'Return to Silent Hill' is Giving Me Mixed Feelings

 

Credit to Return to Silent Hill Teaser Made Me Excited But Also Worried : r/silenthill

We were finally given a teaser trailer for the third Silent Hill film, and I’m not sure whether I should feel excited or not over the sneak peek we got from the film. Return to Silent Hill is based on a videogame from the horror franchise, known as Silent Hill 2. 

It was received and praised by all horror fans, including the recent remake we got back in 2024. 

After watching the new trailer for this videogame adaptation…I’m not sure how to feel about it. 

Visually, it looks great.

The horror atmosphere is definitely there, and the small glimpse we got of the monsters looks fantastic. I was in shock to see a crowd of monsters walking down a hallway in one scene of the trailer, and it looked so damn awesome. 

I’m still upset over the main character not looking like the dude I’m familiar with from the game. 

James Sunderland is the main protagonist of Silent Hill 2, and he is a blonde man in the game. In the movie, he looks like a random rich dude, but hopefully I can overlook that pet peeve once the film is released. 

But I’m worried that it will be ruined by one thing that many horror fans are going to either be confused, or kind of pissed off about. 

This film could focus on a time loop theory that has become a huge thing with Silent Hill 2. 

Credit to Return to Silent Hill Official Teaser Trailer — IGN

For those who haven’t played the videogame to Silent Hill 2, there has been a huge theory that has gathered among many fans of this story. You play the main character, named James Sunderland, who finds himself in a town known as Silent Hill. He is called to the town to search for his wife, who apparently died three years ago. 

He receives a mysterious letter from her, letting him know that she is still out there, and is hidden in the town of Silent Hill. Still grieving over her death, and growing curious with this strange letter, James comes to this town, running into monsters and other people who are also trapped in this terrifying place. 

James ends up discovering multiple bodies throughout the town of Silent Hill, that all resemble him. 

Many fans have theorized that these bodies could be James himself, and it hints that he has been in this town far longer than he thinks. Perhaps he has died so many times, but he does not remember any of his deaths. He is trapped in this town, until he figures out the real truth as to what happened to his wife. 

Again, this is just a theory, and even though we get a lot of prove throughout the game that this could be the case, it’s never outright confirmed, and that is why this game works so well. It focuses on the mystery, leaving fans to come up with their own interpretations. 

So why…does it look like that is what the director is going for with the new film???

Credit to Return to Silent Hill receives teaser trailer for film adaptation, revealing Pyramid Head and release date | Eurogamer.net

From the research I have already done for this film, a lot of fans are not happy with this time loop theory. We were happy with the time loop remaining a fan theory…and I’m not sure how to feel about the director having James die over and over, and being aware that something is going on. 

I just hope that this doesn’t ruin the movie for me. 

I’m a major fan of this game, and I hope the movie adaptation remains true to the game’s story. 

At least we got an amazing Silent Hill 2 remake last year, so if this movie fails, I can go back to play a game that stayed faithful to the story.