8. Silent Hill (2006) – Feminism

Video game movies don’t have a great reputation, and Silent Hill is no exception. Though it may have been a generally underwhelming adaptation of its beloved source material, Silent Hill did manage to explore an unexpected deeper theme. In keeping with the layered narratives of the video game franchise, it is believed by some that the 2006 movie is secretly about feminism.

For a film that received generally unfavorable reviews, Silent Hill is loaded with an expected depth in the form of feminist symbolism. At face value, there’s the fact that the majority of the film’s cast are female – in fact, the male protagonist of the game it was based on was actually swapped out for a female lead – but it actually goes much deeper. There are a number of visual clues that point to Silent Hill‘s feminist themes (like the red room with peeling walls or the use of Pyramid Head, who is accepted to be a manifestation of male sexual brutality), but the story itself is an interesting interpretation of modern society’s treatment of women.

The film’s female characters are trapped in the foggy dimension to resolve their issues, while the male characters search the real world oblivious to their plight. In fact, all of the suffering uncovered in Silent Hill stems from male violence or the reluctance to prevent male violence, with various characters clearly representing different roles that women are expected to play. In fact, Silent Hill‘s feminism is so obvious that it’s probably only considered a hidden meaning because of the film’s general lack of popularity.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9