10 Years Ago, The Fog of ‘Silent Hill’ Rolled Into Theaters

By JonathanBarkan on April 21, 2016

Ten years ago today, director Christophe Gans’ vision of Silent Hill came to theaters and presented us with what might very well be the most faithful video game-to-film adaptation ever churned out. While the film didn’t do insanely well, earning nearly $100 million against a $50 million budget, it was praised for its atmosphere, set design, and visuals, all of which are crucial when it comes to a Silent Hill title.

Related: In Defense Of ‘Silent Hill’ (2006)

As many of you know, my love for the Silent Hill games is pretty high up there. I’ve played every game (except for Book of Memories and that’s because I don’t own a Vita) multiple times so that I could earn each ending. At one point, my collection of Silent Hill music in my iTunes library could be played from beginning to end, without any repeats, for several days. I could go on and on about my love of the series but I want to focus on Gans’ film for now because it really was a special moment for me the day it came out.

Ever since the first Silent Hill game came out in 1999, I’d been wanting a film adaptation. Something about the game and its story, no matter how convoluted and messy it got, seemed perfect for the silver screen. After all, here was a game that was inspired and influenced by the likes of Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Clive Barker, and many more of horror’s greatest authors, all of whom I’d read many times in the years leading up to the game.

When the movie was announced, I was beyond excited. I was still young enough to have boundless enthusiasm and loads of wide-eyed optimism, especially when they stated that Gans was going to direct. Having been a big fan of Brotherhood of the Wolf, I felt like this was going to be a faithful recreation of the town that gave me so many delicious nightmares. And you know what? While not flawless, it gave me everything I could’ve wanted and more.

You see, for me I knew that doing a shot-for-shot recreation of the game was out of the question. What I wanted was a lot of practical FX (check), a creepy and exciting atmosphere (check), beautiful music (check), and an ending that was more in line with the game than some BS Hollywood nonsense (check). Yeah, some of the dialogue was kinda corny and the story a bit too nonsensical, but that’s what the game is all about. And while a few people complained about the runtime – which, at over two hours, is long for a movie of its kind – I saw it as more time to spend in that industrial nightmare.

I’m not saying this movie is perfect, because it’s clearly not. But I saw this movie twice on opening day and another two or three times before it left the theaters. I love this movie, I love this franchise, and I’m thrilled that there’s a chance for me to talk about the movie.

Just don’t expect anything like this from me when it comes to the sequel.