question about silent hill

[GrubbTheFragger]

Ok so i need answer quickly does anyone no if the silent hill movie is gonna be demonic. or have anykind of wrong religious content. I no people probably won't be able to give me a answer till tommorrow but i was hoping some one will have read the plot or could fill me in if it follows the plot of the game.

[Bobtheduck]

Ok... this is gonna take a while, but I'll put a short response first:

First game - It's about a cult that [spoiler]tortures a little girl to raise their "god" which is a demon[/spoiler] THe hero's job is to stop them. Is that what you meant?

The movie takes a very specific interpretation of the games. If you take each game individually, or at least segment them, then specifically game 2 would have a very different interpretation, but taken as a whole, there is a demonic aspect to all of it. I don't think the demonic is every shown as "good" in fact, despite what many SH fans will tell you, the creators in the making of DVDs basically say straight out the cult and demons are evil.

The games, much like Final Fantasy, take aspects from many different religions, Christianity included. In the third game, it's explained that the cult used to be a native american religion that got mixed with some Christian beliefs.

In the movie, the cult is a much different story, from what I've heard. They are actually witch hunters, and [spoiler]they are being punished for their brutality[/spoiler] In the movie, everyone in the town plays a part in the events.

Now, as for the "bad religion" thing you said, the games only have one moment I'd consider to be against Christianity, and that's the confessional. The making of DVD says that the confessional is a something that you would be doing wrong no matter what you chose. If you didn't forgive her, you'd be wrong because you're condemning her, but if you do, then you're "justifying" her worship of evil. This lines up with what many people believe about forgiveness in Christianity, and is rather unfortunate.

The movie, however, seems to place the crux of the plot on the witch hunters, which are of course puritan christians... The order in this film is no longer represented by the occultic looking circular icons, but instead represented by Crosses.

Granted, the witch hunts were a dark time in Christian history, but Gans (based on what I've read, as I haven't seen the film yet) seems to put extra focus on this, and fans are taking it as a biting commentary on Christianity as a whole... So, that's what I know, take it how you want to.

OOps.. didn't close up everything in spoilers that I wanted to.

[GrubbTheFragger]

ok thanks bob

[Bobtheduck]

I finished my editing, Grubb...

[Michael]

Silent Hill 2 and 4 use a more psychological explanation for the monsters.

Silent Hill 1 and 3 are very definitely demonic and Satanic. You have to dig to figure this out, but yes, they are.

Also, this movie is extremely violent and does have nudity in it, even though the rating doesn't specify it.

[Bobtheduck]

Have you seen it, Michael? Is the nudity just the [spoiler]Anna scene? The part where she gets her skin ripped off?[/spoiler] While this wouldn't matter to some people, I know that scene only lasts about 3 seconds... I saw the wondercon footage, the one the cut off right as [spoiler]PH grabbed her chest (most of her chest wasn't visible, you only really saw her from the back for a second)[/spoiler] Is that the only nude scene in the movie, or is there more? Oh, I guess Pyramid head is nude from behind, so that makes it sorta like X-men (mystique) because I'm sure he's covered in layers of makeup...

[DrNic]

I just gotta say, I'm a big fan of the games (not playing, just watching - everytime a new one comes out my m8 buys it, calls me up and i just watch him play it). I know its VERY dark and disturbing at times but the atmosphere just nails it for me. The only other game with such a chilling atmosphere is Project Zero/Fatal Frame (which I ended up selling because something was telling me it wasn't right to own the game, but thats a different story). I'm just going to see if they've managed to capture the atmosphere and because Pyramid head (AKA 'The-guy-with-a-car-on-his-head') is one of my all time favourite game bad guys. He has a windshield on his head, how funkies that!

[glitch1501]

i never played any of the games, but i just saw the movie, i enjoyed it, but it was seriously messed up, it has alot of cult content, its pretty gruesome too

[Bobtheduck]

Darn you all who are well! I'm so stinking sick, I can't leave the house...

[desperado]

I liked the games that I played, but honestly the end of the film made me sick to my stomach also when [spoiler] the demon went inside of anna to get inside of the church building [/spoiler] Also the whole end part was very vile and disgusting with all the blood and the cutting, the anna part was nothing compared to the ending.... Really wish I hadnt seen it, yet I loved the games that I played so...I saw it when I shouldnt have...

edit-
Now that I think about it, the movie truly took [spoiler] the redeeming element of 2, mixed it with 1 made the devil into a villian yet, the one who helps her and truly is horable in all such endevors. [/spoiler] The movie just makes me feel bad inside for seeing it because, the first part of the movie was freeky, scary and awesome, but then later on it gets horrible....

[Bobtheduck]

Hmm... Well... I'm a train with a lot of momentum... I'm gonna see it regardless of anything I read or hear, but... *sigh* this may be my last excursion into Silent Hill. As much as I loved 2, Yamaoka aproved of everything in this. He's the one who's had creative control from 3 on, so... I'm gonna take what I know of 2 and use that as inspiration for my own work, but this may be the end of my Silent Hill journey.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

Volt imed me about the movie. He saw a special screening of it. Volt, being a man of lots of coolness, said even he was religiously offended by silent hill! And he likes the silent hill series.

Now... that's a pretty big statement I tell ya

Oh, and he also said the movie was pretty mediocre.

[Michael]

I saw it last night and here are my impressions:

The first half of the movie is awesome. It's just like the game. However, half-way through, it totally gets flushed down the drain. It's like a bad fanfic after that. Tons of violence, smelly explanations, and the Cult. The Cult ruined the whole movie, they depart from the first game far too much.

About the ending:
[spoiler]Rose and Sharon died in the car crash. Cybil died when she crashed her bike. She dies yet again later on. The Cult and Dahlia all died in the fire. That's why, at the end of the movie, Rose and Sharon are home, but not with Christopher. It's also why Christopher can't find them in the real Silent Hill. They are all stuck in Alessa's hell world. The ending is way worse than even the Bad+ ending in SH1.[/spoiler]

EDIT:

Have you seen it, Michael? Is the nudity just the

[spoiler]Anna scene? The part where she gets her skin ripped off?[/spoiler]

Yeah, pretty much. There some other suggestive content, but I'm really suprised that scene wasn't mentioned in the rating.

[desperado]

its implied that [spoiler] the original little girl (cant remeber her name) was raped by a janitor, and implied that the mother was raped as well, that is how the old woman could controll pyramid head due to the thing being bound to her [/spoiler]

Also I seriously thought pyramid head was going to rape anna before he decided to rip her entire skin off.

[Bobtheduck]

Hmm... (is getting more and more discouraged)

At least Advent Children rocked... for fans, anyhow, and no one else...

(will still be seeing the movie despite strong warnings)

*sigh*

[glitch1501]

About the ending:
[spoiler]Rose and Sharon died in the car crash. Cybil died when she crashed her bike. She dies yet again later on. The Cult and Dahlia all died in the fire. That's why, at the end of the movie, Rose and Sharon are home, but not with Christopher. It's also why Christopher can't find them in the real Silent Hill. They are all stuck in Alessa's hell world. The ending is way worse than even the Bad+ ending in SH1.[/spoiler]

maybe im stupid, but neither i or my friends got that from the ending

[spoiler]i just figured that they died in the whole end scene with the real alessa, i dont think it makes much sense (or that they would do it) to have all of the people be dead...[/spoiler]

[Tommy]

Looks like a fun action game turned into your average horror film.

[ClosetOtaku]

Saw it. Advice: save your money for something else. A really bad film. (So bad people in the audience were laughing at the serious parts.)

Michael:
[spoiler]If they died in the crash, why weren't the bodies found? I thought the detective had found the car, abandoned. Maybe I missed it. [/spoiler]

[Bobtheduck]

This should take the edge off for everyone - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnKoDpFDE7c&search=revenge%20ending

Of course, most SH fans have seen this allready.

[Htom Sirveaux]

*feels completely alone*
I'm a big freak for the games and thus something of a stickler for detail, but I loved it. I thought it was absolutely amazing and they couldn't have done a better job. It's even got a bathroom gag. The few things that were changed had good reason to be: what's good for a game isn't necessarily good for a movie. Besides, they wanted to make it more tight and self-contained than the game, which is somewhat open-ended. It did get surprisingly gory toward the end, but that didn't bother me.
And as for the "occultic" content, I don't consider this evil because it's not blatantly satanic. It's just entertainment. Don't get me wrong, I know to guard my heart against things that are really, truly evil but Silent Hill and its cult don't really exist, so there's nothing to be offended by.

[dragonshimmer]

*feels completely alone*
I'm a big freak for the games and thus something of a stickler for detail, but I loved it. I thought it was absolutely amazing and they couldn't have done a better job. It's even got a bathroom gag. The few things that were changed had good reason to be: what's good for a game isn't necessarily good for a movie. Besides, they wanted to make it more tight and self-contained than the game, which is somewhat open-ended. It did get surprisingly gory toward the end, but that didn't bother me.
And as for the "occultic" content, I don't consider this evil because it's not blatantly satanic. It's just entertainment. Don't get me wrong, I know to guard my heart against things that are really, truly evil but Silent Hill and its cult don't really exist, so there's nothing to be offended by.

I'd like to say that I find your location amusing

Glad to finally see good feedback on this movie. I'm definitely going to see it next Thursday, but because of all the feedback I decided to go for a matinee instead of paying full price. I was beginning to think it was going to be an all around thumbs down. My ex boyfriend saw the movie and sent me an email saying it was great, and he played all the games with me, so this gives me hope yet. That makes two that enjoyed the movie!

[desperado]

[spoiler]
I dont know what you mean when you say it isnt blatantly satanic. The demon girl said she was satan. The cultists were portraid in a puritan light. The shackles symbol of the cult was replaced with as stylized cross. The devil melts into the heroines body, the whole end seen was probably one of the most bloody and gorry things I have ever seen, the satan figure is the only one that acctually helps the heroine besides the cop (which dies and we get to see her burn and blister and die) oh and its all supposed to be happening in a purgatory kind of place. [/spoiler]

[glitch1501]

umm spoiler tags?

[Rocketshipper]

I've seen it twice already ^^. I enjoyed most of it because it was very close to the games in look and feel. Monsters, sets, and pacing were all incredibly close to the games and even the music was taken directly out of the games. I was annoyed that they changed they changed aspects of the plot though -_-, like the motives of the cult.

[spoiler] About the ending. My theory is that during the final barbed wire sequence Dark Alessa got into Sharon. Near the end Rose was telling Sharon to close her eyes, but Sharon didn't listen and she saw Dark Alessa crawling towards her and then passed out. At the end when the two of them were back at the house Sharon walks away from Rose, towards the camera, and the way her face looks and the way her hair falls on her face makes her look like Dark Allessa. So I think the reason Rose and Sharon are still trapped at the end is because Sharon brought Alessa out with her. [/spoiler]

[Steeltemplar]

I just got back from seeing the film. From a cinematography perspective, I thought it was well made. However, like Volt (mentioned in MSP's post) I felt that the movie had something of an anti-Christian bent. This was a pity as it was a good horror film otherwise. I think that I shall leave it at that so as not to get into debate. Let's just consider this a registering of opinion. If you saw it and did not feel offended, that's fine.

[Maledicte]

Slightly off-topic, but I find the bus poster for the movie to look somewhat retarded.

"We shall make people want to watch this film by Photoshopping this girl's mouth out!"

[inkjet1987]

Very good movie, I was pleased.

[Bunny]

Being one heck of a spiritually sensitive kid, I'd like to give you my take on the movie. I've never played the games so I can't account for the accuracy there, I only saw the movie because it was what all my co-workers decided to preview thursday night. So excluding all the commotion about the gaming material, here's how I felt about it.

In my humble opinion, the only crime of this movie was dragging God and the laws and boundaries of the spiritual realm down to our level. It turns the road to forgiveness and purity into a petty and gruesome human struggle tainted with prejudice and misconceptions. The fact that the cult depicted in this movie resembles so strongly a puritan society actually did offend me but because of the more positive outside Christian references such as the scenes with the orphanage, I can't really call this movie an attack on Christian ideals and attitudes. However, it cannot be denied that it does leave a bad taste in your mouth about the hypocrisy and judgment of the church. It's just disrespectful. You can argue this topic all day. (Please don't. )

The final scene in the church is definitely where I decided I didn't want to see any more horror films for awhile. Up until that time it had been more bloody than I would have liked but I had the specific urge to throw up that time. There were numerous scenes that stung me deeply enough to bring tears to my eyes.

Maybe I just don't have stomach for these kinds of things but the movie overall made me want to scream for what we've come to call entertainment. *shrug* Sorry.

[Bobtheduck]

Well... I take the opinions of people I know more highly than people in a message board (CAA or otherwise) but I take my own opinion the highest (well, unless God had specifically said something to me about it) so, I'm still gonna wait...

I honestly think this is the third most buzzed movie in the near future (da vinci code and that 9/11 movie are more buzzed) with lots and lots of really strong opinion... I haven't seen the IMDB boards light up like this since Passion of the Christ came out (and with equally "intelligent" contributions) though I don't think anything compares to the buzz that movie had...

Who'd have thought that a horror game that got its start from resident evil and never escaped a cult following in the games (Resident Evil's fanbase is too large) would end up being so talked about... This movie is evoking so much emotion in people, and polarizing movie fans... It's amazing to think about.

It'll prolly be tuesday, now, that I watch it. And, I really can't wait, just to see if it was really worth all the buzz...

[Michael]

To ClosetOtaku:

[spoiler]If they died in the crash, why weren't the bodies found? I thought the detective had found the car, abandoned. Maybe I missed it.[/spoiler]

I'm glad you asked that.
[spoiler]Do you remember that the bodies if some of the townsfolk weren't found either? Did you also notice that Sharon points out that Cybil is bleeding? I think they are dead and moved on to a different world.[/spoiler]

Overall, I didn't like it. But I will say one thing: It was bad for interesting reasons. It seems to suffer from the creators being too into the games, rather than not being enough. *coughUweBollcough*