Can't Wait to Watch 'Return to Silent Hill'? Sorry, It's Yet Another Game Adaptation Flop With 9% on RT

Twenty years after his first adaptation, Christophe Gans returns to the foggy town of Silent Hill with Return to Silent Hill, based on the cult video game Silent Hill 2.

However, instead of the triumph we were hoping for, we are treated to yet another disaster in a long line of failed video game adaptations.

What could have been a profound psychological horror instead descends into an abyss of senseless grotesqueries, cliched jump scares, and artistic helplessness.

What Is 'Return to Silent Hill' About?

Devastated by the loss of his beloved Mary, artist James Sunderland receives a note from her urging him to meet her in Silent Hill, the town where they first met.

When he arrives, he finds that the once idyllic place has become an abandoned ghost town filled with nightmarish creatures.

Searching for Mary, James must travel between different layers of Silent Hill's reality and confront the terrible truth he has tried to bury for so long.

'Return to Silent Hill' Pales in Comparison to Christophe Gans' 2006 'Silent Hill'

Gan's first movie possessed its own distinctive style and dark atmosphere, despite all its questionable deviations from the original work. The sequel, however, mindlessly replicates its worst traits.

The town once again appears as a jumble of rusty metal, flames, and dismembered bodies. The main instruments of fear are cheap jump scares and gratuitous hyper-violence.

Return to Silent Hill even loses previous geographical and narrative logic – the action takes place in Massachusetts, not in Virginia, yet ash falls from the sky and sirens wail without explanation.

Silent Hill has become an empty, meaningless backdrop, devoid of the oppressive psychology and personalized horror that made the games unique.

Don't Expect Any Reveals of Eddie & Angela Subplots – They're Now Flat Supporting Characters

Silent Hill 2 is renowned for its profound exploration of guilt, grief, and madness through its characters. However, in Gan's adaptation, these topics are completely erased. James lacks internal drama, and his journey becomes a mere hopscotch between traps.

Key characters from the game, such as Eddie, whose story of violence and self-justification was central, appear onscreen for only a few minutes and are reduced to extras. Angela's story, one of the darkest and most tragic elements of the game, is barely hinted at.

The game's climactic twist, which is intended to shock and upend the entire narrative, is delivered weakly and without emotional weight, like an annoying formality.

Return to Silent Hill isn't an adaptation of a great game – it's a crude parody that doesn't understand the source material at all.

What Did Critics & Viewers Think of 'Return to Silent Hill'?

• Return to Silent Hill has 9% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.

• On IMDb, the movie has a score of 5.1/10.

• On Letterboxd, Return to Silent Hill scored 2.1/5.0.

Where to Watch 'Return to Silent Hill'?

Return to Silent Hill is currently playing in theaters.