Rather than plot a fresh excursion into Konami's blighted burg, writer-director MJ Bassett's Silent Hill: Revelation 3D is a straight follow-up to Christophe Gans' 2006 film. This explicit connection means that Revelation is conceptually hobbled, forced to build upon a big screen scenario that had already been, bloodily, settled. So, even though the fanatical citizens of this tephra-town were previously revealed as tormented ghosts using a scarred, thwarted saviour to hang onto our reality, Bassett's take ties itself in knots to make them a plotting, physical threat, able to send out scions that flatter and cajole. Still, this is a horror sequel. Of course it picks at the bones of its predecessors rather than try something a little more daring. Unfortunately, Revelation's issues don't end there. Whereas Gans was able to conjure up an all-consuming feeling of concussed dread, Bassett's sequel defaults to a boring, syrupy skulk through a haunted house attraction. Teenager Heather Mason, as played by Adelaide Clemens, isn't as compelling as Radha Mitchell's single-minded mother either. Mitchell's interpretation of the sullen line-readings found in the early Silent Hill games was equally flat but still betrayed an unusually intense determination. The actress therefore able to communicate an idea of being spellbound and unable to turn away from the task at hand. That performance was an agreeable reading of a video game character, a state of being that demands a person consistently and willingly place themselves in incredible danger. Clemens enjoys no such detail in her direction.
No comments:
Post a Comment