Silent Hill (2006)
Last Watch Date - April 6, 2024
Total Times Watched - I'm gonna say four
Comments
I watched Silent Hill in theaters and my lasting impression was "why was it so loud?" I watched it at least once or twice more since then, NOT INCLUDING TODAY, and I definitely remember thinking it was pretty good. Given how long it has been since I last saw it, do I still feel that way?
The obvious statement that needs to be made here is that this is a movie based on a video game, but it's only kinda-sorta? It's not based on any specific game but like a general sort of .. Silent Hill-iness. I think that's fine because the game stories aren't that amazing anyway. The problem this creates, though, is that there are expectations and this movie doesn't really hit them for many people. If you're coming from a total lack of knowledge around the series, this movie is confusing at best. There's no real explanation of how things work or why, even though they try to sort of explain it near the end.
Acting-wise, this movie is pretty good. Sean Bean keeps his head and Radha Mitchell is believable for the most part in her actions. Cybil's actions are a bit bizarre at times, but she's fine. Even the little girl was pretty good. The script they use? It could probably use some work. There are some silly lines throughout and really weird actions that the characters take. Like, say, handcuffing someone in a world that is clearly NOT the one you started in. And for some reason trying to WALK someone back to another town when you probably have no jurisdiction to even take them in anymore and your motorcycle is dead? Oh, and her child is missing? What?
I have complained enough about the goofiness, let's hit on some more positives. The special effects, while a bit dated looking, are still quite decent. I like the transition between fog and rust, particularly when there are creatures returning to ash on the transition back to fog. The entities they have in the movie are all pretty good and creepy. I think Pyramid Head was an obvious favorite for most people, but I really love the nurses. Their twitchy movements and mumbly sort of sounds were great. Not to mention the way they reacted to light and movement.
That one thing I remembered about this movie being loud? Uh, yeah, it's still WAY too loud in certain areas. The chains or barbed wire that fly out at the end are SO LOUD and obnoxious. Even on my home TV I had to turn that down. Most of the effects were quite loud throughout and the siren was pretty annoying too. And ANOTHER THING, the screen was too dark for much of the movie. I couldn't see much of anything for large stretches because of it. It's not creepier to be so dark you can't see anything.
The pacing is ok overall, but this one is quite long at just over 2 hours. They really probably should've trimmed it up a bit. I think if they cut out 30 minutes, this would've been bumped up a score or two.
Recommended?
Yeah, it's a good video game adaptation. I have complaints about it, but overall it's a fun movie.
