An Interesting Subtext
Posted: 07 Sep 2006
I saw the movie for the first time this Tuesday (living in Australia), and afterward it occurred to me that Gans/Avary had introduced a subtext which wasn't really apparent in the games, or at least wasn't brought forward to the same degree. It revolves around the idea of eyes and sight: who has them, who doesn't, warding against etc.
First of all there is the cult. As you may or may not know, that symbol everyone keeps making with their hand was originally meant to ward off the evil eye. Anna uses it against Dahlia, Dahlia uses it against Anna, Christabella uses it against multiple people. The evil eye is not only literally giving someone a dirty look, but also psychologically wishing them harm, and the symbol is supposed to deflect what is essentially a psychic attack against you.
This is obviously very relevant to the Alessa/Reaper/Sharon aspect of the movie. We see that Alessa manages to 'curse' Lisa simply through making eye contact with her, we see the Reaper making eye contact with Alessa in order to transact the deal, and we see the Reaper and Sharon make eye contact near the end of the film. What happens to Lisa speaks for itself.
Even though most of the creatures in the games were without eyes anyway, it seems more significant that they don't have them with these other aspects being highlighted in the movie. The lying figures, the nurses, and pyramid head have no eyes. The janitor has been blinded by barbed wire. Even the grey children, who do have eyes, don't look as though they'd be able to see very well, being more like opaque globes. Bedridden Alessa obviously has them, but she isn't a creation like the others.
Also, with the townsfolk in their mining suits, all you can see of them is there eyes. The one which Rose finds crucified is shown to be alive solely through a shot of its eyes...
I'm not entirely sure where I'm going with this, or even if it needs taking anywhere, but I did think it worthwhile pointing out and sharing for discussion.
Perhaps, if you equate eyes with life or will power it tells you something about the way things are in Silent Hill. The monsters, being Alessa's creations, are not really alive, have no will of their own, and thus have no eyes. The janitor was once alive and possessed his own will, but that has been taken away from him as his punishment. The remaining townsfolk were obviously alive and in possession of their own will.
You could also view the eyes as the means by which corruption enters the body. Eye contact preceeded Colin's abuse of Alessa, it precipitated the deal between Alessa and the Reaper, it destroyed Sharon's innocence when she was forced to watch Cybil burn and then the cultists die, and it is also likely the means by which she and the Reaper either merged or came to a bargain of their own.
First of all there is the cult. As you may or may not know, that symbol everyone keeps making with their hand was originally meant to ward off the evil eye. Anna uses it against Dahlia, Dahlia uses it against Anna, Christabella uses it against multiple people. The evil eye is not only literally giving someone a dirty look, but also psychologically wishing them harm, and the symbol is supposed to deflect what is essentially a psychic attack against you.
This is obviously very relevant to the Alessa/Reaper/Sharon aspect of the movie. We see that Alessa manages to 'curse' Lisa simply through making eye contact with her, we see the Reaper making eye contact with Alessa in order to transact the deal, and we see the Reaper and Sharon make eye contact near the end of the film. What happens to Lisa speaks for itself.
Even though most of the creatures in the games were without eyes anyway, it seems more significant that they don't have them with these other aspects being highlighted in the movie. The lying figures, the nurses, and pyramid head have no eyes. The janitor has been blinded by barbed wire. Even the grey children, who do have eyes, don't look as though they'd be able to see very well, being more like opaque globes. Bedridden Alessa obviously has them, but she isn't a creation like the others.
Also, with the townsfolk in their mining suits, all you can see of them is there eyes. The one which Rose finds crucified is shown to be alive solely through a shot of its eyes...
I'm not entirely sure where I'm going with this, or even if it needs taking anywhere, but I did think it worthwhile pointing out and sharing for discussion.
Perhaps, if you equate eyes with life or will power it tells you something about the way things are in Silent Hill. The monsters, being Alessa's creations, are not really alive, have no will of their own, and thus have no eyes. The janitor was once alive and possessed his own will, but that has been taken away from him as his punishment. The remaining townsfolk were obviously alive and in possession of their own will.
You could also view the eyes as the means by which corruption enters the body. Eye contact preceeded Colin's abuse of Alessa, it precipitated the deal between Alessa and the Reaper, it destroyed Sharon's innocence when she was forced to watch Cybil burn and then the cultists die, and it is also likely the means by which she and the Reaper either merged or came to a bargain of their own.