I don’t know how to start this. So, let’s start off with this statement: I love Silent Hill. It’s one of my favorite video game properties of all time – and it’s among my fav survival horror franchises. The series has always dealt with the blend of psychological and supernatural elements. It’s how it stood out and became beloved by many fans across the world.
Now, the games after Silent Hill 4 and up until the Silent Hill 2 Remake have never been on my watchlist, as they lost the Japanese cerebralism that defined the series. And that also goes for the movie adaptations that have been released starting with “Silent Hill” in 2006. A 2nd film called “Silent Hill: Revelation” was released in 2012. These movies were not that good, always loaded with cheap dialogue and a muddled plot. Visually it was impressive but the adaptations were once again victims to the infamous “video-game film curse”.
Unfortunately, it seems that the Konami executive board ended up greenlighting a new film for the franchise. “Return To Silent Hill” is gearing for a release in 2025 and will be based on “Silent Hill 2” (2001). French filmmaker Christopher Gaines, who directed the Silent Hill film adaptation will be on board again – but this is where I have my doubts.
As aforementioned, the first film was visually impressive. It completely nailed the dark, airy-abstract appeal that the video games were known for. However, the plot was all over the place and the pacing dragged tremendously. To the point, I even fell asleep watching the film when I saw it on the Syfy Channel back in the day.
Furthermore, media company Cineverse announced the U.S. rights for “Return To Silent Hill”. The casting so far has been said to include Jeremy Irvine and Hannah Emily Andersen who I assume will play the characters of James and Mary Sunderland. Personally, I’m not intrigued by the choices but I’m cool with seeing newer faces getting some shine. I also feel that “Silent Hill 2” as a property is getting caught with too much nostalgia bait. Many tout it as the best game of the franchise but I believe that the Silent Hill quadrilogy (1999 – 2004) were dope and creative psychological horror games.
To summarize, it’s a no for me honestly. Christopher Gaines will provide an aesthetically pleasing experience for Silent Hill fans, but the writing, pacing, and structure will possibly suffer. The films have sold $156 million in revenue, so with the right promotion it’ll do well. Still, “Return To Silent Hill” is going to be an experience not worth seeing and with the influx of “Silent Hill 2” fans, the reception will be a broken glass.
