RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Check out the new RT Community
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / Silent Hill
Silent Hill

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon
Bookmark and Share

Silent Hill (2006)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
30 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:82

Fresh:25

Rotten:57

Average Rating:4.6/10

Consensus: Silent Hill is visually impressive, but as with many video game adaptations, it’s plagued by inane dialogue, a muddled plot, and an overlong runtime.

Rated: 15 [See Full Rating] for strong horror violence and gore, disturbing images, and some language

Runtime: 2 hrs 5 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Theatrical Release:21-04-2006

Synopsis: It's always been said that a video game cannot be successfully adapted into a film. With SILENT HILL, director Christophe Gans (BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF) and screenwriter Roger Avary (KILLING ZOE)... It's always been said that a video game cannot be successfully adapted into a film. With SILENT HILL, director Christophe Gans (BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF) and screenwriter Roger Avary (KILLING ZOE) have the benefit of the atmospheric and often terrifying game series of the same name. With a budget reportedly in excess of $50 million, they wisely eschew dense plot in favor of a kaleidoscopic nightmare--culled from several volumes of the game series--designed to give horror fans what they crave. Radha Mitchell (PITCH BLACK) stars as Rose Da Silva, a young mother whose adopted daughter Sharon speaks of the eponymous West Virginia mining town as she sleepwalks. Rose decides to take Sharon there in an attempt to discover why it haunts her dreams--but Silent Hill has been a ghost town since a series of underground coal fires in 1974, and the residents who stayed behind are the stuff of nightmares. SILENT HILL is notable for having a largely female cast (the male characters were reportedly added at the studio's behest), with Mitchell, Deborah Kara Unger, Alice Krige, and Laurie Holden in the principal roles. But the film's real star is production designer Carol Spier (known for her frequent work with David Cronenberg), whose work makes the deserted town into a true vision of hell. Utilizing an effective combination of CGI and latex makeup effects, several of the creatures on display may upset more sensitive viewers, as will some of the carnage, which is strong for an R rating. On the other hand, seasoned horror fans and gamers who have been waiting to see a joystick-free version of SILENT HILL are likely to come away feeling like they've just taken a nightmare vacation to the spookiest town in America. [More]

Starring: Radha Mitchell, Laurie Holden, Sean Bean, Deborah Unger

Starring: Radha Mitchell, Laurie Holden, Sean Bean, Deborah Unger, Tanya Allen, Kim Coates, Alice Krige, Jodelle Ferland

Director: Christophe Gans

Director: Christophe Gans
Producer: Roger Avary, Samuel Hadida, Don Carmody
Composer: Jeff Danna
Studio: Sony Pictures Entertainment

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
  • Trailer
    >
    Exclusive Clip: "We've All Lost Our Children"
    >
1 - 2 of 2

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Reviews for Silent Hill

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

although it is rarely if ever jump-out-of-your-seat scary, Silent Hill is an unremittingly creepy municipality of the mind where motherhood, mystery and madness have come home to stay.

Full Review Source: Film4 | comment Comment
06/15/07
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Film4
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

French director Christophe Gans’s adaptation of the Silent Hill computer game is visually inspired and thematically ambitious, yet ultimately uninvolving.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
05/06/06
Nigel Floyd
Nigel Floyd
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Observer [UK] | comment Comment
05/06/06
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw
Observer [UK]

Silent Hill? Nonsenseville, more like.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment 4 Comments
05/06/06
Paul Arendt
Paul Arendt
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's this unwavering fidelity to the source material that is also the film's biggest problem.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
04/21/06
James Dyer
James Dyer
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Baltimore City Paper | comment Comment
01/22/10
Gary Dowell
Gary Dowell
Baltimore City Paper
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | comment Comment
04/29/09
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Dark Horizons | comment Comment
01/15/08
Garth Franklin
Garth Franklin
Dark Horizons

When everything starts being explained, the mystery evaporates and the world of the game loses its eerie bafflement.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment 2 Comments
10/31/07
Rob Gonsalves
Rob Gonsalves
eFilmCritic.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Big Picture Big Sound | comment Comment
07/14/07
Joe Lozito
Joe Lozito
Big Picture Big Sound

If you like your nightmares served upfront without the clutter of dramatic structure, then Silent Hill should be your next stop.

Full Review Source: DVD Review | comment Comment
07/10/07
Felix Gonzalez Jr.
Felix Gonzalez Jr.
DVD Review

Silent Hill starts out at point A and then goes so quickly, loudly and visually over-the-top that it flies completely off the rails into its own glorious weirdness.

Full Review Source: UGO | comment Comment
03/24/07
Brian Tallerico
Brian Tallerico
UGO
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Daily News | comment Comment
12/30/06
Los Angeles Daily News

Director Christophe Gans charges, hell-bent, right over the plot and winds up with not much more than an oppressive 125-minute running time.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
09/08/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
08/25/06
Sydney Morning Herald

Over long with a muddled story and a gaggle of wasted talent, Silent Hill is a spectacular misfire.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
08/25/06
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile

As a fluke, I took my mom (also named Rose) to the screening. She doesn't like SF or horror and doesn't even know what a video game is, yet she ended up really liking it! How weird is that?

Full Review Source: Sci-Fi Weekly | comment Comment
08/23/06
Michael Szymanski
Michael Szymanski
Sci-Fi Weekly

the closest you’ll get to actually having a nightmare in a movie theatre outside of a midnight screening of David Lynch’s Eraserhead.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
08/21/06
Keith Breese
Keith Breese
Filmcritic.com

While Gans admittedly shows us some pretty spooky stuff, his energy begins to flag somewhere around the 60-minute mark.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
07/13/06
Ethan Alter
Ethan Alter
Film Journal International

As a nightmarish vision of hell on earth, Silent Hill is a triumph of production and art design. As a coherent story, it's little more than a string of video game scenarios.

Full Review Source: Reel Times: Reflections on Cinema | comment Comment
05/13/06
Mark Pfeiffer
Mark Pfeiffer
Reel Times: Reflections on Cinema
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 >> >|
all

Latest News for Silent Hill

September 15, 2009: Silent Hill Sequel in the Works Opens in new window
The studio that produced the original hasn't confirmed involvement, but the producer and screenwriter of "Silent Hill" are reuniting for a sequel. More...

August 03, 2007: Hadida, Avary Set to Storm Castle Wolfenstein
It's been around since 1981 -- making it older than a number of our readers -- but the Wolfenstein series of games is still going strong, and after over five years in... More...

July 20, 2007: Silent Hill 2 Loses Director and Writer
If (like me) you were actually a fan of Christophe Gans' "Silent Hill," then this might come as disappointing news: Not only does it look like the director's no longer... More...

June 01, 2007: The Weekly Ketchup: Possible New "Terminator," "AVP 2" Update, "Iron Man" Tidbits, And More!
In this week's Ketchup, another European has surfaced as a possibile star for the third "Terminator" sequel, "Alien vs. Predator 2" gets a 'horrific'... More...

See All

More DVDs

Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
40% 40% Surrogates
83% 83% Whip It
29% 29% Gamer
97% 97% The Hurt Locker
81% 81% Michael Jackson's This…

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
87% 87% A Serious Man
37% 37% The Time Traveler's Wife
78% 78% Bronson
11% 11% The Stepfather

More New Releases…

What’s Hot On RT

Oscar Nominations

Oscar Nominations

The Academy have chosen their contenders.

Anika Noni Rose

Anika Noni Rose

Disney's new princess picks her 5 Fave Films.

Jeff Bridges

Jeff Bridges

The Crazy Heart star's best roles, ranked.

Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland

Tim Burton gives RT an exclusive peek.

Other News

  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Tom Cruise Accepts Another Mission: Impossible Source: Deadline Hollywood Daily
38
  • Chris Nolan on Board for Dark Knight Sequel -- and Superman Reboot? Source: Deadline Hollywood Daily
270
  • Tim Robbins Joins Green Lantern Source: Hollywood Reporter
58
  • Fox Moves Forward with 24 Movie Source: HitFix
9
  • Bill Murray Talks Ghostbusters III Source: Sunday Mail [UK]
56
  • Captain America News, News, and More News Source: Collider.com
21
  • Taylor Lautner Is Stretch Armstrong Source: MTV
78
  • Weekly Ketchup: Sci-Fi at the Oscars, Raimi eyes The Shadow
288
  • Percy Jackson Star (Briefly) Rumored for Spider-Man Reboot Source: Hollywood Reporter
35
  • Five Facts About Alice in Wonderland
140
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Total Recall: Jeff Bridges' Best Movies
114
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: Avatar Finally Toppled by Dear John
104
  • Weekly Ketchup: Sci-Fi at the Oscars, Raimi eyes The Shadow
96
  • Five Favorite Films With Precious' Gabby Sidibe
35
  • Friday Harvest: The Last Airbender, The A-Team, and more!
27
  • Critics Consensus: From Paris With Love Is Not Bon
22
  • Total Recall: Anthony Hopkins' Best Movies
21
  • Five Favourite Films with Anika Noni Rose
17
  • Awards Tour: Pixar and Disney Rule The Annies
15
  • Great Directors: Martin Scorsese's Career in Film
0
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • Oscar Nominee Gabby Sidibe Talks Precious
20
  • One Man's Quest To Find The Worst Movie Ever
7
  • Five Favorite Films With Peter Jackson
77
  • Robert Downey Jr. talks Sherlock Holmes & Iron Man 2 - RT Interview
22
  • Director Ruben Fleischer Talks Zombieland
3
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
17
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
13
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
24
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
16
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • Silent Hill at Rotten Tomatoes
  • Silent Hill at IGN
  • Silent Hill at AskMen

Fresh Links

Featured
RT on YouTube
RT on YouTube External Link

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

RT on Twitter
RT on Twitter External Link

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.

Competitions
Get the Flixster App Now
Get the Flixster App Now External Link

Download it from iTunes and get Tomatometer scores straight to your iPhone.

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo
About Us | Advertise | Contact Us | Press | Careers
IGN | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | Direct2Drive | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Game Sites | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | GIGA.DE | What They Play | Battlefield Heroes
By continuing past this page, and by your continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2010, IGN Entertainment, Inc. | Support | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! RSS Feeds
IGN’s enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA.
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.