Pajiba

you wrote a great review. what a terrible movie. do you remember when that little dopey, slow speaking girl got SKINNED!?!? by that huge blade wielding muscle monster giant... i still don't understand any of Silent Hill

skinned? yikes, i forgot about that gruesome scene.

bad movie. great, chilling visuals; if only the script and acting had been decent

dude! you forgot about the immolation scene, now THATS something that will haunt nightmares to come. the graphical images that're shown during that is immence :)

i actually liked it... i believe its really symbolic, altho there are several unexplained parts... i dont understand how the games can explain it tho

don't u get it? rose is dead. so is cybil (the cop who was helping her) trapped in the "other" dimension with her daughter sharon with whom the evil alessa has reunited with, that's why they went home but never got to be with the dad.

everyone in the whole silent hill town is also dead, trapped in this "other dimension".

if you don't understand the movie then you should have played the game before you watched it.

nice explanation.

The Silent Hill games are WAY deeper than the movie. The movie simplifies the plot a lot. But it rather has to... How can you cram 5+ games of plot into a 2+ hour movie?

So I'm just tring to get this straight then, if both Rose and the female cop died in the car accident why was Rose missing in Earth Realm? And that the female cop was never mentioned about being missing nor dead. And my last question was the detective the one officer that was helping the search part of that silent hill cult, because this would explian his total refusal of offering information and the burn hands.

I enjoyed watching the movie, but I think they left out to many key features of what was excatly was heppening.

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The movie is F*cked up! ! !

This movie had such potential, but it turned out to be another crap movie :( I think instead of complaining about the movie we should say how we would make it better. I would have taken out the Sean Bean (or however you spell it) character, had rose and sharon live toghether (not let the audiance know who her real father is until near ending) in an apartment. You'd think with the big house and nice cars they had they would have taken her to a professional instead of traveling off to a ghost town >_> Substitute Sean bean for a Depp, but have Depp be another townsfolk in the village that survived the fire. Kind of like a Vincent type character, for those of you who have played Silent Hill 3. Taken out most of the demons and replaced them with original ones, not ones from the game. If you're going to rip off game monsters then at least make them as scary as the in game ones. "OH, no look, it's burnt children who have an annoying as hell scream!!!" At least the ones in the game had their brains exposed, looked a bit more on the demon-ish side and carried knifes. i don't see how there were really any "puzzles" in the movie for Rose to complete. They more like clues than anything else.

This movie would have been way better if they just ripped off the first silent hill game directly >_>

Maybe this will explain to all of the ignorants of the movie!

**MAJOR SPOILERS** as I explain the entire movie for those of you who say it makes no sense...

Dahlia Gillespie had a daughter named Alessa. No one knew who her father was. Alessa was not liked by children or adults...a group of religious fanatics, led by Christabella, believed that this innocent was a witch and needed to be cleansed (that means killed)so that evil would not invade their community. Dahlia agreed because she was so fearful of this group and their promised %#!%& of her if she didn't agree. They burnt poor little Alessa, but the sacrifice went wrong and killed everyone in the cult...That's right, THEY'RE ALL DEAD...All of them are stuck in limbo...purgatory if you will. (It's kinda like the bad ending in the 1st game, by bad it means you didn't complete everything there was to do in the game.) In this purgatory, Alessa's pain and anguish turn to hatred and a desire for revenge...Her hatred is so great that the bed ridden Alessa breaks off into two parts...Her dar side and everything that is light in Alessa. They don't want her light side to be overtaken by the hatred, so to protect her they take her to an orphanage...there is also another reason for this.

Rose and Chris Da Silva want to adopt a child. And although she's adopted, Sharon is Rose's daughter; She knew it from the moment she saw her...

But as Sharon gets older, she starts sleep walking and having nightmares about a place called "Silent Hill"...She is being called back by Alessa...the other part of herself, and she's supposed to bring Rose with her (because Rose is the one Alessa really needs)...so, Rose takes Sharon to the town of Silent Hill.

Along the way they meet up with a cop, Cybil Bennett, who is suspicious of Sharon's outburst...The movie even explains why Cybil would be so suspicious of something not that out of the ordinary; You see, in the past, she found a little boy dumped in a well by a psychopath and had to stay in the well with the boy until help came, to keep him from dying...so Cybil is probably almost paranoid when it comes to children...Cybil follows Rose and Sharon into Silent Hill an abandoned old coal mining town that is still burning underground...As soon as they enter the city limits, a ghostly figure of a girl runs out into the road in front of Rose's car and causes then to wreck...Could it be Alessa? Rose smacks her head hard...We later find out that Cybil wrecked and smacked her head as well...Hmmnn...

So, now they're in the town, so let's speed it up...Alessa's revenge is the darkness that turns everything dark and hellish...The siren on the church is to warn all the cult members to get to the church because the darkness can't get in there...Alessa sent her light part out so that she could bring someone back, like Rose, because Alessa needs Rose to take her into the church, because Rose can go into the church...where she can then finally get her revenge on those that mercilessly destroyed her...The only way that Rose could get into purgatory and help is by...that's right, by dying...Rose and Cybil both died in the accident. No Cybil wasn't needed by Alessa, she just basically got caught up in a bad situation. You can tell that they're dead because when Chris goes to the town with the cop, the town is abandoned, but completely normal and...this is the big one...Rose can run right through him...and at the end, that's why Rose and Sharon are still in the haze, but Chris is completely clear.

But no, there is a completely other level to this movie...Alessa was a sweet innocent that people decided was a hethen because she seemingly had no father...Sound familiar? The fanatics sacrifice her, but she comes back, almost as if resurrected...get it? She's almost crucified there at the end...there are rows of thorns (that would be the barbed wire) everywhere...

And yes, all of this IS explained in the movie.. This is what we call an intelligent movie. The filmmakers actually expected audiences to think and assumed that they had the capacity to do so. I understand that it can be confusing in this time of Paris Hilton and Jessica Simpson.

I bet no one reads the comments to this particular movie review anymore but I wouldn't be able to sleep at night without expressing my adoration for Fan of the Silent.

To Fan of the Silent

Great explanation, being a big fan of the game series I really enjoyed the movie and thought they did a great job on integrating the different events and monsters into the movie so well, unlike Resident Evil. I suppose in order to have a better understanding of the Silent Hill world you might have to have played the games or use a good amount of imagination. Still I felt the movie was done well and a great game to movie flick.

I really resent the fact that some of you think that you're above everyone else because you understood this movie; with comments like "simple minded people" and "in these times of Paris Hilton...". Get over yourselves. It is perfectly legitimate for someone to be confused.

After all, if everything is exactly as has been explained, then why did evil Alessa (Death) make Rose jump through hoops like fighting off Pyramid-Head man or the burning children? Rose could have died and Alessa would be sh*t out of luck. If Alessa wanted revenge, she could have approached Rose in the beginning and said "Look, here's my pyramid-head man. Terrifying isn't he? Well if you want your daughter back, you must help me." There! I turned a 2 hour movie into 20 mins. That movie was lame! And you people that think you're so smart because you've been introduced to these supernatural concepts before, and critisize others who are confused by them, are really lame!

Hahah! That's hilarious. I thought the same exact thing! My girlfriend cracked up at the bug's face and I was singing "cuz this is thriller" with the zombie nurses. Laaaame!!

I had the same conclusion- that they died in the crash.... but where are there bodies? Why is the husband searching, and why does the other cop keep reassuring him that the girl-cop is out there protecting/finding rose and sharon?? If they had died, their bodies would be there. The only explanation I could think of is that they died somtime after entering the town... I thought this movie was ok, except for this ending stuff... if they died in the crash, there would be bodies.. Right?

all you punks hatin on this movie can go fuck yourselves. although it was a huge disappointment compared to the games, what with all the unneccessary bullshit and all, it was still a damn good adaptation. if you didnt enjoy the movie because you couldnt understand the plot then you are a fucking retard and you should do us all a favor and cut your wrists right now.

All the people that were killed again in purgatory were sent to h&ll I guess, but Rose and Sharon are stuck in regular purgatory??? The cop claimed he found the jeep liberty but no bodies. What if he got rid of the bodies (all three) so as not to stir up s^^t? He was protecting the towns secrets after all. His father was part of that cult you know.

Just watched the movie again and picked up on a few things. The detective said that after the disaster in Silent Hill, they only found half the bodies, the rest were missing. I don't think they are in limbo at all, after all, it never said anything like that in the movie. It's more like their bodies were "moved" to another dimension "her dream world" and held captive there. That would explain why they can die. After it is all over I guess there's just no way to go back. Anyways, think what you want

Did anybody else have flashes of Monty Python during the "Burn the witch!!!" sequence?

I agree that the special effects were super-creepy, but the writing was absolutely risible.

and I am getting kind of tired of evil little children. mostly because the evil little fuckers CAN'T ACT.

can someone explain the colin thing? thats the only part im confused about. did colin rape alessa in the bathroom or was it alessa's mom that was raped to then have alessa? who is alessas father? what does colin have to do with it?

I seriously cannot see why this is such a terrible movie. I thought it was great and it was a breath of fresh air into the horror genre. Instead of trying to scare you with cheap blasts of loud sound, it puts horrifying and disturbing situations in front of you that leave you squeezing the sides of your chair and going "WTF?". Sure, some lines were cheesey, but I really can't see why it is so bad. I'm watching it as I speak, actually. I think this is one of my favorite movies now.

this was not a silent hill, it was a very noisy hill.

Surely 'intelligent' people should be more understanding ? lol

'..our minds must be too highly trained Majikthise...'

First of all, let me say that I really did like the movie. Not too many horror movies are made that actually require thinking and don't resort to shock gore and gratuitous nudity. Now I'd like to address a couple questions by previous posters. 1) Alessa created the world of Silent Hill and all that lives there. She doesn't "control" everything that is there. That is why everything tries to kill Rose. It's their "nature". 2) I think a lot of movies could be shortened if you take out all the ridiculous stuff. Don't single this one out and try to keep in mind that the ridiculous stuff is what makes a movie entertaining. If movies had to be realistic they would be BORING! After all, if you watch this movie and the only thing that strikes you as unnatural is the fact that the creatures try to kill Rose you have a problem. That being said, I still don't understand a couple things and I was hoping someone could clear it up. 1) What is the signifigance of the "Colin" character? Did he do something to Alessa? 2) How in the heck is the detective who escorts Rose's husband around able to go 30 years without aging? He wasn't killed in the fire nor was he in Silent Hill. Thanks!

For those who asked why Rose had to jump through all the hoops fighting Alessa's nightmares and the metal head man consider this:
I think Alessa/Death was looking for someone willing to love and protect her. Yes she wanted revenge, but she also was looking for the childhood that she missed with her mother and grandmother. By forcing Rose to confront the nightmares she was assured of Rose's love for Sharon. "Death" took over Sharon after she and Rose passed out, and when Sharon a.k.a Alessa's goodness/Death awoke she knew that she would go through her afterlife with a mother that loved and protected her from the worst nightmares she could imagine.

This film did not make much sense to me until i read the comments on this review.

I have never played any of the games but i really want to know.

Thankyou for the excellent explanations everyone.

And to you who jude people who dont understand GFYS

It's not that I can't think, it's that I overthink everything. I can come up with crazy explanations on why things happen in the movie, but I want to know that the writers or director were going for. My or your interpretation of the movie isn't their's.

For those who say "they died in the car crash": Where are the bodies? Gucci said the car was at the end of the bridge. The cop and the lady just up and vanished?

"The cops moved the bodies": Why? What possible purpose could that serve for them? They were against the cult, Gucci most of all having seen the horror of what they did to Alessa.

My general questions...
Sharon is the good side of Alessa... if Alessa died 30 years ago, wouldn't Sharon have been formed at that time as well? Where the hell did Sharon come from 21 years later?

If the demon girl of Alessa just wanted revenge, why didn't she show Rose what happened to her the first 5 seconds of Rose being in town? Having Rose risk her life in this hell makes no sense.

How does Chris "feel" Rose's presence?

How do the phone calls still go through?

Why doesn't Gucci indicate anybody is dead if he knows they are or if they aren't, then what's up with the ending?

If Gucci is trying to cover things up, then what is he trying to cover up? How would he know about the other dimension they're in? What does he have to gain in witholding information?
There's more questions, but these are the big ones.

so was the "demon" aka the "reaper"
Was that the devil, a demon, the angel of death or just alissa being a bitch? Oh and also, how do they keep the curious nurse in purgetory? That's not fair. If she was an innocent shouldnt she go to heavan? WTF Someone explain who has played the games

here is our idea more toms then myself, what if the whole story is the par say, the inner concious of the detective. yes all is dead, but the scene where the detecative tells the story of what happened, to the father, is his inner conflict, and the story more or less the movie is his concious coming to piece, which is why rose nor the cop are mentioned dead nor alive and the ending is nothing more then the detective accepting the fabrication of his own inner clash with his concious of knowing that they are all dead and yet he could have stopped it. to put it simply the detective feels resonsible for what happens and creates a inner battle that explains the whole thing. he states let me take care of it in a small portion thus it is overlooked.but yet he does nothing about it b/c he knows what happened in silent hill...if u also watch closely at the part of the end where the evil side of elassa is explaining that she is not her daughter and that it dont matter because everyone in the movie is dead...and u guys r talkin bout how wut is the reason for rose and the cop dieng...the basic thing is that no one makes it in silent hill and noone makes it outta silent hill without all ready being dead...no one also mentions about anyone being dead so listen everyone it dont matter...yes the dad and the detective went in to look for them but if u think about it it wasnt when that siren went off or anything....and also how do u not know that the dad is dead.....no one knows anything..there has to be a conituinity

HA!
It seems those who played the game know what happened. I watched the movie with 5 coleagues and all of us had different opinions of what actually happened. Turns out all of us had some parts right and other parts wrong. It was a decent movie that definetly had everyone thinking, and thanks to people filling in the blanks on this site, it now makes more sense for the most part. This movie left alot of question, and parts left without reason, of course they broke the rules alot with it it being a video game. Those who think they are brilliant becuase they sit at home and play video games in there parents basement, have no friends, and feel the need to bash the those with real lives (AKA JESSICA SIMPSON FAN) --BRING IT ON FUCKER!

I guess that Cybil was fired...

So they are in Car Purgetory?

i thought that dyke cop was wicked hott oh fuck yeah...
i was scared and confused and turned on all at the same time

they don't show the bodies to not give away the movie, but the male cop knows they are dead and in the limbo thingy and thats why he keeps the husband occupied and so on... (otherwise the hubby wouldve also seen the car as there is only one road to that nice little friendly town). better shouldve just told him (sean bean) they's all dead imo, but that would screw the movie too.
Altho it had some minor errors, like the limbo being created only after the townsfolk died, i liked the story and the movie, and that rahda chick is hot btw. Only I'm more a fan of suspense than horror, I think that hinting at something is much more scary than actually showing something on screen. Grtz to all and remember a lifestyle is a terrible thing to waste

I liked the film and loved how it was shot but it really wasn't scary or gory at all.

It had it's moments but people were going on and on about it giving you nightmares and making people feel sick etc.

The barbwire deaths maybe would have been a bit better had I not already seen Death Watch a few times and Death's servant tearing the flesh of the girl was a nice bit but i really don't think the original review at the top of this page is accurate.

The babies at the start weren't really that scary, they were more comical than anything. There weren't that many moments of action or monsters either really, especially compared to Resident Evil 1 or 2.

Again, saying that; i'm not saying the film was bad or anything. Admitedly, i have only played little parts of the games but i figured out the "hidden twists" of the story before Alyssa gave the rundown to Rose at the end.

The fact that they were already dead was not a surprise at all, it was pretty obvious to anyone that watches any kind of thriller or films with twists you just had to look at the evidence staring you right in the face.

i'd give silent hill a 7 out of 10, so :P

Just finished watching the movie but never really played the games - apart from about 20 mins of the first one when i was younger. Didnt get the film straight away but i never got the link in 6th sense until the end. i suppose thats why im here! might have to watch it again, loved the graphic scenes, nice to see someone putting effort into gore not the usual lame cheap stuff.

I understand everything except for the cop. I get that he tried to help Allessa, but he was not in purgatory. He was in the real world. Why didn't he age?

Oh yeah and that part did remind me and my husband of Thriller.. he actually started singing the song. Happy Halloween.

how did dahlia die with the rest of the cult if she wasnt there to witness the burning of her child, she was there after to see her charred child, then the officer took her out, who is still alive in the real world, explian it to me, great movie t ho

hi guys! ive watched the movie twice now, and a few answers to some questions.

:colin did sexually abuse alessa in the toilets so she made sure that he bit the dust first (lucky ba***rd)
:dahlia didnt die!!! anna says when they first bump into her at the hotel "even the dark doesnt want her"...which means that none of the monsters hurt her, because like cybil says "mother is god in the eyes of a child." dahlia is the only sane character in the not so silent hill.

i've watched my mum and dad complete the games (im 16) when they were out so i already had a small inkling of what was going on.

i think a few things could have been made clearer, although i undersood it completely, with a little help from my movie fanatic cousin and BINGO. pyramid man thingy really freaked me out!!! im sorry but if a decaying man of that build and size was running after me with a 5ft sword and a huge metal cone sh*t on his head, then i would need about 6 pairs of knickers.

really good movie. the nurses were good because they were exactly the same as the game. and when you hear that awful siren going off, and you get that feeling of dread in your stomach!

love it!

To explain the Colin thing, i think he didnt have anything directly to do with the plot. He more than likely raped Alessa when she ran into the bathroom to escape the kids, which is why he was to tortuously delt with in the limbo world. Alessa's father is never revealed, i would guess he is just some random townsperson

After reading everyones comments I still think the movie could have made more sense.
And thank you to the all mighty gamers that are obviously intelectually superior to the rest of us that have lives and friends and dont play games 24/7. At first I just wanted to comment on what the "intelligent" people were saying, but then I realised by ridiculing them on their lack of people skills and their rudeness I would only be lowering myself to them. (i had to do it a little)
most of the people who dont understand the movie are not "idiots that need to slit their wrists". In fact, they probably didn't just blindly watch the movie and accept it as is. I mean...I bet they do understand what happened, they just dont understand how or why. Yah...we "get" the movie. There were just a lot of glitches and things that DONT add up. So here I will admit it:
I enjoyed the movie. I thought it was great. If I just accept it as a movie made from a video game, thats not REAL...it doesn't have to make sense.
BUT...there is stil the fact that it just doesnt make sense. While yes...they did take a good 5-10 minutes to explain what happened, it was all stuff we could figure out on our own. If they wanted to explain things they should have explained why the events in the movie made it so that other things in the movie were impossible.
I dont think im smarter or better than anyone here. I obviously came here looking for answers: but the people who think they know what happened are just saying what we are supposed to believe happened. They are overlooking the details that the "confused" people picked up on. The reason people are confused is because the details in the move dont fit into the story line that gamers are set on.
See gamers have been predisposed by the games as what is to happen. So since they already know, they will naturually block out what doesn't make sense. It is instinct to do so, it happens with religion, science, everything, and every day.
But we have no prior knowledge as what is to happen, we are blank pages that are waiting to get filled in. So we pick up every little detail. Then in the end we are right to be confused when the story goes in 3 different directions.
Now...maybe none of what I said is true...maybe there are some details we didnt pick up on. BUT, if we found them out they would then make sense. So.. that would mean...EVERYONE OF US DIDNT GET IT! Even those who think they did.

I just finished watching the movie and got on here for some added explanations. thank you for all the people that explained everything step by step...although the name calling and insulting was a little uncalled for. ive still been thinking about what happened to the bodies. it wouldnt make sense for the cop to move the bodies as a cover-up. It would be much easier for them to look like they just got in a wreck since the road was slippery anyway. I agree with the person earlier. I dont think they were completely dead but trapped halfway between. Since they found some of the bodies, maybe she just kept those around so she could torture them at a later time. they werent alive, but they were not completely dead. i mean if they were, how was rose able to kill them by stabing them. i dont know about you all but in every movie i have seen, it has been much more complicated to hurt or "re-kill" the dead. i dont know. im still a little confused but i think thats what the writers want. I mean who would spend this long talking about a movie that told you everything? all together, after the added explanations, i enjoyed the movie. thanks!

Apparently I got something a bit different from this movie than others. I wantede to find out if what I saw was what was actually there, or if maybe I was reading too much into things. Though a lot of the explainations made sense, none of it really answers all of the questions that have been asked. Tell me what you think of this idea.

COLIN, the janitor, was the father of Allessa. Grandma is the one who makes the comment about bad things happening to little girls, right? And the age differences that should be apparent from the thirty year time span can be explained there also.

Grandma gets raped by the janitor in this little town and has a baby. She refuses to name the father. Her jealous and evil older sister convinces her that the child needs saved, and considering how Allessa was created there probably was some guilt in grandma's eyes. The kid is about 9 when she is burned, and that would make grandma about 18 when her child is burned.
The cops dad is the one that saves Alyssa from death.

Then we go into Allyssa's reality. The whole pact with death idea makes a lot of sense to me, because who would want to maintain life like that?She is in the hospital when the town is evacuated. In the basement. That means the morgue. Which means she doesn't survive. But her soul has made that pact, and now she gets to go back and pick off the souls of all opf the evil ones.

Everything else I read on here I agree with (positive comments, I mean) and I thank you for the explainations. Additionally, reading these comments was very entertaining.

Centralia Penn, everyone knows that they have pay phones in the afterlife for the dead to call the living and annoy them. Rent "Future Shock", a far worse film than Silent Hill, to see this theory in action. Seriously though, the whole dead folks calling you on the phone thing is not that much of a stretch, is it? C'mon, this was a less than brilliant film, but taken for what it is, it is damned enjoyable to watch. A more coherent plot, like maybe just sticking to the first game (and not using that UFO ending) might have been easier to follow. Still, they did a nice job of keeping the tone of the game and the look and feel, unlike with Resident Evil (which is still fun to watch, well, the second one at least). Video game adaptations still leave a lot to be desired, but at least I solidly enjoyed watching Silent Hill. Being a bit "relaxed" doesn't hurt either. I recommend a half dozen mai tai's before viewing this film.

-D

the sick individual behind the WiLD ZERO drinking game

I find it funny that half of you people hate the movie and diss the people that "waste" their time playing the games. If you feel that way asshole, why are you wasting your time posting crap up here. If you didn't understand the movie, thats fine, but don't bad mouth the people that do. I know many people that did not play the game and they understood the movie, so not only gamers can fugure it out. By the way if you ever saw a nurse doing the "thriller" dance or whatever you said coming at you with a weapon, you would most likely shit your pants.

Oh also they may not had died in their car crashes because there was that man in the service station who mentioned the fumes from the coal fires killing people. just a possibility, unlikely since the mist which indicated limbo was around from the moment they awoke.

Yeah, I don't agree. Rose and Cybil didn't die...it's much more complex than that. Perhaps I'll explain my take on it another time, it's a bit lengthy and I'd like to write about something not really discussed here.

As for Colin, yes. He did rape Alessa back in the day. If you look at the monsters in the movie, each one is reminiscent to something in Alessa's past. Keep in mind, the dark world of Silent Hill is Alessa's realm - here is where she has absolute rule. Monster-wise, cases in point:

Oh yes, SPOILER ALERT. You've been warned.

The frying chldren in the beginning - these represent the classmates that made fun of Alessa during her childhood. As she was burned alive, so are these things: representations of either her own suffering, or the suffering she wishes she could bestow on her cruel peers.

The janitor Colin - He did rape her. It's implied rather well, and the fact that he's portrayed so grotesquely, so monstrous, is further proof. If you still want more, notice how when Monster Colin touches the walls, he spawns creatures? He's replicating demon spawn. Put two and two together and you'll see a VERY dark allegory of rape.

The standard humanoid acid-spitting freaks - Cybil shot at this thing when we meet her in the town again. I'd say this represents the townspeople that burned Alessa alive.

The nurses - Alessa was hospitalized after her ordeal, as you know. These would represent nurses that were disgusted or hesitant to give the burnt Alessa a second glance. When you're in a great deal of pain and suffering and your heart brews with both terror and hatred like she went through, even an indifferent person can come across as a mortal enemy.

Pyramid head - simply an executioner that works for Alessa. There's a great deal on him, but alas. Another time.

END OF SPOILER, yay! Hello again ^.^

Getting drowsy, I may have left something out. But if you're at all interested in finding out more about the movie's inner machinations and plot, check out the wiki articles on the games. The movie is VERY reminiscent to Silent Hill 1 in that they tell almost the same story; you might get a good perspective by checking it out.

Also, I've played the games and I've researched the stories inside and out. And somehow, I still manage to maintain a good social life! Hmm.

Just letting you all know, you can play video games and not be a complete social outcast.

For some reason, I find that the quote from dahlia in the final scene the most important part and i'm surprised that no one else picked up on it. I think that alyssa was always evil, from begining to end. Now, one of the themes of the movie decsribed by an interview with the director is misjudging people. The writers get you to think that alyssa is an innocent girl when she was actually evil, i figured it out when in the final revenge scene, dahlia said, "Alyssa, what have you become." Dahlia is a sane and wise woman and I think that all the visions alyssa provided us with about the kids and janitor was all bullshit and she wanted a story to back up her sick and twisted ways. Now taht is just another perception, don't bash my opinion, now you people come up with more shit and post it.

I myself am a gamer, and played the first silent hill about half way through. Some of the scenes in the movie definately reminded me of that experience. But like it or not, for some people (myself included) some things did leave many a question running through the mind.

For instance, dealing with the ending, you can tell that Sharon is not herself anymore- just look in her eyes. There's something not 'right' about her, you almost wonder if the 'demon' was now inside her and that's why she passed out earlier in the church. Also, when they were driving back, people point out that mom calls home and is leaving a message, and that all dad gets is static. They use this to back up the rose and sharon and the cop are all dead theory.

However, rose left a message for the dad AFTER she'd already been in silent hill and had run around a bit. as well. Remember she calls his cell phone and begs him to come? And yet, seems like that call went through albeit with some static. That would mean that Rose was already dead when she placed the call, (according to the theory that she died in the crash) and yet that one call did go through. Plain and simple, dead folk don't use cell phones....do they? Maybe they do in this new world?

I think rose didn't die until she entered the hospital room in the basement. Notice how up until then she's wearing grey, or drab clothes, but when she opens her eyes from entering the room- she's in red. So is the nurse. And if I'm not mistaken, so is the demon child that's there with her. Anyone remember the sixth sense and the meaning of the flashes of red? No where else do you see such vivid colors except for the purple worn by Dalia's sister, the purple of the dress that alessa/demon wears in other scenes, and the black/blue of the cops uniform. Everyone else is dirty and drab. Also, the nurse in that room is not deformed (facially yes but body no) like the other nurses. She must've suffered a different fate.

The cop must be the same cop who held Alessa when she was burned, because he shows scars. His hands would've been burned from the heat of her flesh. The question is how come he hasn't aged, and for that fact, how can Alessa have had a child that survived in her womb after such an ordeal? Also, notice how Dahlia has aged, but no one else in silent hill had? Even Dahlia's sister looked relatively the same age as the 'flashback' showed her.

People say the town died after the fire, but that isn't true- or rather, that's not what the flashback showed us. Not that you can always believe what you see :) because sometimes it's what you *didn't* see that matters....but we are shown the cop carrying the burnt body, we see a room that doesn't look charred, and we also see other cops, and dahlia crying. The town couldn't have burned then. If the 'whole town died' then, even the cop wouldn't have been alive to carry her to a hospital with staff. I believe the town burning either is not the whole story, or is not at the time we are shown.

Also the cop shown can't be the detective's dad- during the ride through he tells sharon's dad that his father owned a barber shop down the street from the pharmacy. His dad wasn't a cop- unless the detective is lying- which is possible.

Another point to this- we know that rose and the cop and then the detective and the dad go into silent hill and are in different 'times' or 'zones'. but look at the silent hill the dad and detective see. Does it look burned to you? Nothing looks burned up or charred- just abandoned. Yet, people talk about fires that happened there and underground fires still burning. How is this possible? There is no burning, and there is nothing that looks burned. Everything just looks deserted. It's only when the dark comes that things look bad- and then they are rusted and twisted and garish- like a nightmare, but not burned.

Other things stand out in my mind as unanswered questions- like what was it that rose picks out of colin's mouth? its a peice of paper with writing, but she never reads it. When she runs back to her car, she picks up a map, and the drawing, but never again uses the map. If the demon goes into sharon during the end scenes, and rose is really dead, then why was dahlia still there? if they're in purgatory and everyone else is in hell, then why? rose was able to enter the church before being dead, what was the point of killing her or her dying any other time?

So many questions, so many theories, not enough answers :D

Nikki: The call that sharon made while in Silent Hill didn't really go through. From what I heard was mostly static, you couldn't make out the words.
That is exactly why Sharon passed out, I think that the "dark Alessa" and Sharon "became one" so to speak.
Rose was dead after the car crash, otherwise she could not have gotten into the limbo and Alessas darkness.
It was the same cop who got Alessa, but he was a rookie at the time and it was 30 years ago that it was supposed to have happened, he would be middle aged, which he is in the movie. They probably just didn't bother to make him look younger because they were only showing flashes.
The whole town didn't die then, only the cultists, they were killed in the fire at the Grand Hotel. The town died when the coal mine caught fire. When he say's the whole town died, he did not mean everybody who lived there. Remember he said that they tried to evacuate, but could not get everybody out in time.
The cop and the dad never went into the hotel so they never would have seen the burned room. The town would not be burned up from the coal fire. That fire is confined inside the mine, coal mine fires last years, I know of one that lasted 10 years, depending on the size it is plausable that one could go 30 years or more.
Rose picked out half a keychain from Colins mouth, she shows the cop, who finds the others. It was not a peice of paper.
The picture she found by the car was a drawing of a school, thats why Roe went there.
Rose could enter the church when she was not dead, but she would not be able to see the cult. They are ghosts, therefore Rose had to be dead to interact with them. Because dad and the cop are not dead they do not see limbo and cannot see it.

One time I shit myself

I believe the post made by PLOP makes the most sense. I never played the games, any of them just cause of how creepy they were. After reading through most of the posts the bottom line is, a vast majority in here are STILL confused on WHEN the 3 initially died to begin with (Rose, the Cop, and of course, Sharon) To me, it's pretty clear that they ALL died at the scene of the crash because as PLOP mentioned, Rose's husband and that cop/investigator both appeared in the same scene simultaneously with Rose just outside of the local school. If you remember correctly, the weather was significantly different, the difference being slightly sunny, in the evening, and CLEAR. Rose and her world was ALWAYS foggy and ALWAYS raining ash, as if the people within "Silent Hill" were experiencing an aftermath effect of the fires. Everything else following were basically clues, clues in which were all strategically placed by the "Reaper" the art for exa.

The husband of Rose had NO other significance other then the role of husband, to me that's clear. What's NOT clear are the 3 alyssas. IMO, the directors could of explained this a bit better by elaborating a little more. Because understanding Alyssa is key to the story IMO. I can think of several explanations but each time I draw up a conclusion I draw up a flaw as well. For exa. That Janitor (Collin) or whatever clearly violated/harassed Alyssa during the explanation of the cleansing (death) however the rest is lead up to speculation. Such as, if she was indeed raped, she was around 8-9 yrs of age. What are the chances of pregnancies at around that age range? VERY slim. There was no hint of harassment with Alyssas mother other then the time they were holding her back at around the time of the cleansing, so impregnating her (according to the film) is out of the question. The very end is pretty cut and dry, revenge takes place, Satin and Alyssa are satisfied hense the dancing underneath the blood and the sense of relief displayed by Alyssa. I don't see anything from the up close and personal act within Rose/Sharon/"Reaper" because what could she of done to them? They're already dead or are residing within what is known as, Purgatory. At the VERY end you see the two of them in Purgatory just outside of reality like we've observed through the entire movie, only now they're outside of "Silent Hill", the only difference.

Everything else in the film like the Pyramid Head guy were all just very slight details (extras) for those whom have played the games in depth. I don't think they have any real importance to the overall story.

BTW, by not explaining Alyssa very well, I mean the REincarnation.

All who have condemned this movie shall soon find themselves in eternal limbo. A day dewey demballa...GIVE ME THE POWER I BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEG OF YOU! (Charles Lee Ray says that on most of the "Childsplay" movies, I found it appropriate for condemning you people) So, hope all those haters paid attention to these bloggers, it will only help when you're in you're own limbo...

Have fun. Oh and by the way I made up this Limbo. So it has evil dogs, the blob, a couple mummies, and mass swarms of killer bees. Keep close to the marble water basin as it's the only source of clean water in there and you can use it to cleanse. All the rest is brown and rust ridden. All the flashlights work infinitely, I figured I'd be somewhat kind and throw you guys a bone. Broomhilda is the gatekeeper, only she will let you out of Limbo. She's an exhumed corpse whos foul funk is what distinguishes her from the rest. You must toss her salad to exit.

I bid thee fairwell...

Alex S, That's the steriotypical view of "Purgatory".

"If they are supposedly dead, then how come Rose is able to call her husband and tell him that they are on their way home???"

She could call however there was no voice to be heard, only static...

Think of it this way, if you're only HALF dead then you're only able to HALF way communicate with individuals whom are FULLY alive. Or vice versa. However being consumed in a world such as, Purgatory you become that much closer to Heaven and Hell, so to speak. Also I didn't mention this in my last post but do you remember also the time her husband kept feeling her presence? The scent of her perfume for example in the school? She clearly died at the car wreck in the beginning only you never are TOLD at the end. By paying close attention to these clues you'll ultimately see how clear her death is. To figure out the essence of this film you've gotta be, perceptive or observent (an attention detail) to understand. IMO, this is why the movie gets such a poor rating.

Just going off my past experience with movies, Pyramid Head was simply a bonus character for people to relate too who did spend the time to play the series. To people who are viewing this as just another horror flick, (Such as myself) he's to be viewed as nothing but a typical monster out to kill the good. I know this because he was only in a few scenes, scenes in which the director made ZERO attempt to explain/hint towards his role.

BTW, I don't see why there's a need to flame... I'm just simply trying to help:-)

Here's one more interesting thing in which has occurred to me. Usually when you're watching an in depth movie, you as a viewer are following and learning along with the characters so usually things are picked up some what, simulatneously. If anything, you (the viewer) may grow suspicious a bit early only because facts/hints (from directing) are exposed to your eyes and your eyes only. There's a vocab. word for this, though I can't pin point at the moment, sorry... Anyways, what I'm trying to get at is, most people who check this film out are usually unaware of what KIND Of film they're soon to see. Meaning, a film in which is very detailed eventually leading to an UNconclusive ending. If you observe Rose throughout the entire film and pay CLOSE attention to her reactions (in every way) you'll see that she NEVER straight to the very end, realizes that she's partially dead (Purgatory status). No one for that matter even hints that to her, no one. So, I find it interesting that the majority of the time when a character is left clueless, so are the people watching.

We expect characters to eventually problem solve the entire mess which is making us, dependent. And, because we have to work just as hard as the fictional characters, if we're to reveal the truth, comes off as frusterating and stupid, as some may bluntly put it. IMO, if the director would of done TWO things it would of recieved a high score, such as: better explain the Alyssas as well as the awareness of Rose at the end. I tend to think by doing this you drastically increase the appeal to most people watching:-)

Nikki, it's pretty clear she died at the scene of the car crash just before entering into Silent Hill. Apparently the entire town went up in flames everywhere and the fall of ash throughout the entire film is your first and main clue. At this point you're unsure of what's going on until you see her husband and the investigator both visit the town together in search of Rose. At this point in the movie you see two very separate screen shots, one very foggy/dull atmosphere with ash everywhere and another which is VERY clear with a hint of sunshine and color. You also see this when her husband and the investigator are driving through town with the investigator explaining previous history of the towns unfortunate mishaps. Rose and and her adopted daughter are NEVER dead just not alive either.

I just finished watching the movie for the third time. I have not played the games, but my boyfriend has and even he says that the movie doens't make much sense. I think that if someone is going to make a movie from a video game, they should also either make a prequl or better explain the plot and history for those of us that haven't seen the movie. I've tried to research online and find out what was going on:
1) The reason for the random switches between reality and this unknown hell,
2) The source of the monsters and what they're supposed to represent, and
3) An explanation as to what the end of the movie means.
But alas, I cannot find anything and I'm left in the dark and to my imagination as to what this movie is all about. *Sigh* Depressing.

It wasn't a bad movie. People don't like it just because they don't get it. It takes thinking to understand the movie, especially the ending. The movie is actually deeper than it looks. It makes sense to people who THINK. Everyone else being ignorant to the unique Silent Hill world, just stop dissing the movie, because you know you can't make a movie that's any better. Geez.

But for the explanation of the ending, I don't think Rose, Sharon, and Cybil were dead in the first place after they crashed.

There are 2 worlds: Silent Hill and the real world (3 worlds if you count 'the darkness' of Silent Hill)

My explanation: Once you enter Silent Hill, you cannot leave. So in the end, they go back home. But they're still in Silent Hill because no matter where they go, they cannot leave, so their home is still part of Silent Hill. This leaves the movie so that a sequel can be made from it.