I Saw It! Post Your Reviews Here! (Mark your spoilers, too!)

[tbonesays]

Your sanity is a breath of fresh air to me. Thank you for posting. I've been slowly drifting away from this forum due to starting to feel like the only guy who actually likes these games/films, and being looked down on for it. Your post is pretty much the same as I feel about this whole thing so it's nice to see that I'm not entirely alone in my sentiments.

My 2nd review was only about the good news. I'm reposting it having fixed all the mistakes to remind us of the good news.

Bassett and SHR3D are taking a lot of flak. [I've never played games but think the first Silent Hill is the most underappreciated movie of the decade].

Part II; the good news.

OPINIONS

PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:

Bassett axed two storylines that he inherited from 2006; 1. Chris doesn’t love Sharon, and 2. Rose doesn’t love Chris either. He corrects that and restores the family in the first scene.

I'm tbonesays and I approve that retcon.

So I loved the mirror scene. Deal with it my pretties.

Heather’s facebook joke provided some comic relief necessary in any film that tries to be serious. Why no shot at myspace?

SCENES
Everyone seems to single out the nurses scene as one they like. There’s a lot of symbolism and representation there.

2nd place goes to the spider head scene. I’m guessing that it means something specific to the gamers. [I’m not one]

Heather walking in to the great white void of Silent Hill was lovely. While copied directly from Gans’s first film, I can never watch that scene enough.

Silent Hill is/was/was still very cool looking. I suspect a lot of art came from the games, but the cinematic graphics work because they stop just short of being over the top.

The hugging scene was meaningful, although way too loud. As mentioned by the other poster you need to know they were referring to the first movie after Rose surrenders to Alessa.


TOUGH ACTIN
Deborah Unger has that character down perfectly. Now if we only got to see her more…

The Private Investigator guy worked up until

PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:

he switched loyalties after talking to Heather for two minutes.

Vincent's was more plausible.

Sean Benn does great when the script gives him character to work with i.e. Act 1. But . . .

Clemens stole the show. My expectations sank after the classroom rant, but she turned it around. But her lively method acting saved the film from disaster.

FINALE

PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:

The final sword fight was kinda cool while I was hoping Claudia’s monster would win.

[Scissorman82]

Finally got around to seeing Revelations 3D on Friday. And it made such an impact that I just had to record a podcast... ^_^

http://www.gamesabyss.com/the-horror-of ... ly-series/

[Yuki]

Rose always loved Chris. That was not in question; she went to Silent Hill to try and cure her kid and felt guilt from it the entire time; it wasn't because she had no feelings for him.

[tbonesays]

Rose always loved Chris.

She hid it very well.

[Skele]

^Well you're definitely wrong, as it's pretty clear in the first film that Chris and Rose both love each other. Rose is just so hellbent on helping Sharon that she wrecklessly goes to SH, ignoring all warnings from Chris. If Chris didn't love Rose and Sharon as much as he did, he wouldn't have spent all that time digging around for information, and trying to find them both.

Also this is BS "Your sanity is a breath of fresh air to me. Thank you for posting."

Again DistantJ, you take a shot at folks who didn't enjoy the film. I can't help that those of you who did enjoy it are in the minority. However, since you are in the minority, that should already tell you that this film might no be as good as you claim it to be.

Kudos on getting through the film a second time Yuki, i agree, this film is simply mediocre at best.

[AuraTwilight]

However, since you are in the minority, that should already tell you that this film might no be as good as you claim it to be.

While I did like the film and agree that it's probably not as good as DistantJ and I think, be fair; Silent Hill fans disliking a Silent Hll product really doesn't mean anything anymore.

[Yuki]

However, since you are in the minority, that should already tell you that this film might no be as good as you claim it to be.

While I did like the film and agree that it's probably not as good as DistantJ and I think, be fair; Silent Hill fans disliking a Silent Hll product really doesn't mean anything anymore.

Seconding this.

^Well you're definitely wrong, as it's pretty clear in the first film that Chris and Rose both love each other. Rose is just so hellbent on helping Sharon that she wrecklessly goes to SH, ignoring all warnings from Chris. If Chris didn't love Rose and Sharon as much as he did, he wouldn't have spent all that time digging around for information, and trying to find them both.

Rose loved Chris AND Sharon, and didn't want Sharon to go to a mental institution. Chris loved Rose almost to the point of not loving Sharon; he was focused on his wife during this entire time, not his daughter.

Kudos on getting through the film a second time Yuki, i agree, this film is simply mediocre at best.

Don't get me wrong; I loved it. I just also recognize as a film student that it's possible to love movies that aren't necessarily "good", just as it's possible to hate well-made films.

[Tillerman]

I just saw it last night.

I was actually surprised how much I didn't hate it, because based on the reviews I was expecting it to be abysmal. And it wasn't abysmal... it was merely bad. Maybe this is just a case of expectations being so low that it was easy to surpass them. It's not a good movie, though, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

Having said that, I thought there were scenes that actually worked pretty well. The art direction, while obviously derivative, looked good. It didn't quite look as good as the first movie, and the CG monsters were distractingly bad, but some of the sets looked awesome. I was also pleasantly surprised to see that the movie wasn't horribly chopped up MTV style, they actually had some long shots of Heather just walking around, with some nice camera angles to boot. So, in certain scenes, this movie actually has a little bit of suspense.

Unfortunately, the script and acting are god awful. Pretty much any time anyone opens their mouth to throw up some lame, stilted exposition, it induces groans. It's even worse than the first movie in this department, and that's saying a lot. And even considering all the exposition, I get the feeling that audience members who haven't played Silent Hill 3 will be confused. Hell, I've played the game, and I didn't even really understand why some of the things happened the way they did, like the strange climactic "fight scene."

But enough about that. Since this was a Silent Hill movie, I was mostly paying attention to what Akira Yamaoka music they'd use, and how they'd use it. Turns out they used music mostly from 2, but from 1 and 3 as well. And they used it a ton, but not in the way in which I'd like. Apparently it's not good enough to just play the music from the game's soundtrack without adding a ton of "effects" and crap for the movie. This tends to make the soundtrack feel overly dense and distracting, which I don't like at all. They also didn't use the music very well... it almost felt like some random Akira music was being randomly played. There's one scene I noticed where it switched between 5 different Akira pieces in the same scene! I guess the sound editing guy has ADD?

I really don't understand it... and it's a big shame, because there are certain scenes that work really well. Like when Heather is first walking into Silent Hill, and you see the sign that says "welcome to Silent Hill." The choice of music there is very good, and it doesn't try to embellish it, it's shot well and visually looks great. It would be an effective scene if it weren't surrounded by a lot of noise and crap.

The bottom line is that this movie is made by people who don't know what they're doing, and it shows. It's a shame because there are hints of something awesome in there, like when the occaisonal piece of Akira music is allowed to be played unmolested, and the visuals shine through, and most importantly when nobody is talking. There are scenes where if you just take them and look at them in a vacuum, it looks like they come from an awesome movie. But when you watch the whole thing, it's just a disappointing chore. Another thing I realized while watching this movie is that I haven't seen a good "funhouse" horror movie in a long time. A Silent Hill movie adaptation is perfect for that sort of movie... if only somebody talented could make one.

[tbonesays]

I just saw it last night.

I was actually surprised how much I didn't hate it, because based on the reviews I was expecting it to be abysmal. And it wasn't abysmal... it was merely bad. Maybe this is just a case of expectations being so low that it was easy to surpass them. It's not a good movie, though, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

Having said that, I thought there were scenes that actually worked pretty well.

The bottom line is that this movie is made by people who don't know what they're doing, and it shows. It's a shame because there are hints of something awesome in there, like when the occaisonal piece of Akira music is allowed to be played unmolested, and the visuals shine through, and most importantly when nobody is talking. There are scenes where if you just take them and look at them in a vacuum, it looks like they come from an awesome movie. But when you watch the whole thing, it's just a disappointing chore. Another thing I realized while watching this movie is that I haven't seen a good "funhouse" horror movie in a long time. A Silent Hill movie adaptation is perfect for that sort of movie... if only somebody talented could make one.

Indeed the movie was choppy. The scenes with the mannequin and Heather trekking alone get a lot of positive feedback in this thread but they don't seem to flow with the entire movie.

------------------------

Rose loved Chris AND Sharon, and didn't want Sharon to go to a mental institution. Chris loved Rose almost to the point of not loving Sharon; he was focused on his wife during this entire time, not his daughter.

Kudos on getting through the film a second time Yuki, i agree, this film is simply mediocre at best.

It's much less subtle than how Chris loves Rose more than Sharon. Gucci more or less spells it out for him paraphrasing 'When a woman runs off with her daughter and takes her to a deserted town, I'd say she's pretty damn mad at her husband.' Or there's the rather succinct Rose hanging up on Chris before he can finish his sentence "... I love you."

I noticed something. Thriice in the movie Rose reaches out to Chris, 2 with a phone call and another kind of psychically. All 3 encounters end with Cybil appearing on the scene.

Mod Edit: Please do not double post. Use the Edit function if you have something more to add. -fudgestix

[Skele]

tbonesyas, I don't really see how anything Gucci says spells things out for how Chris really feels about Rose, or Sharon. Gucci's looking at things from a cops perspective, and doesn't really know what's been going on with Chris, Rose, and Sharon. Also, i remember during that conversation that Chris gets pissed with him for even suggesting that there's a problem, or that he doesn't love his wife.

"he was focused on his wife during this entire time, not his daughter."

I don't see that as the case, i mean he even tries to tell Rose that he loves Sharon every bit as much as he loves her, but she hangs up on him before he can finish. Rose is just so wreckless and she doesn't think before doing anything. If anything, you could make a better case for Rose loving Sharon more than she loved Chris.

and Aura i'll agree, SH fans' opinions may not mean as much, but it's quite annoying to see him take little shots just because fans don't like the film. Saying that someone's "sanity is a breath of fresh air" is just a sly way of insulting folks.

[Tillerman]

Y'know, the mention of Suspiria brings up an important point. That is, why every horror movie is rated low.

Every horror movie isn't rated low.

The original Halloween has a 94% on rotton tomatoes. The Thing has 79%. Poltergeist has 87%. As for recent horror movies, The Descent has 84%. Paranormal Activity has 82%. Them (Ils) has 60%. The Others has 84%. The Orphanage has 86%. Triangle has 82%. House of the Devil has 86%. There's plenty others with decent reviews.

btw, Suspiria actually has a 95%. That's out of 37 reviews, and not just horror websites. Critics may have higher standards than normal people when it comes to horror movies, but even they can like a movie with no substance if it's a triumph of style, (which is exactly what Suspiria is.)

Saying that someone's "sanity is a breath of fresh air" is just a sly way of insulting folks.

I mean, while that's true, if you read what he writes after that I don't think he means to insult people, rather just that he's tired of being blasted for being in the minority opinion. Which is perfectly understandable. I think you should give him a break. I don't like the new movie either, but it's okay for some people to like it if they want.

[Yuki]

tbonesyas, I don't really see how anything Gucci says spells things out for how Chris really feels about Rose, or Sharon. Gucci's looking at things from a cops perspective, and doesn't really know what's been going on with Chris, Rose, and Sharon. Also, i remember during that conversation that Chris gets pissed with him for even suggesting that there's a problem, or that he doesn't love his wife.

"he was focused on his wife during this entire time, not his daughter."

I don't see that as the case, i mean he even tries to tell Rose that he loves Sharon every bit as much as he loves her, but she hangs up on him before he can finish. Rose is just so wreckless and she doesn't think before doing anything. If anything, you could make a better case for Rose loving Sharon more than she loved Chris.

and Aura i'll agree, SH fans' opinions may not mean as much, but it's quite annoying to see him take little shots just because fans don't like the film. Saying that someone's "sanity is a breath of fresh air" is just a sly way of insulting folks.

Except if memory serves me, the director has stated that it is the case.

[DistantJ]

The original Halloween has a 94% on rotton tomatoes. The Thing has 79%. Poltergeist has 87%..

All three of those met very negative reviews on release, and The Thing was met with real anger from fans of the original black and white film, it wasn't until years later that John Carpenter's two masterpieces started getting respect. Again with the Rotten Tomatoes! The site which says Toy Story 2 is the greatest movie of all time!

I'm not saying the film is high art. I'm saying the games aren't. This was so much like the game that it was crazy, it's biggest flaws were flaws right out of the game. I'm seeing why they talked about not even wanting to visit these forums anymore in the Voices in the Static podcast. You guys have no idea how silly it looks talking about Silent Hill 3 like it's Citizen Kane or something.

I had problems with the film. Lots of them. But I liked the good stuff enough to not care and as far as horror sequels go this was a good one. If any of you want to contest me on that and exercise your pretentiousness and stubborn insistence on objectivity then PM me where I can let you know what I REALLY think.

In the mean time I think I'm done here. I'm just too detached from this fandom to carry on here, I love this series which is why I signed up here and why I pay the admin to help support the site but it seems these days I'm hanging out with a bunch of people who like just a handful of entries in a big franchise, obsess with the negatives and want to berate those of us who still enjoy it. Fuck this.

[Kenji]

Every horror movie isn't rated low.

The original Halloween has a 94% on rotton tomatoes. The Thing has 79%. Poltergeist has 87%. As for recent horror movies, The Descent has 84%. Paranormal Activity has 82%. Them (Ils) has 60%. The Others has 84%. The Orphanage has 86%. Triangle has 82%. House of the Devil has 86%. There's plenty others with decent reviews.

btw, Suspiria actually has a 95%. That's out of 37 reviews, and not just horror websites. Critics may have higher standards than normal people when it comes to horror movies, but even they can like a movie with no substance if it's a triumph of style, (which is exactly what Suspiria is.)

My point, essentially, is that nothing exists in a vacuum. There are works that are emblematic and anything new that appears must compete with them, if comparisons can be made. Whether it's fair could be a point of debate, but the fact of the matter is that it's so.

I was hoping I had conveyed it well enough.

[phantomess]

@ DistantJ- Why have you become so worked up over this lately? Sure, lots of people obviously disliked the film, and have of course been voicing their opinions. I haven't seen much of this pretentiousness or "insistence on objectivity," or seen anyone be as rude as you have become lately. You're the main one that seems to get worked up over other peoples' opinions on this. Who has been doing all this berating and attacking of you and others who like the film? If that really has been happening, all you should have to do is report them and they'd get a warning from the mods. Someone sharing/discussing something with you from an opposing viewpoint isn't "berating," though.

And why do you keep bringing the whole series into it, claiming we don't love it? There are plenty of us who are fans of the entire, or nearly entire, game series. No, not everyone is going to love everything about the franchise. Does that really need to be so upsetting? (And it certainly doesn't make someone less of a fan than you.) If it bothers you to read all the negative reviews on this movie, you could just start avoiding the review thread for it instead of saying "Fuck this fanbase and this forum forever!" But if you really are that unhappy with the forum in general, fine, yeah, a leave of absence would be best, because I don't think anyone has been enjoying your bitter posts. I'm not trying to say you're unwanted or trying to take any kind of authority in saying that, just being honest.

Okay, I won't make anymore derailing posts. Anything further from me will be in PMs, but I doubt it will go that far.

[Tillerman]

All three of those met very negative reviews on release, and The Thing was met with real anger from fans of the original black and white film, it wasn't until years later that John Carpenter's two masterpieces started getting respect. Again with the Rotten Tomatoes! The site which says Toy Story 2 is the greatest movie of all time!

You're right about The Thing. It flopped and met with negative reviews on release, but has since become considered a cult classic. However, I believe you're wrong about Halloween and Poltergeist, as I recall they were both fairly well received by critics, and were huge box office successes.

I only brought up RottonTomatoes because someone made the point that critics tend to dismiss horror movies, and I wanted to point out that isn't always true.

I'm seeing why they talked about not even wanting to visit these forums anymore in the Voices in the Static podcast. You guys have no idea how silly it looks talking about Silent Hill 3 like it's Citizen Kane or something.

I'm not sure who you're referring to, but I certainly don't think Silent Hill 3 is Citizen Kane. Yes, that would be silly... if you just isolate the storytelling, then obviously it's weak. But storytelling is just one aspect of a Silent Hill game, because it is afterall a *game.* And it's a very well constructed horror game, IMO. The movie, on the other hand, is nothing but storytelling, so it lives or dies by it.

In the mean time I think I'm done here. I'm just too detached from this fandom to carry on here, I love this series which is why I signed up here and why I pay the admin to help support the site but it seems these days I'm hanging out with a bunch of people who like just a handful of entries in a big franchise, obsess with the negatives and want to berate those of us who still enjoy it. Fuck this.

I don't think anyone should berate you for enjoying it. You're entitled to your opinion just like everyone else is. But I think you're looking at things the wrong way. I'm only here for one reason, to express my opinions about Silent Hill. Probably the same reason as you. I don't want negative for the sake of being negative, I'm just trying to be honest. Anyway, I hope you don't leave, because you seem like a pretty intelligent person and I think this forum would be worse off without you.

[FrankRD]

I'm not saying the film is high art. I'm saying the games aren't. This was so much like the game that it was crazy, it's biggest flaws were flaws right out of the game. I'm seeing why they talked about not even wanting to visit these forums anymore in the Voices in the Static podcast. You guys have no idea how silly it looks talking about Silent Hill 3 like it's Citizen Kane or something.

I had problems with the film. Lots of them. But I liked the good stuff enough to not care and as far as horror sequels go this was a good one. If any of you want to contest me on that and exercise your pretentiousness and stubborn insistence on objectivity then PM me where I can let you know what I REALLY think.

In the mean time I think I'm done here. I'm just too detached from this fandom to carry on here, I love this series which is why I signed up here and why I pay the admin to help support the site but it seems these days I'm hanging out with a bunch of people who like just a handful of entries in a big franchise, obsess with the negatives and want to berate those of us who still enjoy it. Fuck this.

Wow.

If anything, I've noticed that SH3 is being reevaluated because of the very existence of this movie. But putting it in the same pedestal Citizen Kane is? I find that highly unlikely, that must be a huge minority if it is even that noticeable. I for one don't like playing the ''you downgrade the adaptation, I'll downgrade the source'' game, because most of the time it leads to nowhere. Besides, from what I've seen more people seem to downgrade this movie in comparison to it's predecessor rather than the game, in fact, in IMDb, for example, there are lots of ''as an adaptation from a story angle, I guess it's fine, but the rest...''.

Sure, some people might be extremely harsh on the film and dismiss many of the points you make because they don't feel it changes their appreciation for it, but that is no reason to blow it out of proportion. No one's bullying you.

[Skele]

"I think you should give him a break"

I think it's great that DistantJ (and others) enjoyed the film. I've even said a few times that i'm glad the folks who actually enjoyed this film, did. What irks me is the shots he's taken at those who didn't enjoy it. I've always thought of him as a kool guy, so i hope he doesn't leave for good.

Also, if Gans said what he said about Chris' character, then so be it. I'm too lazy and what not to go back and check out the bonus/extras from the film.

[tbonesays]

Except if memory serves me, the director has stated that it is the case.

If memory serves me, oh dear

I think DistantJ interpreted the cricism of the movie as dislike of the entire Silent Hill franchise or generic trolling. I'm pretty sure, at least here, that everyone wanted SHR to be good and was voicing disappointment.

[Yuki]

Except if memory serves me, the director has stated that it is the case.

If memory serves me, oh dear

http://www.silenthill-lefilm.com/gans.html

Official French website with the quote. Just so you know.