Oof - I doubt many people will think much of that.
The good:
- Very strong themes of grief and loss, carried straight over from Silent Hill 2 (game).
- An obtuse, confusing narrative. Again straight from the game. This makes the experience strange and disorientating, in a similar way to Jacob’s Ladder (which influenced the game).
- Some decent visuals.
The bad:
- The relationship between the main characters, which is supposed to underpin the whole film, is hugely undermined by ridiculous and trite dialogue in the opening scenes and beyond. I burst out laughing numerous times.
- Patchy performances and silly costumes / hair, which feel ‘cos-play’-esque at points.
- Shoehorns a lot from the game that felt unnecessary in the context of the film.
- Other silly monster moments which felt like some of the more goofy moments of the recent ‘It: Welcome to Derry show’. It doesn’t go with the themes.
- The lead (James) shows up and exits the film as a total ‘bro’, smashing around roads in his convertible. Eh?
5/10 - You can’t build decent ‘feels and drama’ on such a ‘fake’ feeling relationship. Yet, it’s such a downbeat story I couldn’t help but feel sympathy… and I was impressed that it didn’t compromise on the approach to storytelling.
Meanwhile, my wife gave it a “generous” 4/10, noting that the lead gained a ridiculously fake beard in final scenes.
