The Silent Hill game franchise has been considered among players to be one of the biggest influences in the horror genre. Between its thought-provoking plots and truly unnerving monsters, complemented by the incredibly atmospheric music composed in most installments by Akira Yamaoka, it’s no wonder that the first game was chosen to be adapted into a feature film.
In April 2006, Silent Hill broke into theaters in the United States. I was still rather new to the world of horror gaming. With no real context or knowledge of the series, I went to see the movie anyway. Now I know that although the story of the film may change several key concepts about the plot (Rose taking the place of Harry being the biggest one and focusing hard on the whole, “Mother is God in the eyes of a child” thing). Overall, the film wasn’t necessarily a masterpiece. Still, there was something in that movie that amazed me: The incredible police officer Cybil Bennett, portrayed by the gorgeous Laurie Holden.
Cybil initially appears in the movie as a motorcycle-riding, no-nonsense, dedicated, driven cop. She even wears riding-appropriate attire, donning a leather jacket and a helmet! I immediately admired her for not only looking awesome but being smart. (I know wearing her sunglasses at night isn’t at all practical, but it still made her look tough and cool, okay?) However, what sealed the deal for me was in her first scene against a monster. A shambling creature approaches and spews noxious, acidic black goo all over Cybil, who stumbles away for a moment before ripping her helmet off. The rage on her face as she turns back around and fires on the monster, her short platinum blonde pixie cut mussed in this super slick and sexy way… I was taken aback at the level of unabashedly badass this character was. It might also have been one of the first times I realized I thought girls were cute.
In a world full of horror adaptations, it seems many of them feature women with shoulder-length or longer hair (looking at you, Alice from Resident Evil), which I couldn’t identify with because I’d always kept my hair on the much shorter side. When Cybil graced the screen, it was incredibly refreshing to see that the film had shunned some of the more Hollywood-insisted “feminine” aspects that many female leads get pigeonholed into. She had short hair, she literally kicked ass, she carried confidence on her left and cunning on her right; she was a fighter that exhibited courage to the very end.
Laurie Holden gave a performance that was moving and empowering, especially to a teenage girl looking for new role models (even if they were fictional). I had experimented with my hairstyle and color for years, but I will be damned if Holden’s short blonde pixie cut didn’t inspire me to keep my hair short and, years later, be comfortable being a blonde bombshell. Cybil’s portrayal of strength and powerful, capable femininity was a mind-blowing concept for me. I have seen some women in horror films be fearless and tough, but in the face of nightmarish abominations and the fires of misguided cults, Cybil remains at the top of my list for one of the baddest bitches in cinema.
The movie may not be the greatest, and it definitely changes things from its source material, but Silent Hill gave me more than entertainment value. Because of Cybil, I found the ability to embrace my own strength in a way that is both powerful and feminine. I have developed an appreciation for the horror genre and its representation of women. I have gained confidence in rocking short hair. Most of all, however, I experienced a whirlwind of inspiration that has stuck with me for the last 18 years.