was barely heard. Oh, well.
A very interesting effort and a not entirely unsuccessful go at the genre. I think Christophe Gans should be allowed to be freed of the fans expectations, next time, and maybe create his own myths surrounding SH, whilst treating us to his unique visual style and interpretation.