Review: Silent Hill (2006)

This is yet another movie stemming from an overwhelmingly successful video game. "Silent Hill," introduces movie-goers to the world of the town that's cursed.

Rose (Mitchell) stars as a mother who is desperate to solve the problems plaguing her adopted daughter, Sharon. Sharon lapses into what appears to be fugues and consistently mentions the town of Silent Hill when in these states.

Against her husband's wishes (Bean), Rose takes Sharon to the town. Despite the fact that the town was closed following the horrific explosion years earlier, she forces her way into the realm she may never escape from.

Rose finds the world has gone insane in Silent Hill. Things may appear merely abandoned one second and the alarms begin. The world darkens and bizarre and disturbing creatures are unleashed during this darkness.

All roads outside the town are gone, the underground fires are still burning, and she must trust a demonic force to save her daughter. The twist at the end obliterates the assumptions the creators constructed through the movie and gives the impression that the perceived "villains" were actually the "lesser of two evils."

Ghoulish Details:

This was an amazing movie and the atmosphere was engrossing. The pacing is spectacular and the viewer has little room to breathe. The movie is a constant ride of grotesque monsters and racing thrills.

The use of real "creatures" as opposed to computer generated ones was a fine decision. All characters give interesting performances and Debra Kara Unger is amazing as the "outcast" of a town that's already in what appears to be purgatory.

The director was very discerning with the elements used in the movie and separated the elements of "disturbing" and "disgusting" seamlessly.

Ghoulish Rating: 5 (out of 6)

Trivia:

*Silent Hill is set in West Virginia . The real "Silent Hill" is in Centralia , Pennsylvania . This town was a mining community until the 1960s when the entire mine caught on fire. A tunnel used for garbage disposal caught on fire, thereby igniting the entire mine. The town closed afterward.

*The Silent Hill video game was created in Japan .

* Sean Bean not only played in "Lord of the Rings," he also played the father in "The Dark" and the killer in the remake of, "The Hitcher."

* The actor who played the "Red Pyramid" also plays the creature that was the school's janitor.

* The "burning child" creature was played by a real person in a costume.