SILENT HILL is Hellraiser meets Resident Evil. I enjoyed it, but I was a little disappointed by the climax. SILENT HILL
could have been more considering it was the film Christophe Gans directed after the fantastic THE BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF.
The film is a visual treat. It is an emotional drama as a mother (Rose played by Radha Mitchell) tries to cure her adopted
daughter and find her when she loses sight of her in Silent Hill. It's also an origin story of how witch hunters doomed the
town of Silent Hill to being a ghost town and the ones who died to end up in purgatory. Alice Krige plays evil so well. Deborah
Kara Unger is equally disturbing as the mother of the child the witch hunters killed. Sean Bean meanwhile in the outside world
tries to find out about why Silent Hill was destroyed and his adopted daughter. SILENT HILL is sometimes creepy, but the climax
just falls flat.
VIDEO: 2.35:1 (Anamorphic Widescreen)
The transfer doesn't look bad at all. Colors and shadow values are captured nicely. Image detail is OK.
AUDIO: English 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround
Subtitles: English
Dialogue is very clear. The surround mix is impressive.
SPECIAL FEATURES: A 6 part featurette (59 minutes total) called PATH OF DARKNESS: THE MAKING OF SILENT HILL is the only
extra-
ORIGINS- How Christophe Gans and Roger Avary got to do a Silent Hill movie.
CASTING- Christophe picked some indie actors, but all the actors are used to genre movies.
SET DESIGN- A look at the set design for SILENT HILL
STARS AND STUNTS- The stars had some close calls doing the stunts that were well rehearsed.
CREATURES UNLEASHED- a look at the creature design and the actors beneath the creature make-up.
I wish SPHE had included the original theatrical trailer for SILENT HILL on the DVD.
PREVIEWS: GHOST RIDER, BASIC INSTINCT 2, CASINO ROYALE, ULTRAVIOLET, UNDERWORLD: EVOLUTION, THE BENCHWARMERS, HOLLOW MAN
2, POPULATION 436, THE WOODS, THE BOONDOCKS, QUINCEANERA, THE FOG
FINAL ANALYSIS: SILENT HILL isn't a bad video game adaptation, but it is a disappointment compared to BROTHERHOOD of THE
WOLF. A few more extras should have been included on the DVD too.
this review is (c)8-16-2006 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission (except for excerpts and a link
to the review). Look for additional content at http://enterlinemedia.livejournal.com and send all comments to lord_pragmagtic@hotmail.com
