Post by Mr.HoRrOr on Nov 7, 2012 18:51:52 GMT -5
Synopsis:Heather Mason and her father are on the run. Trying to stay one step ahead of dangerous forces that she doesn't fully understand. Now on the eve of her 18th birthday, plagued by horrific nightmares and the disappearance of her father, Heather discovers she's not who she thinks she is. This revelation leads her deeper into a demonic world that threatens to trap her in Silent Hill forever.
Cast:
Kit Harington
Adelaide Clemens
Sean Bean
Radha Mitchell
Deborah Kara Unger
Carrie Anne Moss
Malcolm McDowell
Heather Marks
My Thoughts:"THE DARKNESS IS COMING"!
Review:So "Silent Hill", the video game adaptation horror flick, came out approximately six years ago. Or half a decade ago for those of you keeping score at home. In 2006. I thought the film was very well done. Probably one of the best video game adaptation films of all time. "Silent Hill" wasn't a super-gory movie, but it was gory enough. Wasn't EXTREMELY well-written. But was well-written enough. And the ending was ambiguous in a good way. But what really worked about the movie was the way they captured Silent Hill as a world.
The falling ash, the twisted metal, the hellish world that kept popping in and out of existence. And the utter madness and tragedy of the poor hapless folks trapped inside this world. Which ultimately we learned, was ruled and created by a vengeful demon who merged with a girl who was furious that a psychotic cult tried to cleanse her soul through burning her...literally. So with a movie this intriguing, and a pretty decent box office. People wondered where the hell the sequel was. Especially considering the same company behind the "Resident Evil" films, was also behind "SH".
And ever since 2006, there's been 3 new "RE" movies. But it seems they wanted to take their time with "SH 2". Or perhaps, the early scripts just weren't good enough. At any rate, Roger Avary finally got to work on the script for the movie. But then he was taken off the project (folks should know why by now), and another writer had to come in and take his place. "Silent Hill:Revelations" was finally and eventually done. But then it was tapped to be in "3D"...and after that. All hopes for the film being any good perished as quickly as "THE DARKNESS". 3D these days, seems to be an excuse to make a really bad movie. But a really bad movie that looks cool.
"Silent Hill" as a place, looked sick in 2D, back in 2006. So the obvious studio reasoning for 3D was..."HEY, GET A LOAD OF SILENT HILL IN 3D SUCKAS!" Well, I did. And I was not impressed. Story-wise that is. The sequel picks up where part 1 left off. Years later. Sean Bean returns as Chris, and he is now raising Sharon, who now is being called Heather Mason. Apparently, Rose (Radha Mitchell), found a way to spirit Sharon/Heather out of Silent Hill. But Rose had to stay in order for it to work. But now that Heather is all grown up, some, lets call them..."goons". From Silent Hill want her back. Why?
Apparently Sharon, who if you recall...was Alessa's "goodness". Or what was left of it after Christabella's cult rosted her like a marshmallow. So if Sharon (Heather)...returns to Silent Hill. She will merge with Alessa's darkness. AKA..."The Demon". Thus...the pairing will free Silent Hill's "new loons" from their otherworldly prison. Got all that? Cool. Lets move on. So when I mention "new loons". I mean the films apparent villains. Last time, it was Christabella and her cult minions. This time, the villain (or villainess)...is a woman named Claudia Wolf.
Played by Carrie Anne Moss (yes, the chick from the Matrix movies). Claudia apparently wants to be free of Silent Hill. And she is head of a group called "The Order Of Valtiel" (cool name huh?). A so-called "cult". Although the difference between these guys and Christabella's crew...is that Claudia's cult apparently only has about 3 members. This is because Claudia is a very unstable but power-hungry individual. So she's apparently either killed or jailed most of her followers.
Including, we find out later on...her own father. She is a far less-caring psychotress than Christabella was. Atleast Christabella tried to protect her flock. But if you're looking for any connections or ties between this cult led by Claudia and the other cult headed by Christabella. Well, there isn't one. Other than the mysterious seal that Rose finds in the first movie. And that also sits atop the church in "Silent Hill". But one would wonder why or how a small coal town like Silent Hill, could have two large cults that never crossed paths.
Hence why this movie story-wise is so weak. There's so many plot holes here. For example, in "Silent Hill"...we are led to believe that the town is a feared place. Where human beings are trapped and tortured by Alessa and her "creature creations". But in "Revelation"...apparently, Silent Hill has dispatched members of "The Order"...into the outside world. To find Sharon/Heather...and bring her back to Silent Hill. But this makes no sense! Considering the demon Alessa controls this realm. So no one inside of it, can just dispatch people into the outside world to sniff out some teenage girl.
The film operates on the premise that Claudia and The Demon, both have different agendas and different plans for Heather/Sharon. But how can an entity as powerful as Alessa/The Demon...not be aware of EVERYTHING...that occurs within a realm/dimension of which it created? If Claudia was going behind Alessa's back, Alessa should've crushed her immediately. Instead, this movie tries to assert Claudia as a villainess ABOVE Alessa/The Demon. When Claudia is only HUMAN!
To make matters worse, the film does the usual jump scare moments with people in the outside world. For example, there's a scene where Heather runs into a vagrant, who she seems sometimes as a deformed being. And other times as a human. Sharon however does get some help with her f'ked up life. After she learns the "truth" about her origins from her father. Help in the form of a young man named Vincent, who goes to her school. However, when Heather's dad is kidnapped to Silent Hill, Heather learns there's much more to Vincent than meets the eye. As far as blood and gore is concerned, "Revelations" is weak compared to part 1.
Part 1 was harsh in some scenes. Particularly involving Pyramid Head. But part 2, tries more often than not to be suspenseful. Not sure why though. The film is only 86 minutes long. BRING ON THE GORE! Despite a discombobulated story, "Revelations" does keep with the tone of the film series. All the music scores, and set pieces from "Silent Hill" appear in the sequel. Pyramid Head, the hellish boiler-room part of Silent Hill. Fire, the falling Ash, the creepy fog/mist. Even Dahlia makes an appearance. To warn Heather that she needs to leave Silent Hill before the proverbial sh*t hits the fan.
If you're looking for anything "new" in the sequel, sorry to say there's not much new stuff here. We get 1 new creature, that doesn't see much screentime beyond murdering a random female character who apparently appears in this movie just to eat up a few scenes. And we're introduced to Claudia and Leonard Wolf. The former of which is far cooler a character than the latter. But with a script this messy, Claudia is still flawed by her lack of a meaty backstory. And Leonard, played by genre vet Malcolm McDowell...has some cool dialogue.
But again, in an 86 minute film...his backstory is non-existent. Which is the most annoying thing about this movie. It seemed Roger's original script was gonna be a 2 hour plus film. But when he was taken off the project, and Michael J. Bassett was brought it to write and direct. It seems he picked parts and portions from Roger's first draft and compiled it into 86 minutes of barely average sequel! I would've loved to see this movie have been completed by Roger and shot and written the way he wanted it to be. It seems he had some really good ideas and story plans.
But for some reason things fell apart and we were left with a 90 minute plot-hole-filled mess. That doesn't mean this film doesn't have entertainment value though visually. In 3D? It's visually cool. Especially in act 3, when we get to see Alessa all grown up. Set to the backdrop of a twisted carnival scenery. However...if you're gonna accept the visual beauty of this movie. You must also accept...ok?
15 minutes in...that any sembleance of a decent story does not exist in this film. What happened to it you ask? I don't know. Maybe it TOO is lost in SILENT HILL along with the others? When it's all said and done however, if you loved part 1...you'll probably like seeing all the old (living/surviving) characters return in the sequel for nostalgic purposes. And finding out what-ever became of Rose, Sharon, and Chris. But for folks expecting a strong, solid followup to "Silent Hill" (2006)...just, skip this movie altogether...okay?
THE GOOD:One thing I must say in defense of this film is it captures and brings back the spirit of the first movie completely. The sound scores are identical, the surviving characters are all back, the set pieces are familiar, everything is like the sequel was shot in 2007. It so closely resembles the first movie as far as continuation is concerned. I think when this film was being put together, minus Roger...they felt the script was weak. So they relied heavily on continuity to win the day.
Visually...this movie is beautiful in a horror film sense. In 3D it's amazing also. I think they really put a lot of effort into showing Silent Hill as this hellish place. Where people are just "food" for pretty much everyone and everything. They did a good job.
THE BAD:The story has so many gaps and holes in it. The cults led by Claudia and Christabella respectively. Were they ever in league? Why are all of Silent Hill's nutty religious cults led by women? Is that a mandatory thing? Why wasn't the importance of the seal having supernatural powers to unlock the true "self" of folks in Silent Hill not fully explained? And how can a human woman plot and strategize to dispatch and kidnap people outside of Silent Hill when Alessa controls this realm. And thus, should or would know who comes and goes? So many holes.
OVERALL:Two stars out of four. Mostly for the cool visuals. Storywise, this movie is pretty bad. The ending however still boldly suggests a second sequel might be coming. Will it happen? Maybe. SIX years from now.