From HouseofHorrors.com
Silent Hill: The Makings of a Masterpiece?
By Mitchell B. Unruh
Apr 16, 2006, 11:56
Films based off of survival horror games have never really meant the high expectations that most gaming and horror fans hold for them. Sure there have been some "guilty pleasures" made in the past couple of years (Doom anyone?), but the big question is when is someone going to make the ultimate video game adaptation. Most game adaptation's biggest problems start right off with the script. Writers seem to always find a reason to change a game's synopsis when adapting it for the screen. My biggest question is why change a game's story when usually it's perfect to begin with. People in Hollywood always seem to think they need to change a game's story to make it more generic, but do they ever think that the reason a game is so popular in the first place is because of its originality? I was a sucker for Doom when it came out. I think it was one of the better interpretations of a video game in awhile, but it was far from perfect. I don't fully understand why the filmmakers felt the need to remove the concept of the portal to Hell from the film. The portal to Hell was what really made the game different and changing it in the film took something away from the essence of what made the game unique. With the groundwork already laid for a great story, why do most video game adaptations fail? There are many reasons game adaptations don't work, starting off with story changes, but another one of the biggest problems is that most studios will put anyone in charge of a video game adaptation. Video game adaptations are never given any real talent to make them as good as they should be, and if anyone is thinking that Paul W.S. Anderson is "talented" then you need to reevaluate the meaning of the word "talented." But there is hope for the future, his name is Christophe Gans.
Many people remember Christophe Gans as the genius behind the 2001 French hit Pacte des loups, Le, or Brotherhood of the Wolf as it was called here in the U.S. For once it seems like a video game is getting the kind of talent that it deserves. Silent Hill has a huge fan base out there and when it was first announced that a film adaptation was on the fast track, many fans were understandably concerned and less than enthused. But once the news hit that Christophe Gans was going to direct, many doubts disappeared and there seemed to be some hope for the future of video game adaptations. Then the cast began to fill out with actors like Pitch Black's Radha Mitchell and the very talented Sean Bean, which made the idea of a Silent Hill movie seem like an even better idea. Once the first trailer hit the internet everyone watching was speechless and all doubts were instantly put to rest. The first thought that went through my mind was "They finally got it right!" Silent Hill looks like its going to meet all expectations and maybe even top them. On April 21st audiences are going to be blown away. I have nothing but faith in this project and if it does turn out as great as it should be, then Silent Hill could be the first successful video game adaptation to be made. Christophe Gan's Silent Hill will hopefully pave the way for future game adaptations and show Hollywood once and for all that video games can be made into successful film adaptations, when put into the right hands of passionate filmmakers. Now we as horror and gaming fans need to make it our responsibility to get out to the theaters on April 21st and make Silent Hill a major success. So maybe Hollywood will see just how important some game properties are to the fans and give us hope for future Silent Hill adventures directed by the talented Christophe Gans.
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