I’m not a blogger who likes to blog about the latest trends or hits; but when it’s a movie based on a video game — a video game I’ve played and enjoyed for years at that — nothing could silent me. Hehe, pardon my bad pun.
Silent Hill the movie wasn’t released in Hong Kong until the day before, so naturally I went to the movies with Bro first thing after work that night. We actually made it on time for it (and even had time to be subjected to the torture of slimming product ads before it started), seeing how we didn’t usually get to see the first 10-15 minutes of other films. My first impression of the movie actually had nothing to do with the production itself. Just look at this.
What the hell is up with the Chinese title, “鬼魅山房”? The direct translation of Silent Hill wasn’t powerful enough, so they justify themselves in making up a name that isn’t accurate to the movie or the game, huh? Well, Bro and I already mocked at it enough, so let’s move on to the movie.
It started with the music theme of the first Silent Hill game, audience stirred. Cool, fellow gamers around. Until a few more scenes later, the movie was still forcing music from the games into it at, in my opinion, inappropriate time (or inappropriate choice of clips. Either one). It was as if they were trying too hard to emphasise how they were a movie based on the games. “Hark! Loyal gamers! We’re the Silent Hill movie! We use all the music from the games!” I read later that they did so because they wanted to use the same music tracks at similar scenes of the game. Darlings, what works for a game doesn’t necessarily work for a movie!
While I love it that they kept a few characters and monsters from the game, and understand that they couldn’t just use the exact same story, I didn’t like how they twisted it. It’s similar in a sense (presence of a cult, a few locations, the disfigured corpses, etc.), but the main storyline! Cybil turned a tomboy; Lisa turned into a nameless nurse who didn’t appear until quite the end; Dahlia got split into two characters — “good” Dahlia and Christabella; there was also only one Pyramid Head Red Pyramid who didn’t seem to serve any purpose other than scare factor in the movie compared to the one in the game.
There are some little things I love about the movie, though. For example, I think how Cybil said “what the fuck” instead of “what the hell” was really in-character and appropriate, because that kind of situation deserved something much stronger than a WTH. The “foggy” Silent Hill to alternate Silent Hill transfer was well done as well.
But all in all, with the amount of blood, gore, violence, cleavages and girl power in the movie adapted from a game, what’s not to love about it?
Heh. I almost screamed at a certain guy sitting somewhere behind me. The song “You’re Not Here” played at the credits, and he commented that the song sounded vaguely familiar. Vaguely familiar only?! It was the Silent Hill 3 theme song! Blasphemer! We must burn him! … If only I wasn’t busy singing along. lol
P.S. I still don’t understand how this movie could be rated Category IIB and not a III.
P.P.S. Bro’s comment on the movie (in Chinese).
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