Silent Hill 2 is known among survival-horror fans as a near-perfect entry in the genre. As a psychological horror game, it touches upon serious and mature themes, many that even today most game developers wouldn’t dare address. The game speaks of euthanasia, sexual assault, frustration, guilt, murder, and death. Yet it also deals with themes of redemption, hope, and facing one’s own sins. The storyline rivals that of classic literature, and its characters are iconic.

All that to say, Return to Silent Hill definitely has a lot to live up to. If done correctly, an adaptation of this masterpiece of a game could become a wonder of a film. If done poorly, we’ll be left with another Silent Hill: Revelation. Sadly, we are left with the latter situation, as this adaptation fails on every level. From story to characters to writing, everything about Return to Silent Hill falls short of the masterpiece it is attempting to adapt.

Both the game and the film begin with James receiving a letter from Mary. The letter informs James (Jeremy Irvine) that Mary is in their special place, Silent Hill. Yet while in the game, Mary (Hannah Emily Anderson ) is James’ wife, the movie tells us she is his former girlfriend. Furthermore, while the game’s version of Mary is declared dead at the get-go, the movie leaves this important information for a strange twist later on. Making Mary James’ girlfriend instead of his wife lessens the grief James feels and lowers the stakes significantly. This writing also robs the movie of one of the central mysteries: if Mary is dead, how can she send a letter to James?

Regardless, James makes his way to Silent Hill. His therapist, a new character in the film, warns him to stay away, but he travels there anyway. While there, he meets several supporting characters: Angela (Hannah Emily Anderson), Eddie (Pearse Egan), James, Maria (Hannah Emily Anderson), and Laura (Evie Templeton). Angela, first off, receives significantly less development than she received in the game. She’s introduced as a woman carrying bags across the graveyard for some weird, undecipherable reason, but suffice to say, her character is a shadow of what it was in the game. Eddie, likewise, is only given a few minutes of screentime. And yes, whereas in the game Eddie is given a full character arc that deals with bullying, obesity, and murder, we are given a severely underdeveloped character here as well.

Laura and Maria are also given little substance; the film even goes out of its way to break several rules regarding these characters established as canon. Maria is supposed to be a temptation for James, yet we never get the sense that he’s seriously drawn to her. There’s no classic scene on the walkway; there’s no dialogue taken directly from Silent Hill 2. Iconic lines and scenes that could be here are given no respect. Laura is given a little creepy baby to hold, which seems to matter little other than to look scary.

When the truth about Mary is finally revealed, it’s so laughable that it’s hard to take it seriously. Oh, yes, and speaking of Mary, there’s an entire backstory with a cult thrown in for good measure. Multiple flashbacks to the past that try to explain questions from the game that were never supposed to have answers. Adding these extra scenes takes time that could have been spent developing secondary characters or giving James more to do than go down hallways.

And I realize this is what you spend the majority of the game doing, but here, especially for newcomers, it simply doesn’t work. James’s scenes with the other characters don’t take significant screen time, so we learn little about him or them as people. Finally, the ending misses the entire point of Silent Hill 2, making changes that fundamentally alter motivations and entire characters’ personalities. What is here doesn’t make much sense either, and it cheapens the storyline.

What it really boils down to, writing-wise, is that so many changes were made that didn’t need to be. None of which are improvements to the source material. They don’t make the film any easier to understand for those who’ve never set foot in this horrific town. The themes of grief, loss, temptation, and absolution are lost in the choices made here.

Effects-wise, the film doesn’t hold up either. Everything looks fake because it was shot on a green screen. The costumes are cheap as well. Monsters don’t look half-bad, though. So at least that’s something.

There are a few musical easter eggs in here. Letter From the Lost Days, Waiting for You, and some other Akira Yamaoka pieces show up. It’s fun to hear these songs after growing up with them as a teenager.

But the majority of the film, in its writing, especially, is a disaster. How Gans could have failed when the storyline was laid out in front of him is so hard to understand. He fundamentally altered the meaning of the movie, and it’s so clear that he did not have a grasp of the game’s themes. This is a dark classic with a lot to say, and it deserves so much more. If you are a horror movie fan, skip this. If you are a Silent Hill 2 fan, don’t waste your money.