Connect with us

Editorials

Personal Hells of Grief: The Spirit of ‘Silent Hill 2’ Lives On in ‘Relic’

Published

on

This article contains spoilers for both Relic and Silent Hill 2.

Relic, directed by Natalie Erika James, written by James and Christian White, is the most captivating film I’ve seen this year. With her mother Edna (Robyn Nevin) having gone missing, Kay (Emily Mortimer) takes her daughter Sam (Bella Heathcote) to the matriarch’s home in search of her. When the two find Edna, all appears to have been a fluke of old age — Edna coming across a little disoriented. But as Kay and Sam spend more time in her home, things begin to deteriorate. As Edna’s condition worsens to depressing, surreal heights, the family finds themselves submerged in agony.

The film is a brilliant, tragic look at how dementia can ripple through a family. After an hour or so watching it the first time, I was fascinated for what would come next and how it would conclude on such heavy themes. Not only did the third act prove to be a devastating ending, but I also found a surprising parallel to one of my other favorite works of horror: Silent Hill 2.

Silent Hill 2 is an iconic horror video game known for its brutal atmosphere, terrifying monsters, and psychological depth. There are several games and other forms of media in the franchise, but not much in the Silent Hill cannon comes close to the chilling horror that is the second entry.

A general synopsis of Silent Hill 2: The game follows James, a man who goes to the town of Silent Hill in search of his wife Mary. She has sent him a letter, inviting him to meet her there. Thing is, Mary has been dead for years (having passed away from some illness). As James ventures through the town, he comes across horrific monsters that disturb the player in their appearance and actions. Among these monsters are other people, some who are struggling with their own personal horror. The town is an empty, distant place, where buildings are abandoned, iron has gone to rot, and a ghostly mist looms on every street. It is later revealed that James killed his wife out of a desperation to end her suffering. Plagued by guilt, Silent Hill consumes James, spiraling him into a nightmare where demons and people represent his haunted psyche. 

Relic’s third act surprised me in how much it reminded me of Silent Hill 2. After the film ended, I started to look back on it – considering how it observes its characters and how they function about the world they exist in. Overtime, I began to draw more lines between the two properties. There are other films that provide psychological horror similar to Silent Hill 2, but I found Relic’s delivery of emotional dread to be incredibly potent, tapping into the intimate force of the iconic game. For much of how the film explores grief is in the way that Silent Hill 2 examines its protagonist. Through their use of atmosphere, setting, and exploration of mental anguish, both stories explore characters trapped in personal hells. 

[Related] ‘Relic’ and My Experience With the True Horrors of Dementia

From the way certain monsters act as twisted aspects of James’ guilt, to the way the town’s aura feels anxious and oppressive, Silent Hill 2 uses its setting to further enforce the state of James’ mind. This is a big aspect I see throughout Relic in the form of Edna’s house. As the camera makes its way into different rooms, one can sense that the house was once a place full of life and love. Moments of Sam looking at her grandma’s possessions or Edna partaking in her daily rituals offer a comforting feeling. However, as Edna’s condition intensifies, the house begins to exude a darker tone. Color comes across as drained, rooms begin to feel colder with the passing of time. The presence of mold begins expanding throughout the house, confirming that the illness that is hurting Edna is spreading within her – her suffering becoming more visible to her family. 

In both Relic and Silent Hill 2, the environment acts to reflect people; through physical changes in setting, the audience gathers insight into the emotions and mental state of the characters. The respective settings of both worlds are rich with dread; the somber energy surrounding James and those of Relic permeates in each scene. As each story progresses, the audience witness the continuing decay of surroundings and sanity.

Little happens in the way of action throughout Relic. With a few brief moments there and then, as well as the final act, much of the film plays to a contemplative flow. Not so much a slow burn, but a careful, well-focused observation of the characters. In Silent Hill 2, pace is used in order to have players feel present in the town. Relic utilizes pace to make the audience feel present in the frustration and misery of Kay, Sam, and Edna. In each difficult confrontation, in each moment of disappointment and resentment, the film takes its time. Going from one scene where Edna and Sam are sharing laughter, to then see the former lash out at her granddaughter is tragic. The film’s more aggressive moments escalate overtime, but not in an immediate manner. There is rarely a sudden twist or flashiness to actions. 

Silent Hill 2 carefully observes James and other characters’ tortured psyches. Over the course of gameplay, the player sees James losing his sanity; he falls deeper into the darkness of Silent Hill, overtaken by the fantasy around him. Edna, Kay, and Sam also fall deeper into themselves; Edna slipping into her illness as Kay and Sam become consumed in the weight of responsibility and sadness. Both properties follow their characters into a downward spiral – where psychological horror wreaks havoc on them and twists their respective realities.

These aspects of character examination and environmental auras become even more significant when one looks at Relic’s third act (and how much it feels like Silent Hill 2).

Relic plays with the audience, teasing them with the idea of something supernatural being in the house. There and then, a shadowy figure can be seen in the background among the characters. Is this some sort of monster? At times, Kay has bizarre nightmares of an old family cabin; a dead corpse lies besides a bed. It’s all vague and keeps the viewer on their toes.

In the final act there are two significant points to keep in mind: One is Sam entering a dark dimension of sorts, the other being Edna’s “snap.” Prior to these points, Kay and Edna share a brutal moment together outside where Edna speaks to wanting to be home and the fear of losing everything. Around this time, Sam is beginning to feel the pressure of being among her grandmother, anxious by her off and aggressive behavior.

In the house, Sam finds a door she was not aware of; she opens it and discovers a new part of the house that is old and covered with mold. When she turns around to leave, the door in is gone. As she runs about the halls, the environment and lighting become darker, the corridors tighter. At the same time, Kay and Edna are together, the latter displaying an eerie silence. Throughout the film, Edna has been seen with black bruises; during this act, the bruises have intensified, covering a large chunk of her chest. She begins mutilating herself, all of a sudden turning on Kay in an antagonist manner. With the narrative playing around with supernatural elements, one can’t be sure if this is really Edna or a fantastical interpretation imagined by Kay.

In a blend of psychological, supernatural, and magical realism, Kay and Sam create and enter a shared dark fantasy – a concept that feels like what Silent Hill does to its inhabitants. What I find aids in this theory is how Sam and Kay eventually meet up.

The two of them are in the house yet separated rooms apart. Sam finds the door, enters this new dimension, and is trapped in there. During her time there, she travels down twisted halls to find a way back to her mom. She is searching until she finds a weak point in a wall. As she strikes the wall, the camera shifts to show the audience the other side – being the family’s normal looking living room. But before Sam can break through, she hears her mom and decides to run back. The two then meet up in the house foyer and embrace.

So how do the two meet? When not watching Sam navigate the “dark dimension” of the house, the audience sees Kay with Edna. The two of them are divided by a supernatural space, and yet somehow – without either making any jump from one space to the other – they end up together in the same place. 

Both Kay and Sam’s frustrations have reached their pinnacle – they are in need of lashing out, venting, finding some means of solace from the dread. Though the “dark dimension” of Relic feels aesthetically similar to Silent Hill 2, it is more striking in how it emotionally resonates. Among its numerous themes, the game is very much about processing trauma. Through all their suffering, James and the characters of Relic find themselves in a reality clouded by pain – a hell that represents their internal anguish. James is only on his path because he can’t handle what he has done. His mind tricks him into going to Silent Hill, the town fueling his torment with its supernatural power. For Kay and Sam, their minds take over, twisting the house around them in horrific ways.

As Relic comes to an end, Kay realizes she can’t leave her mom. As Edna gasps for air, Kay carries her upstairs and places her into bed. She begins to peel off Edna’s skin. Little by little, her flesh and hair give way to a frail, dark being. This is who I think the audience sees throughout the film; the house is not haunted by a ghost or demon, but by Edna’s illness. In Silent Hill 2, James finds himself followed by the guilt of killing Mary – that guilt being mutated in the form of horrifying monsters and warped environments.

Edna, Kay, and Sam lie in bed. As they each face away from one another, Sam spots a black bruise on the back of Kay – hinting that she too one day will fall prey to the same illness. The film’s final moments are devastating. By the time the credits roll, one is left fascinated and empty. It’s a purposeful emptiness at that, given how effectively the film portrays the family’s suffering. Like Silent Hill 2, Relic revolves around the cold dread that comes in isolating, personal hells; how the horrors of one’s life can feel like an avalanche, suffocating them and warping their world into a bleak nightmare.

Relic is an excellent film. Though it offers its own uniqueness, it is incredible how much it embraces the spirit of Silent Hill 2. Let alone the awesome use of setting and atmosphere, but like Silent Hill 2, Relic is a story about a haunting. James is haunted by his guilt and loss; Edna is haunted by her mind; Kay and Sam are haunted by Edna’s mental and physical decay.

When we are stricken by something difficult or tragic, life can have a way of turning grim on us. We can find despair – monsters even – in each corner of life. In this pain, we may feel alone and desperate for any light. This is the horror Relic and Silent Hill 2 share.

Michael Pementel is a pop culture critic at Bloody Disgusting, primarily covering video games and anime. He writes about music for other publications, and is the creator of Bloody Disgusting's "Anime Horrors" column.

Editorials

The 10 Scariest Moments in the ‘Ghostbusters’ Movie Franchise

Published

on

scariest Ghostbusters

WARNING: The following contains mild spoilers for the Ghostbusters franchise. 

Yes, Ghostbusters is a horror movie – gateway horror to be exact. Setting aside the fact that the title literally contains the word “ghost,” a foundational element of the scariest genre, the franchise follows a group of paranormal researchers who battle entities attacking from beyond the grave. After countless rewatches, the classic films and newer sequels may not scare us much anymore, but how many times have we as genre fans asserted that a film does not have to be “scary” to be considered horror?

Genre classification is nebulous and any film that centers on ghosts has a place in the sprawling house of horror. Yes, it’s true that most viewers over the age of thirteen will find more to laugh about than scream while watching a Ghostbusters film, but each entry contains a handful of terrifying moments. With Gil Kenan’s Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire uniting three generations of the parascientific warriors, perhaps it’s time to highlight the most frightening moments from each phase of this legendary franchise. 


Ghostbusters (1984)

A Haunted Library

scariest Ghostbusters movie

Ivan Reitman’s original film begins with a campfire tale come to life. We follow an unsuspecting librarian as she ventures deep into the stacks to reshelve a book. With her hair blowing from a spectral breeze, we watch a hardcover float across the aisle to the opposite shelf. A second book follows, but the librarian remains unaware. She finally notices the disturbance when card catalog drawers open on their own spewing cards into the air like literary geysers. She flees through the maze of narrow stacks only to come face to face with a mysterious force who blows her back with a powerful roar. We won’t see the Library Ghost (Ruth Oliver) until a later scene, but this introduction firmly positions the film that follows in the world of horror. On first watch, we can only speculate as to the ghost’s malevolence and whether or not the librarian has survived the encounter. It’s the perfect introduction to a world in which ghosts are not only real, they will pounce on unsuspecting humans at the drop of a … book. 

Shaky Ground

The original finale may not be the film’s most terrifying moment, but it has become the franchise’s most iconic image. When faced with choosing a form for Gozer (Slavitza Jovan), Ray Stantz (Dan Aykroyd) inadvertently conjures up an image from his childhood. Moments later, a set of once-cheery eyes peer through the skyscrapers. The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man towers over the city, stomping and destroying everything in its path. While there’s definitely something terrifying about a jovial mascot turned deadly killer, what happens moments before is arguably scarier. 

The Ghostbusters arrive at the luxury apartment building to throngs of adoring fans. Peter Venkman (Bill Murray) plays into this hero-worship and promises an easy solution to a supernatural problem. But before they can enter the building, lightning strikes the upper floors sending massive chunks of brick and cement raining down on the barricaded street. The ground begins to shake and a giant fissure swallows the entire team. It’s a destabilizing moment made all the more terrifying by its shocking reality. Speculation about the existence of ghosts may vary from person to person, but there’s no doubt that sinkholes are very real. It’s entirely possible that the ground we’re standing on right now could spontaneously begin to crumble, sucking us down into a seemingly bottomless void beneath the earth. 


Ghostbusters II (1989)

Runaway Baby

Ivan Reitman’s sequel begins with a sly update on the life of a beloved character as Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver) pushes a baby carriage containing her infant son Oscar (Henry and William Deutschendorf). When last we saw the attractive cellist, she was kissing Venkman in the wreckage of Gozer’s demise and the thought of this loveable lady’s man becoming a father may be more nerve-wracking than anything contained in the first film. We never learn much about Oscar’s real father, but we do discover that fate has a sinister plan for the adorable child. While Dana chats with her landlord, Oscar’s carriage rolls a few feet away. Dana reaches for the handle, but the buggy begins speeding down the sidewalk careening through the busy crowds. As if guided by unseen hands, the carriage twists and turns, then abruptly swerves into oncoming traffic. Cars honk and veer out of the way, but the racing carriage marks a collision course with an approaching bus. The wheels screech to a halt moments before what would surely be a deadly crash and Dana rushes to embrace her vulnerable child. This harrowing scene is likely to terrorize any parent who’s experienced the fear of trying to protect a baby in an unpredictable world.  

Sewer Screams

scariest Ghostbusters scene

While investigating the second film’s primary villain, Vigo the Carpathian (Wilhelm von Homburg), three of the Ghostbusters venture into the sewers hoping to find a growing river of slime. Ray, Winston (Ernie Hudson), and Egon (Harold Ramis) trek down an abandoned subway line while speculating about the hordes of cockroaches and rats they hear scurrying behind the walls. These vermin may be scary, but there are more malevolent monsters lurking in the dark. Ray and Egon both amuse themselves with the tunnel’s echo but Winston’s “hello” goes unanswered. Moments later, a demonic voice bellows his name from the dark end of the corridor. Waiting behind him is a severed head floating in the empty tunnel. As he tries to retreat, the team finds themselves surrounded by dozens of ghoulish heads that disappear faster than they materialized. Moments later, a ghostly train hurtles towards them, swallowing Winston in its spectral glow. Egon theorizes that something is trying to keep them from reaching their destination with effective scares designed to frighten the Ghostbusters and audience alike.  


Ghostbusters (2016)

Haunted Basement

Like its predecessor, Paul Feig’s remake opens with a spooky vignette. Garrett (Zach Woods) gives a tour of the Aldridge Mansion, a 19th century manor preserved in the middle of the busy city, and walks visitors through a troubling history of excess and cruelty. Hoping to inject a bit of excitement, he pauses near the basement door and tells the horrifying story of Gertrude Aldridge (Bess Rous), a wealthy heiress who murdered the house’s many servants. Hoping to avoid a public scandal, her family locked her in the basement and her restless spirit can still be heard trying to escape. Garrett triggers a trick candlestick to fly off the shelf, hinting at the spirit’s presence, but a late night incident shows that the deceased murderess may actually be lurking in her ancestral home. While closing up for the night, Garrett hears ominous noises from behind the barricaded door and watches the knob rattle against the heavy locks. An unseen attacker hurls him through the house and eventually drives him down the basement stairs to a sea of green slime pooling on the floor. The stairs crumble leaving the tour guide hanging on to the door frame for dear life as a spectral figure glides toward him with menacing hands outstretched. Once again, we won’t see the fully revealed ghost of Gertrude Aldridge until later in the film, but this terrifying opening sets the stage for a dangerous showdown with an army of the dead.

Mannequin On the Move

The scariest moment of the 2016 remake is arguably the vicious online hatred sparked well before the film’s release. In response to brutal comments posted to the first official trailer, the cast returned to film an additional scene in which they react to dehumanizing negativity. But another sequence may cut closer to the heart of this upsetting experience. The Ghostbusters respond to a call at a concert venue and split up to cover more ground. Patty (Leslie Jones) enters what she calls a “room full of nightmares” and immediately reverses course to avoid a multitude of mannequins stacked haphazardly in the dark. As she walks out the door, one of the faceless creatures turns its head her way. Walking on its own, this sentient prop follows her down the hall, pausing the moment she turns around. Eventually breaking cover, the mannequin chases Patty down the hall to the rest of the team. They unleash their proton packs and make quick work of the gargoyle-like ghost. Though this connection is surely unintentional, it’s a terrifying parallel to a faceless monster sneaking up to attack a woman simply trying to do her job. 


Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)

Smoke and Monsters

While Ghostbusters: Afterlife is nowhere near as scary as the horror films playing in the local summer school science class, Jason Reitman’s legacyquel does contain its share of frights. The film opens with a harrowing scene as we join Egon (Oliver Cooper) in the last moments of his life. Racing away from a sinister mountain, Egon’s truck collides with an unseen force and flips upside down in a field of corn. The elderly scientist races back to his crumbling farmhouse with a trap in hand, intent on ensnaring this invisible being. Unfortunately, the power fails and Egon has no choice but to hide the trap under the floorboards and wait. He sits in a comfortable old chair as a horrifying cloud of smoke drifts in behind him, momentarily forming the shape of a fanged beast. Demonic hands grab him from within the chair, likely causing the heart attack that will be listed on his death certificate. But his abandoned PKE meter below the chair activates, reminding us that Egon may be deceased, but he is far from gone.  

The Terror Returns

scariest Ghostbusters moments

Ghostbusters: Afterlife turns out to be a touching tribute to Harold Ramis as his friends and family unite to complete the beloved scientist’s heroic mission. In addition to a tearjerker ending, Reitman also includes a bevy of callbacks to the original film. Not only do the Spenglers square off against the team’s first enemy, Gozer (Emma Portner), the nonbinary entity brings back the Terror Dogs that once possessed Dana Barret and Louis Tully (Rick Moranis). These demonic beasts first rear their ugly heads while Gary Grooberson (Paul Rudd) stops by Walmart to buy a midnight snack. While the horde of mini marshmallow men are eerie in their gleeful self-destruction, the ghostly canine that chases him through the store is the stuff of nightmares. Early iterations of this fearsome creature are hindered by ’80s-era special effects, but Reitman’s version feels frighteningly real. While Gary frantically tries to find his keys, this Terror Dog snarls at him from atop his car dashboard, leaving the endearing science teacher with no way to escape. 


Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (2024)

Frozen Dinner 

After a film set in a small mountain town, the opening of Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire takes us back to New York circa 1904. We see the fire station in its early years as a horse-drawn carriage responds to a call. Arriving at the scene, a fireman tests the door for heat and watches in horror as his hand instantly freezes. Inside, they find jagged shards of ice surrounding and piercing a frozen dinner party. Guests are posed in various states of ice-covered surprise while an eerie record skips in the corner. A figure covered in brass armor we will come to know as a Fire Master is crouched in the corner clutching a mysterious orb. When the fireman touches this rippling sphere, the frozen diners’ heads begin to explode, an ominous precursor to the chilling threat awaiting the newest Ghostbusting team. 

Lights Out

If Ghostbusters: Afterlife featured the lo-fi gear of the 80s, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire hurls us into the future. Wealthy financier Winston Zeddemore has been surreptitiously building a new containment unit to relieve pressure on the original model along with a secret lab designed to study ghosts and haunted objects. In addition to fancy new gadgets and gear, this facility contains several captured spirits like a fanged Wraith and a speedy Possessor. Lab techs assure the astonished Spengler team that they are perfectly safe, but it seems they’ve overestimated the facility’s security. Lucky (Celeste O’Connor) and Lars (James Acaster) are studying the aforementioned orb when the power goes out, leaving them stranded in the dark with a cache of haunted objects. Not only does the ancient sphere hold a deadly spirit, the proton fields containing the captured ghosts have just been disabled. These terrifying creatures begin to drift through the walls toward the defenseless lab techs, perhaps at the bidding of an evil commander. Thankfully the generator kicks on in the nick of time, drawing the ghosts back into their cells. It’s a tense moment reminding us that no matter how charming the Ghostbusters may be, they still spend their days with evil spirits just waiting for an opportunity to wreak havoc.  


The Ghostbusters franchise excels at mixing humor and fear, practically setting the blueprint for the modern horror comedy. Moments from the original two films terrified a generation of gen-xers and elder millennials and newer iterations are currently scaring their kids. The fifth franchise installment effectively passes the proton pack torch to a new generation of Ghostbusters and we can only hope additional films will continue to induct future generations of Ghostbusters fans into the horror family as well. 

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is now playing in theaters. Read our review.

Continue Reading