Silent Hill - Movie Review 

Silent Hill is always going to be remembered as the movie where Sean Bean doesn't die.

Silent Hill was not a bad movie, but Silent Hill: Revelation was not a good movie.

I don't know if this movie is officially considered a "cult classic", but it deserves to be. It's not perfect, but it was very very well made. Can't say the same for the sequel sadly.

I feel like no one talks about the visuals in this movie, seeing the environments peel back and reveal the rustic otherworld when the sirens Blair, and then the walls slowly start rebuilding again when the characters are back to the normal world. The way the other world is very dull and grey when in silent hill and another shot set outside of the town pops with colour, the contrast is absolutely stunning.

One thing worth mentioning: This movie has no jumpscares!

Silent Hill was grossly underrated. Wasn’t bad at all.

My favorite part of Silent Hill: the nurses. They're so iconic.

This movie is criminally underrated. A great horror movie.

Teacher: why weren't you in class yesterday? Me: *awkwardly looks around* I got Stuckmanized...

One of the best game to movie adaptations ever made. Love the original Silent Hill.

I've been defending this movie since I watched it. At the time I thought "Finally, a good video game movie" and to this day I think it's the best video game movie adaptation.

The one thing that stuck with me with this movie is, The pyramid Head turn off that woman's skin.

The scariest part of the movie is that Sean Bean survives..

That scene where Pyramid head tears off the girl's skin like he was tearing off her dress still haunts me to this day.

I love this movie. Saw it back in college in the theatre. Atmospheric, mood, music, tension and performances all excellent. Production design is great. You really feel the town of Silent Hill, it draws you in. It’s creepy and disturbing, with a chilling ending. The pyramid head sequences are done so well. Definitely my favorite video game adaptation and I think it’s very underrated. We need more adaptations like this.

Then: Director had to work for years to get rights to make Silent Hill movie. Now: Silent Hill used to make pachinko and slot machines with no care shown for property.

"A mother is God in the eyes of her child."

The scene with the burning at stake still haunts me to this day.

This movie was filmed down the street from me. Changed the downtown to silent hill. So cool

Should have adapted Silent Hill 2 with Sean Bean as James Sunderland

I actually really like Silent Hill I think this is an underrated movie

This movie has one of the most depressing endings of all time. (Spoilers) You fight off the all the horrors of hell, save your daughter, escape from this horrible town, and finally make your way home... only to find that no one is there... and that it’s not the same. It’s a foggy nightmare dream version of your home... and then you realize you never really escaped to begin with.

Agreed 100%, and the effects and art still hold up extremely well.

I like silent hill movie. It’s so underrated. Love the feel,the setup It’s was not bat at all. Its true to the game. Resident evil Who?

I remember I rewatched this movie several times, I just love it. The history behind, and as in the games, I got really scared when the sirens started. Watching this movie felt like you where in Silent Hill.

I'm 36 years old and I still get chills whenever I hear a siren. What a great series of games.

Silent Hill really is a good movie, and a damn good horror movie at that. I remember loving it many years back, but even rewatching it today, it has so many genuinely strong qualities. The acting, effects, scares, set design, and atmosphere are all so well done.

I watched this movie alone back in 2012 out of sheer curiosity. The moment that soundtrack started playing I was immediately swept away into the story. Such a unique sound that creates an atmosphere that is as beautiful as it is frightening. To this day I listen to the soundtrack while at work and it's amazing how it seems to help me calm down and focus. The moment I turn it on I am sort of pulled from the stress I feel in a given moment and am truly taken somewhere.

Silent Hill: Revelation was a Hilariosity video just waiting to happen.

I loved this movie so much when I was younger that I watched it every week. I'm surprised people don't get why things are happening in the film, that's the first time I heard of it.

Also: Honorable mention to Christophe Gans, who directed the super under-rated Brotherhood of the Wolf.

I think this movie was fantastic! I am frankly surprised that it didn't win awards for visual effects and make-up and all of those technical categories. All of that is absolutely standout!

This movie scared the hell out of me when I was younger. I couldn’t sleep because I was always thinking about the girl

My favorite part is the camera angles used when the town changes for the first time. That too me screamed silent hill. The Husband aspect was definitely the weak point, but I gotta give it a pass. They didnt kill off Sean Bean. I was watching this movie wondering when he would die. He didn't. I has happy.

Jodelle Ferland doesn't get enough credit, she was also the best part of the series Dark Matter.

I really liked the husband scenes : it gives emotional contrasts, where we want to go back to the safety of reality some times, and we really hope they will be reunited due to that character development.

Silent Hill in 2019: A literal gambling machine.

Absolutely loved the first film but silent hill revelations was awful

ITS a TERRIBLE SHAME that Christophe Gans couldn't get the rights to make the sequel cause the sequel was pure trash!!!

The movie gave me an anxiety attack, I held my friends hand the whole time

I legitimately thought I was the only person alive that liked this movie (the first one)

I was waiting for this. I never thought you'd consider reviewing it.

I watched it when I was in college with my sister and friend (he explained that it was a game adaptation). As someone who hadn't played the game, I was really invested and spooked by this movie. I could clearly see how it was a game, but that really worked for the movie. I liked the characters, the atmosphere was intense and I didn't mind the husband character, as well. Favorite character of the movie was the cop (sobs). I felt that the movie was clear, especially with the exposition flashbacks. Overall really enjoyed it and it was a fun, intense time.

Quite honestly, I have loved this movie since I was a kid. To this day, it’s so much fun to watch

I remember watching this on tv with my Dad and he turned it off halfway through saying "Well, we ain't watching anymore of that!" Been meaning to go back to it actually. Really enjoyed the games.

"In my restless dreams I see that town...Silent hill".

I may be one of the few people that actually played the game after seeing the movie. I very much liked it at first and later loved the movie after playing the game. ⚡

Sean Bean surviving was a real gift from the movie.

I’ve always liked this movie and I was happily surprised to see this review

Silent hill is one of those horror movies I actually enjoy

The part that stuck with me the most in this film was when Alessa's mother points up to Pyramid Head before he rips off Anna's skin. She did it in such a specific way that it would always pop in my head randomly.

Husband part was important because of the very ending. Otherwise it wasn't be as such sad as it was. If you know what I mean. One of the best horror thriller film in my life.

I loved this movie, so did my sister. Fun fact, one of the screenwriters for this was Oscar winner Roger Avary, who won an Oscar along with Quentin Tarantino for Pulp Fiction. There was an interview where he went into this movie acknowledging the bad rep video game movies got, courtesy of Uwe Boll, wanting to change that. I also like the fact that the only music in this movie that is not from Akira Yamaoka is just after the first point when Silent Hill changes back to "normal", and yet it is still fitting. Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash. The fact that they really wanted to do a lot of practical effects is a plus, and on top of that I like that they even chose to emulate some of the camera angles in the game, like when the camera is tracking Radha Mitchell character from up in the corner, looking down at her and sort of tracking in this deliberately jarring V shape. Coincidentally, as much as I love the game, I kind of sucked at it. I missed a ton of shit, and ended up with the ending where your character is dead in his car after the crash. Same goes for Silent Hill 2. On a side note, and I know I'm going to be annoying for doing this AGAIN, but have you seen Exorcist III, aka Exorcist Legion? If you haven't, you should give it a look. I would argue it is better than Exorcist: Heretic, and easily better than Exorcist in the Beginning (the final exorcism and that movie looks like something out of an old Raimi film). But more than that, it is a fine companion piece to the original movie. Less of a horror movie and more of a thriller, it still has some disturbing elements, solid ties to the original (courtesy of the fact that William Peter Blatty, who wrote and adapted the screenplay for original also did the same for Legion as well as directing it), and it actually has one of the best jump-scare scenes I have ever seen in terms of its effect on me. The movie features Brad Dourif in probably one of his best roles, and fantastic acting from Ed Flanders and George C. Scott, who play two characters who have become friends over their connection to Father Damien Karras in the original. if anyone is interested in watching this, I do believe it is on Amazon Prime right now.

Waiting for SH: REVELATIONS on hilariocity

I had no idea this was based on a video game when I saw it. I thought it was really unique and creative and creepy and I LOVED it! I am a massive horror fan and I had never seen anything quite like this before.

Hey Chris just wanted to say that I really enjoy your reviews I usually can’t sit for 20 mins and listen to someone talk about a film but with you it’s effortless and enjoyable, that power up scream you did in your dragon ball z video was hilarious lol just keep doing your thing man it’s great

The name alone makes me feel sad that we never got the Kojima Reboot.

Not sure why critics bashed it. I loved this film and would consider putting it amongst my favorite horror movies.

I've never played the game and never read or had seen ANYthing about Silent Hill...ever. My friend was a HUGE gamer and horror movie fan and raved about how much he loved both the game AND this movie. I had only heard faint rumors that the movie wasn't very good - BUT - while at Family Video one night , with literally everything of my interest gone , the manager suggested "Silent Hill" since he remembered that I had rented other horror movies. Relunctantly , I rented it out of boredom and a VERY small interest due to my friend's suggestion. WOW - this movie TRULY creeped me out in a major way - and it stayed with me for weeks !!!!! I loved that I had never played the game...everything about the story was totally original and a pleasant surprise for me - it was GREAT - and I'm still a fan !! I had low expectations of the second film , as reported by most , but it turned out I was able to enjoy that film as well. It is NOWHERE NEAR the quality of the first film and the lower budget and lack of respect for the franchise is obvious - but still enjoyable since I so love the characters and the atmosphere of Silent Hill's world.

I saw Silent Hill in theaters with my cousins and I always felt like the movie played out like the progression of a storyline video game. Unlocking secrets. Finding objects to get to objectives. Challenges spawning at "random." I felt like watching a video game in a lot of ways for me. One thing I especially enjoyed was the visual representation of the mental state of the people. I need to rewatch this movie. Some impressive storytelling goes on in this movie. I enjoyed it and honestly, I really want to buy a Silent Hill collection to play all the games.

Waiting patiently for The Lighthouse review

Sean Bean Doesn't Die. 3/10~ IGN

I've never played a Silent Hill game in my life, and this is one of my favorite horror movies. It just goes to show that it actually works (perhaps even works BETTER, given its reputation amongst the game's fans) without prior knowledge of the source material.

Just wanted to comment that i really apreciate the respect you show for film makers. I wasnt aware of the passion the director had for this ip, and though i personally dont like the film, it is nice knowing there was passion put into it. Such a small thing most reviewers dont comment on but you have and knowing that changes the perspective of the film so thank you for that.

I love this film. I watched it for the first time when I was like 13 and I must have watched 20 times. I had never played the game when I first saw it and it made perfect sense to me. Granted, it's far from perfect. Like you said, the husband storyline feels tacked on. The CGI doesn't really hold up and some of the acting from the townspeople is really over the top (and child actress who plays Sharon/Alessa also isn't very good in places). However, I would still say that this is the best video game adaption ever made. The set design, the art direction, the soundtrack, the leads - it's all great stuff.

This movie was great. Way better than Resident Evil.

This movie traumatized me as a kid lmaoo but I do like the movie

Silent Hill is the best movie ever!! And It's a shame they didn't produce more Silent Hills over the years!! I guess great things come to an end really soon and that makes us really sad!! 😥

I'm so happy you talked about Silent Hill, I feel like it gets forgotten and pushes to the side alot.

I loved the movie, honestly, it is really underated

This has always been one of my favorite horror movies! When ever some one says “I wanna watch something spooky” it’s on my go to list. I care so much about these characters.

So glad you gave it another chance. It's one of my favorite movies, mostly since my sister and I watched it over and over growing up and it freaked us out so much. Which we loved.

Look Chris, they just wanted to give Sean Bean the chance NOT to die in a project for once

Loved this movie, so visually cool and interesting

I went to a screening at the film school in my city when this came out. Christophe was there and did a Q&A afterwards. I really didn't like the movie, and I didnt say anything about it to him, but after rewatching it's become my go-to for a late night watch. I love it and it is MASSIVELY underrated. Glad Chris feels the same

I've never played the game and I loved this movie. The nurses and pyramid guy are simply terrifying

When this movie came out I was like 11 and still wasn’t into horror movies. The trailers for this movie alone scared me so bad that I either had to leave the room or change the channel when they came on. I watched it for the first time when I was 15 and was horrified out of my mind but loved it immediately!

Chris Stuckman, you're my Roger Ebert.

Makes me laugh how this flopped and the resident evil series made billions. They wanted a faithful horror movie my arse

One thing to say about the husband storyline would be that it kind of gives an outside perspective to the town and the search, achieving two things imo: 1. A bit of a break from the persisting tension with the mother's storyline which i think is good for balancing, and 2. A chance for showing the nuanced connection between the two worlds, such as when he smelled her perfume as she passed by him in the yard. It was the same place and the same time but the worlds are different. Such details i think have added a lot to the movie. Great review as always!

2:19, too bad Konami doesn’t.

I'm so glad I'm not alone thinking this movie was FREAKING AWESOME! The production value alone was EPIC! Especially the end scene!

Maybe it's because I grew up with it, but I adore this film. My mother showed it to me when I was 8 or so because she appreciated the message about religious trauma. Neither of us learned it was based on a video game till much later. As an adult, I love it for so many reasons. The atmospheric sets, the horrific monster designs, the message, the characters, the story, the performances, it's all brilliant. The scares are so visceral, so grotesque. They do not feel cheap or exploitative--they are utterly intimidating. Silent Hill was the first time I ever took notice of a film's sound design--I adored the rattling, clanking, screeching, and shuddering metal. The sound that stood out to me the most is when Pyramid-Head rips his gargantuan sword out of the wall, and it clangs against the concrete ground. Chills. The music is hauntingly beautiful. I will always remember how I felt when, at the end, Rose tells Dahlia "Mother is God, in the eyes of a child". As a kid, the delivery/meaning of that line struck me deeply. Everything about this film is striking, for better or worse. I've seen it hundreds of times, and will watch it hundreds more. I LOVE it!

What I *love* is that actors and dancers played the monsters--and with such glee! I like this so much better than CGI. I love the subtle changes to the colour of Mitchell's costume, and I love the lovingly crafted sets.

Absolutely love this movie, so happy you’ve brought it up for a Halloween review 👻

I remember playing silent hill 2 start to finish over a weekend I was alone in my apartment, it was a strange weekend as there seemed to be nobody else in the entire apartment building, really added to the creepy atmosphere of the game. As for the film it has it's flaws but a great film to sit down and experience, lights off and big screen.

Hello Chris, I love your annual Halloween specials. Halloween is without a doubt my favorite time of year. Since Doctor Sleep is coming out in a couple weeks, I decided to go through Mike Flanagan’s horror filmography. The Haunting of Hill House is my favorite show of 2018 which made me begin my respect for Mike Flanagan. I remember I was eagerly awaiting your review of The Haunting of Hill House ever since you mentioned at the end of one of your reviews you were going to review it. It took time for you to do so but when your did, I was throughly pleases that you loved the series as well as much I loved it as well. I just watched his first swing at the horror genre with the movie “Absentia”. I was impressed with the creative aspects of the film. So speaking of your annual Halloween specials, if you have the time, I hope you watch it and review it because I was impressed with what Mike Flanagan could do with a small budget. Perhaps you could do a short series of the remaining Mike Flanagan movies in preparation for a movie that happens to be a sequel to the movie such as The Shining. With Mike Flanagan begins the camera, I have the confidence he knows what he’s doing because of his choice to put character before scares. Thanks Chris if you had the time to read my long comment but it would genuinely mean a lot if you can continue to support what a great horror director he is and the genre in general.

probably the only video game film adaptation that's faithful and therefore good and worth watching, seriously underrated too.

As someone who's never played silent hill, I really loved this movie when I first saw it. It made me a silent hill fan even though I've never played the game :)

It’s one of my favorite horror movies

Great review, Chris! I consider this to be the best video game movie adaptation out there. Creepy as hell too!

Nice review, Chris! I was really late to the game (er... movie) on this one and only finally got around to watching it a few years ago. I had some friends back in high school who were big fans of both the movie and the games and I can definitely see why. Very atmospheric and creepy horror, plus as a novice to the story, I really enjoyed the mystery of it all.

Never thought you'd review this one. I used to love this movie, defended it anytime that it came up in conversation. But as a I grew older and became a passionate fan of the games, I kinda soured on it. While I applaud and appreciate Christophe Gans's love for the game and his desire to create something good, also the inclusion of Akira Yamaoka's score is just amazing, his representation of it was very flawed. The excessive need for slasher movie gore is definitely not needed. The game had blood and bodies all over the place but they were carefully placed and already been there before you even entered the area. There was really no need for that much gore. I will always argue that it's snow, not ash lol. I don't like Christophe where he practically says, and I'm paraphrasing, a father wouldn't go through hell to find and save his daughter. That is an absolute dick punch to any great fathers out there. Harry Mason is a great character for his resilience, he's a good man with good qualities and the love that he has for his daughter, he's a great character. While I also respect the attention to detail on certain things, a few of the monsters shouldn't be in the movie. I get that it was fan service and in adaptations you have to make some changes. But those changes shouldn't disregard the source material. The Lying Figure monster was a manifestation of James's internal suffering, a patient in agony like his wife was. She referred to herself as a monster. The nurses were a manifestation of James's sexual deprivation. And most importantly, Pyramid Head's portrayal. Pyramid Head was a manifestation of James's guilt and desire to be punished after what he did. Those three monsters have a reason for their appearances, in the movie, their appearances are not right. This movie could've an entirely new Silent Hill, canon to the storyline, the feminine feel of the female cast would be perfect in its own story but it had to be an adaptation. While I will always agree that a mother's love for her child is one of the most purest things in this world, so is the love of a father. It is just as special. And for Harry to be just thrown out and forgotten and replaced with a character that could easily lead her own story, it's just kinda disrespectful to the source material. At least I think it is. The things I just wrote can be argued to say that the Lying Figure can be from Alessa and her agony from being burned and the stuff that is squirts out is acidic pus and blood from the wounds that she suffers. Pyramid Head being there to punish the guilty ones who burned her. But it can be countered again by saying that new designs can be created and become homages to those monsters. I'm not very good at trying to explain my opinions, by I get by in any way I can. I'm not saying this review is wrong or anyone liking this movie is wrong, I'm just voicing my opinion and criticism of the movie. I respect the review and I respect the opinions of the liking of this movie. I'm sure that there are better people that can explain what I mean better than me lol.

This movie scared the crap out of me when I first watched it. I was about 15 and watched it alone in the dark. I never played the game before I watched it.

Such a fantastic movie. Being a huge fan of the games i couldnt wait to see this when it came out, and i was very pleasantly surprised that it wasnt some cheesy movie clearly made just to capitalize on the game.

I have been waiting for this review!!

Silent Hill: Shattered memories and Dead Space 2 are some of my all time favorite games.

This one of of the movies I loved to watch growing up and I still like it. The overall eerie feeling, score, and the visuals of the movie are awesome.

Fair review. The movie also sticked to my mind for quite a while without me being really able to figure out why. I overall appreciated the experience and the very clean production. I really recommend you guys to watch this Christophe Gans' interview. He is indeed a true lover of the serie and has a very interesting and enlightened perspective on what is Silent Hill. I enjoyed every second of his interview.

Overlooked and underrated...the score is great and it a very stylish,atmospheric movie.I was 15 when I played Silent Hill 2 and the film captures the dream state the games are.