1 out of 5

Director: Michael J. Bassett

What went well: Michael Bassett’s opening up to the fan community to get the perfect Heather with Adelaide Clemens; his notable effort at aligning the story with the game world; and his work at tying the current film to the previous one from almost a decade earlier.  These three things show a lot of heart and a similar faith in the series that Christopher Gans and Roger Avary had when making the first one.  Unfortunately, even taking into account budget constraints, Bassett’s addition to the series adds in all of the flash-cut editing that the first one thankfully avoided and frankly doesn’t show the same imagination in set or character design, offering up one legit baddie and one Hellraiserish character who sort of exists just for a battle scene, with nothing matching the insane guignol that was film one’s conclusion.  In a way, this syncs with the decline of the games, where initially each aspect seemed designed to fit the theme but then descended just into cool visuals – so does SH suffer from sequelness in that it wants to tell its story but seems equally compelled to toss in the rusty chains and nurses because it’s expected.  And the story… starts well, if a little hammy in dialogue but whatever, but once we descend into Silent Hill the twisty-turns and characters with dyed hair start coming out from the woodwork to try and get to the game’s conclusion in time for a slim 90 minute runtime.  It’s not horrible, and I believe this made money, so if that gives Bassett license to make another, more patient entry, then I’m supportive, but unfortunately, the flick seems to use the SH license and recognizable characters to drum up a Platinum Dunesish flash-but-no-soul flick, with frankly atrocious pacing and a lack of consequence that comes to a laughable head with a “let’s walk away now” style conclusion.