Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Please don't spend money on this.

Lack of good storyline.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

I walked into this film very open-minded. I absolutely loved the first Silent Hill film, directed by Christophe Gans. Even though the script and story were not exactly what we would call revolutionary, the film still did a great effort in making it as faithful to the original game, while mostly dealing with the adaptation issues in a satisfying manner. The acting was great from most parties, effects were visually appealing and overall, it's a very well made and under-appreciated film (i.m.o., of course). How did they mess it up?For the first time ever, I was excited about a video-game movie. After all, every other video-game movie had been utter garbage before the original Silent Hill film. However, this is not the case for its sequel Silent Hill: Revelation 3D is simply a 180 on what the first film accomplished. The intent in the first movie was clear: create a movie that will be as faithful as it can to the original game and still create an entertaining film. The intent for the second film, on the other hand, was: Cash in as much money from a respected video-game series. This film was plagued by a terrible script, bad pacing, horrible editing, dumb jump scares (I'm looking at you, Pop Tart jump scare), cheap effects (especially the bland 3D ones), and poor acting (which I blame on the script, mostly). The worst part of it all is that they didn't care about adapting it correctly from the source material. Instead, they opted for trying to change the story.Just skip this film. It's not worth your time. If you're looking to at least get a decent Silent Hill experience, watch the film. If you want to get the full deal, play the first four games (and maybe Shattered Memories and Downpour at that).

I'll admit that Silent Hill: Revelation pales dimly compared to the first excellent film, and is kind of a slipshod mess, but it's a lovable mess in my books, still a Silent Hill film after all, and kind of wins points just for bringing back some of it's old cast as well a few newcomers. Silent Hill is one of my favourite horror films of the 2000's, and I waited on this sequel like a dog, through production delays and distribution hell, and I think somewhere along the way I realized it wasn't going to measure up, but nothing would deter me from seeing it. Well, it squeaked out onto Blu Ray and made a tiny splash on everyone's collective radar, prompting terrible reviews. The story more or less picks up where the first one left off, if a few years down the road. Sharon (now played by Adelaide Clemens) and her father Christopher (Sean Bean returns) have been on the run for most of her teenage life, eluding the dark forces from the town of Silent Hill, which still linger and follow them. One day Christopher disappears, and Sharon is forced to confront her past (which she curiously has no memory of) and return to dreaded Silent Hill, assisted by a mysterious hunk (Jon Snow, who does know some stuff here, and more than he let's on). Once she's there it's essentially more of the same, with abstract looking demons running about, a disconcerting tarantula made from spare mannequin limbs (shudder) scuttles aroind, that relentless fog permeating every alcove and street, as well as a new arch villain in the form of terrifying Claudia (Carrie Ann Moss, of all people), a matriarchal cult leader who creates all kinds of trouble for Sharon. We are treated to a brief ghostly appearance by Sharon's mother Rose (Radha Mitchell cameo), the return of damaged soul Dahlia Gillespie (Deborah Kara Unger) Sharon's birth mother and far more coherent this time around, and a bizarre special appearance by a blind, babbling Malcolm McDowell, whose part in the whole mess still escapes my comprehension. The 3D effects are odd and stand out in not so much of a good way, the plot makes little sense when compared to the first, and where the first was eerie, elemental and atmospheric, this one is clunky, rushed and nonsensical. But you know what? I kinda liked it all the same. One thing I really enjoyed is a very well done WWE smackdown of a fight between a souped up Moss and the infamous Pyramid Head, who pulls a T-101 here and actually steps in to save the day. It's the one sequence that achieves that hellish, otherworldly aura which ran through both the games and the first film like an undercurrent, and as a rule. It's too bad they decided to replace Jodelle Ferland with a badly rendered CGI dollface in scenes where that little brat Alessa shows up, the effects there are abysmal. Watch for Peter Outerbridge briefly as trucker Travis O' Grady, a character from the games who I imagine would have gone on to star in a third film, which seems unlikely now. If you're a fan of the first film, you may get a marginal kick out of this, or at least certain aspects, but only if you're feeling generous. It ain't all that.

After a fairly good first attempt at an adaptation of the Silent Hill games, this belated sequel suffers from poor acting, a shoddy plot and laughable dialogue - considering the film stops dead in its tracks on several occasions to allow lengthy monologues from characters explaining what it couldn't be bothered to show you through the story. In addition, it seems to be too heavily inspired by the more action-filled Resident Evil film franchise, with a noisy soundtrack that jars with the creepiness that made the first film work well. Though a handful of scenes are genuinely chilling and the cinematography has its beautiful moments, nothing can forgive how lazy the filmmakers are in telling this story. I'm afraid this one marks where the corpse of the Silent Hill franchise is buried.

Silent Hill: Revelation is a twisted ride into hell. It's far from a horror masterpiece, it isn't the best in the genre and it's one of the weakest films of 2012 but Revelation is packed with enough gruesome monsters and seriously sinister images to make it stand strong and worth watching. Silent Hill itself is terrifying, the siren that echo through the alleys are spine tingling and the slow camera pan movement will keep you on edge as you don't know what will jump out. The cast give admirable performances, most of which are wobbly at times but during moments of terror they up their game and they are convincing, there's no plodding along at all, and Adelaide Clemens is a fantastic lead. The monsters are impressive and scary too, the best being the mannequin spider that turns it's victims into dolls and then rips the head off to add to it's disgusting body. The 3D is spectacular too, depth is really cool and a tonne of creature guts pop out the screen, yet again the spider scene excels in this effect where the creatures mouth rips out the screen, I literally leapt back as it protrudes so effectively, a reference quality moment there. The ash scenes look stunning, because the camera is at a low angle you can follow the pathways that lye just beyond the screen. Depth can be affected during some truly murky scenes, but Overall Silent Hill: Revelation is a fun filled 3D adventure that is far better than the first film, and the further the characters venture into the ash filled fog, you will be taken with them into a horrific nightmare filled with demonic creatures.