Giving opinions for several years and showing like a fine vintage
Giving opinions for several years and showing like a fine vintage
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History tells us that movies based on video games don't work. Over the years we've had cinematic classics such as Streetfighter, Super Mario Bros, Mortal Kombat, Doom and to an extent Tomb Raider. All have been lacking in anything resembling a decent movie but still Hollywood persists because it's an idea they don't have to develop much, an audience is already there although the box office for some of these mentioned movies suggests otherwise.
Now I have to admit, I've never seen or played the game on which this movie is based. In truth I don't know a lot about video games but I do know about movies and quite frankly Silent Hill must come close to topping the list of mindnumbing cinematic experiences. Please bear in mind that I actually sat through Date Movie the other week so I don't choose my words lightly.
The movie opens with a mother desperately running after her sleepwalking daughter. On regular
occasion, the daughter has mentioned the name Silent Hill in one of her dreamlike states. This worries the mother and before you have a chance to get some character development, the pair are off to a town named Silent Hill to get some answers. Silent Hill is an abandoned town due to a burning coal fire underneath which still burns to this day. This creates a ghost like quality where the sky is littered with ash. Mother and daughter get into a car crash and when the mother awakes the daughter is gone. So naturally we see mother wander around a ghostly town where she encounters some spooky occurrences, dark twisted creatures and discovers that her 'adopted' daughter is not all sweetness and light.
Ok first things first, Silent Hill is a pretty good-looking film. The cinematography is excellent and the production design is of a high standard. This is to be expected when you consider Director Christophe Gans previous film Brotherhood of the Wolf. However any film can strive and achieve an excellent look but it doesn't mean a thing if the script isn't up to scratch. The biggest problem with Silent Hill is that it's slow, meandering and incredibly boring. A large part of the film sees Radha Mitchell wandering around shouting Sharon like she's Ozzy Osbourne. This is not in the slightest bit interesting and gets incredibly annoying after what seems like an hour. Unsurprisingly the film actually feels like a video game with Mitchell encountering darker and darker levels and bigger and badder challenges as the film progressed. To break it up, there's a sub-plot involving Sean Bean as the husband on the trail of his wife but it feels like an afterthought and sadly not interesting. After about an hour I really began to grow tired as the film doesn't go anywhere and then just descends into arty farty nonsense with little resolution. I guess there is some hidden meaning in all of it but frankly I had lost all interest and didn't give a stuff about any of the characters, especially the daughter who is played by a girl who can't really convince.
For me Silent Hill is just another terrible movie based on a video game and it's one of the worst as unlike Doom and Tomb Raider there's nothing to entertain or excite. In years to come the only thing I can see this fit for is as recommended viewing for insomniacs. It'd do the trick and have them off to the land of nod in no time.
- The DVD -
Like I said, Silent Hill has one thing going for it and that's the look of the film. The anamorphic widescreen transfer does justice to the stark visuals but bear in mind that a lot of this film takes place in the dark so you may be reaching for the brightness control on your tv.
The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack is pretty good as well offering an enveloping soundscape that utilizes all your home cinema set-up.
- Extras -
The one main extra on the disc is a making of documentary that runs close to fifty minutes. It covers the origins of the film and talks about the video game although we never see highlights from the game so it's difficult to guage interest. To be honest I was so cheesed off with the film that seeing how it was made didn't interest me in the slightest so I merely skipped through what is slightly better than average doc.
Also on the disc is a photo gallery, TV Spots and Trailer.
I will also point out the intro menu for the disc goes on for a while and plays out part of the film before you've watched it. To me this was unnecessary.
- Finally -
In my opinion Silent Hill is not a good movie, it's dull, lifeless and has no signs of life in its story. It's just a load of dark stuff thrown onto the screen in a nice looking package.
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the only highligh of this movie is Sean Bean though will not be buying this one now. Jules.
No_name 02.12.2006 12:31
When I first noticed a new Christophe Gans film was coming out I thought: great! having loved Brotherhood of the Wolf then say the words: based on a computer and thought: [expletive deleted]. But if it looked good then it can't have been the worst film ever (which is either The Devil Probably or The United States of Leland).
Seresecros 02.12.2006 04:03
Can it really be that bad? SEAN'S IN IT?! Surely he makes it bearable? HE'S SEAN BEAN!
A lot of movies can be described as "dripping with atmosphere," but in the case ofSilent ... more
Hillit's literally true. Faithfully adapted from the Konami video games by French director Christophe Gans andPulp Fictioncowriter Roger Avary (both self-confessed...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
A lot of movies can be described as "dripping with atmosphere," but in the case ofSilent ... more
Hillit's literally true. Faithfully adapted from the Konami video games by French director Christophe Gans andPulp Fictioncowriter Roger Avary (both self-confessed...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Based on the best-selling horror action game, Silent Hill stars Radha Mitchell (Man On ... more
Fire) as Rose, a desperate mother who takes her adopted daughter, Sharon, to the town of Silent Hill in an attempt to cure her of her ailement. After a violent car c...
Advantages: A decent idea and a cast that with a better script would have worked well Disadvantages: A disappointingly drawn out script and and criminal underuse of Sean Bean
Andy.mack 17.05.2006 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of SilentHillDVD
![Silent Hill [DVD] [2006]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78485942.jpg "Silent Hill [DVD] [2006]")
Dec 1st, 2006
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