We've Been Expecting You!

Well, that's the tag line of Silent Hill. I saw Silent Hill yesterday and though the movie isn't frightening enough, the storyboard was great and the visuals, awesome. However a few cheesy graphics also formed part of the movie - a la "Itchy the Killer" style.

The film is about a girl called Sharon (played by Jodelle Ferland), who sleep-walks and continuosuly mentions about a place called Silent Hill, which haunts her in her dreams. Sharon's mother Rose Da Dilva (Radha Mitchell) and father have tried everything they can to cure her of these nightmares.



After being unsuccesful everytime, Rose finally decides to take Sharon to Silent Hill. However, the road to Silent Hill is anything but easy to access, and Rose creates a high speed chase between herself and a police officer only to end in a crash for them both. However, when she wakes up, Sharon has disappeared and Rose is at the entrance to the deserted, dream-like town of Silent Hill.

As Rose begins the search for her daughter, she does not realise the terror and mystery surrounding her. Rose is led on a blind search for her beloved daughter, finding herself getting more and more entwined into disturbing past of Silent Hill.

Though Silent Hill is based on a computer game by the same name, developed by Konami, I am told that the central plot of Silent Hill - a city with coal mines, that burns till now - is actually based on an existing town of Centralia, in Pennsylvania, in the US.

Centralia experienced a trash fire in 1962, which accidentally ignited an exposed coal vein. Today, over forty years later, the mines underneath the town are still on fire -- and will continue to be for at least another 100 years, say experts. The population has been reduced from over a thousand down to just eleven. Smoke and steam continue to pour out of the ground.

You might want to read about Centralia, here and here.
For images of Centralia, head over here.