Silent Hill: Collector’s Edition Blu-ray Review

THE MOVIE — 3.5/5

Plot Synopsis: Rose (RADHA MITCHELL) is a desperate mother who takes her adopted daughter, Sharon (JODELLE FERLAND), to the town of Silent Hill in an attempt to cure her of her ailment. After a violent car crash, Sharon disappears and Rose begins a desperate search to get her back. She descends into the center of the twisted reality of a town’s terrible secret. Pursued by grotesque deformed creatures and townspeople stuck in permanent purgatory, Rose begins to uncover the truth behind the apocalyptic disaster that burned the town 30 years earlier.

Review: Maybe it’s low standards but Silent Hill is widely considered the best video game adaptation ever made. While my initial impressions watching it circa 2006/2007 wasn’t the best, gave it another go over a decade later and… thought it was alright. Not great mind you and perhaps doesn’t top my personal list of video game adaptations (in the minority, but did really like the Alicia Vikander Tomb Raider film).

As someone who has never played the game (only seen other play via YouTube or Twitch), I thought the style under Christophe Gans’s direction, with Dan Laustsen photography, made for an interesting film filled with gnarly creatures and plenty of blood to satisfy gore hounds without going too overboard… well, save for one scene when Pyramid Man rips the flesh off of a woman. Nasty.

Probably the biggest difference between what Gans did versus others — such as Uwe Boll (BloodRayne, Alone in the Dark — who have attempted to adapt video games, it appears he approached with a certain amount of respect and passion, and didn’t just merely copy elements of the game but also gave it his own spin and in ways make it his own, though as Gans explained in an interview, he did gather crew members who worked with Guillermo Del Toro on Mimic so there are Del Toro elements in the film as well.

The acting is mostly well done, I always enjoy seeing Radha Mitchell in the lead and, albeit a small yet important role, the young Jodelle Ferland also was halfway decent. Sean Bean is always a treasure no matter the role while Alice Krige was viciously terrifying as a religious leader.

All in all, Silent Hill is a solid horror flick which unfortunately got a, if I’m being kind, lackluster sequel. Shame Sony didn’t follow through.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 5.0/5

This two-disc release comes with a matted slip cover and the interior art is reversible revealing the original poster artwork. Given all of the features, no wonder they needed to put them on a second disc.

DISC ONE:
Audio Commentary — Director of Photography Dan Laustsen. This is a new track with the DP giving out bits of information on his career and the production. Moderated by Justin Beahm.

Theatrical Trailer (2:27)

DISC TWO:
Interviews:

• Director Christophe Gans (TRT 72:12) is split into three parts – The Origin of Silence, Adapting a True Work of Art and Delivering a Nightmare. Gans explains his approach to filmmaking and his love for the source material.
• A Tale of Two Jodelles (26:03) – Jodelle Ferland discusses her upbringing as a child actress and recounts her work on the project.
• Dance of The Pyramid (36:34) – Interview with Actor Roberto Campanella who portrayed the Pyramid Head creature.
• Make-Up Effects Artist Paul Jones (TRT 56:18) – This interview is split into two parts, Monster Man and Silent Hill.

Path of Darkness: The Making of Silent Hill (TRT 61:39) is a massive six-part featurette/documentary delving into the various aspects of the production from the source material, casting, set design, stuntwork, etc. with some behind-the-scenes footage and on-set interviews with the cast and crew. Only annoying thing is there is no Play All option.

Also included is an On Set Vintage Featurette (14:29), Around the Film Vintage Featurette (4:39), a Photo Gallery (7:01) and Poster Gallery (3:21).

VIDEO – 4.55/5

AUDIO – 4.5/5

OVERALL – 4.25/5

Silent Hill is certainly one of the better video game adaptations, and while that might not say much considering how much crap has been out there, I will say there are some genuinely good things about this one from the style to some interesting story elements. As for this “Collector’s Edition” Blu-ray from Shout, it is well put together with great video/audio transfers alongside an excellent selection of bonus material.