An Interesting Subtext

Discuss the original 2006 movie.

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The Necronoir
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An Interesting Subtext

Post by The Necronoir »

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.
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Post by Silent_Hill_Tourist »

The eyes are also the windows to the soul.


Nice insight. You normally find some stupid theories on these forums, but that one kinda works.
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Post by mikey mike »

holy shit man you're right, I just began paying attention to that.
and I really envy you guys down under. you get to see the movie in it's glorious 35mm print where I'm stuck with the DVD
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Post by jthomp1286 »

That's very interesting, now that I think back on the examples you've represented it makes sense. That's very insightful. It's good to see theories like this, people have come up with some wild ones, specifically, Gucci being Valtiel. But anyways, good job.
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Post by pink_isnt_well000 »

That makes a lot of sense...

I think you're on to something. I had never tied the eye thing and the hand gester together. :) :idea:
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Post by Krysta »

some theories are going far then they shuld like many in SH2 section but this1 is very interesting even though it leads to nothing :D
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Post by 9saves »

KRYSTA-GG- wrote:some theories are going far then they shuld like many in SH2 section but this1 is very interesting even though it leads to nothing :D
Theories are half the fun of the game series and movie adaptation. Unless, you have A.D.D., then you probably just enjoy blood dripping from stuff and guns firing.

This one is very nicely stitched up. I like the idea :)
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Post by Krysta »

9saves wrote:
KRYSTA-GG- wrote:some theories are going far then they shuld like many in SH2 section but this1 is very interesting even though it leads to nothing :D
Theories are half the fun of the game series and movie adaptation. Unless, you have A.D.D., then you probably just enjoy blood dripping from stuff and guns firing.

This one is very nicely stitched up. I like the idea :)
yea but as you read some more carefully people are starting to believe them even though people discussing it know they are far from truth , so many people are getting desinformated this way :D you know not every1 who played SH becomes an expert right away , anyway im cool with discussing about anything anytime :wink:
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Post by AuraTwilight »

This theory has my support :D
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Post by The Necronoir »

I'm not sure I'm confident enough to call it a theory yet, more the genesis of one. As I said, I really don't know what it means exactly that eyes and sight seem to be a recurrent element, but I appreciate your feedback and support. No doubt I'll continue to mull it over, so it may eventually evolve into a more tangible theory rather than an observation.

Presently I'm trying to remember whether any of the imagery in the film featured eyes. I have an sneaking suspicion there was something pretty obvious, but I just can't call it to mind.
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Post by Silent_Hill_Tourist »

Hey.

Y'know how I aid about the "the eyes are the windows to the soul" maybe with the monsters it's no eyes=no soul?
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Post by The Necronoir »

Sorry, I managed to miss your original response somehow.

Very good point, and I must say I agree.

In the janitor's case that would suggest that he once had a soul, as we know he did, but that it isn't present in the creature we see, being merely a puppet of Alessa and the Reaper.

Could someone with the DVD take a closer look at the grey children and see whether they do have functional-looking eyes or not? If so you could interpret it that they are closer than any of the other creatures to being in possession of a true soul due to the fact that Alessa would obviously sympathise with them most out of all her nightmare creations.
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Post by jthomp1286 »

I believe their eyes work seeing as how they continually follow Rose. Also, I think they are supposed to represent the children who laughed at her and picked on her and her revenge on them, I really don't think she'd sympathize with them.
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Post by The 8th Aspect »

>I believe their eyes work seeing as how they continually follow Rose.
That doesn't necessarily mean they can see. :P

But I do agree, it looks to me like they have functional eyes but the face is set to the left side of the head. So what does that mean, if it even means anything at all?

>I really don't think she'd sympathize with them.
Same here.
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Post by IsoscelesHead »

Note that all the demons of Silent Hill were once people. It is possible that Silent Hill is such an evil place that innocent souls are turned into demonic creatures there. It is true that the victims in the movie were evil but, where did all the cock roaches come from? The town didn't look very big. Maybe the people who had been in SH's location for so many centuries located their.

Or maybe it just lured evil souls, and tortured good ones.
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Post by The Necronoir »

Note that all the demons of Silent Hill were once people.
Where are you getting this from? Not only is it completely out of synch with the entire premise of the Silent Hill series (barring slight suggestion in SH3), but it simply isn't supported by what we see in the movie.

Every one of the townsfolk we see encounter the darkness ends up dead, not mutated into a creature. For example:

- Crucified miner: disemboweled
- Three miners in school: killed by a swarm of cockroaches, one subsequently dragged around by Pyramid Head.
- Anna: enough said.
- Every one of the cult members at the end: torn apart.

Perhaps the only exception is the Janitor, but even he is clearly just a corpse in the fog world.

I'm not saying it's impossible to regard the creatures as being disfigured people, but you simply can't assert that it's the right and only view.

If you want evidence just read Gans' Q&A section on the official site, where he states that the ambiguity surrounding the creatures is one of the most attractive elements of the series as far as he is concerned. I think he translated this ambiguity to the film perfectly.
Last edited by The Necronoir on 11 Sep 2006, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by IsoscelesHead »

The preview said so.
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Post by pink_isnt_well000 »

I don't think it did..
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Post by The Necronoir »

From the official blog:
Hi, there. A lot of Silent Hill game fans have wondered about the nature of the monsters. Are they people turned into monsters or just manifestations of the character's mind? Will the movie answer this question or will it keep the mystery about the creatures that we all find so freaky?
- Rebecca M

I think that every interpretation is possible. The easiest and most basic explanation of course is that the monsters are victims of the vengeance of Alessa. Grotesque figures of doomed people. People in hell. Another explanation is that they are hallucinations. Monsters coming from the psyche of the protagonists. eg: The Mumblers, small child like creatures ( that we call the Greychildren in the movie,) Harry Mason meets them as does Rose as they search for their little girls. They are not only the twisted figures that inhabit Silent Hill but the reflections of the fear and anxiety of these desperate parents.

The only concrete exception I have made in revealing the origins of a creature is a new monster we created called the Janitor. We see him as a human being (in the past), we see him dead (in the foggy world) and we see him as a monster (in the darkness.) This is one of the explanations of our work. I have said many times Silent Hill is a place where dimensions cross and you can exist in different manifestations. The Janitor is a great example of this concept.
See: http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/sile ... reting.php
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Post by Storm »

i love your theory and agree with the eye concept entirely. they truly are the windows to a persons soul
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