“ | It's a damn shame the way people mistreat such nice things.
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Curtis Ackers is a resident of Shepherd's Glen and one of the primary antagonists of Silent Hill: Homecoming, the other being Margaret Holloway. He is proprietor of the town scrapyard and works as a mechanic and general handyman. He's a gruff man who apparently knows Adam Shepherd very well.
Silent Hill: Homecoming[]
Alex Shepherd, Adam's son, first comes across Curtis while investigating the state of Shepherd's Glen. He is found alone, inside his shop. In exchange for an old, broken revolver Alex got from his mother earlier, Curtis gives him a functioning firearm. Through the course of the conversation, he expresses his frustration with the town's clocks, explaining that, despite his attempts, he is unable to get them working again. He points out to Alex that each and every one has stopped at 2:06.
During the kidnapping of Alex's mother, Curtis can be seen with other Order Soldiers. While initially anonymous, he wields his signature weapon, the circular saw.
Towards the end of the game, Alex has an encounter with the repairman on an elevator beneath the Order's church. At the time, Alex is wearing heavy mining gear typical of an Order soldier, and Curtis greets him as such with Curtis seeing Alex's dog tags. He monologues about enjoying his work, but now he's found direction. He explains to Alex that it's important to know who you are. When the elevator comes to a stop, Curtis motions for Alex to depart ahead of him. As Alex does so, Curtis knocks him out with a hammer, not being fooled by the disguise.
Under the orders of Judge Holloway, Curtis, using a circular saw, sets about the task of killing Elle Holloway. Before he can complete this duty, however, Alex interrupts him. Turning his weapon on the young man, Curtis attempts to kill Alex, but does not survive the exchange. If Alex does not save Elle from Curtis, he will slice her in half with his saw.
Personality[]
Seemingly a loner by choice, the player first encounters Curtis cloistered in his junkyard. He's found sitting at a bench with a shotgun nearby and tinkering with his clocks. Curtis rarely ever tries to communicate with others by his own accord, save for one moment on the elevator. He usually displays his disinterest in conversation with half-hearted grunts. He speaks in a gravelly, somewhat detached voice. He is almost always seen smoking, evidenced with the cigarette he carries.
After completing his business with Alex, Curtis makes it quite clear he wants to be left alone, going so far as to threaten Alex's life should he continue bothering him.
As evident by his actions throughout the course of the game, Curtis could be considered a homicidal maniac. However, since the motives for his actions are not known, judgment can only be based on what is seen. He does, however, display strong sociopathic tendencies, including his calm demeanor, disdain for social interaction, and detached acts of violence.
Curtis mentions to Alex that he doesn't take orders from anyone but himself, raising questions as to why he joined the Order. He also says that he "loves a good deal", possibly hinting that he might have been offered something for his service to them. The letter Alex finds in his father's secret room in the attic says that people in Shepherd's Glen have possibly been kidnapped and brainwashed to serve the Order. Curtis may have been a victim to this.
Assuming that the Order did have to bargain with him to convince him to join, possibly providing him with better tools and gadgets, such as the circular saw, he may simply be assisting them with executions as payment for what they gave him.
Trivia[]
- He is voiced by Al Bandiero, who also voiced Adam Shepherd in the same game.
- One of the photographs taken by Joshua Shepherd, which Alex finds, is of Curtis. On it, Joshua has written the words: "Curtis. I don't like him."
- Upon closer inspection of the photograph, Curtis appears to be wiping blood from his hands, not grease, foreshadowing his affiliation with the Order, and suggesting he had been since before the events of the game.
- Upon exploring the back room of Curtis' workshop, a folded Order Soldier uniform can be seen lying on a table, foreshadowing his affiliation with the cult.
- If the player defeats Curtis with the ceremonial dagger, Alex will finish him off by slashing his throat, similar to how the Order Soldiers die.
- Curtis, being a repairman, has access to a lot of scrap metal, spare parts, and tools. He likely builds things out of the scrap metal he collects, so it's entirely possible he created the crucifix-like machine that Lillian Shepherd is tied to.
- If the player is able to shoot Curtis in the head, he will fall backwards in slow motion.
- Outside Curtis's junkyard, a "no trespassing" sign on the gate can be found. It reads: "NO TRESPASSING. Violators will be shot. Survivors will be shot again."
- Due to Curtis' clear aggression towards the idea of someone taking his mostly broken and inoperable things should he leave Shepherd's Glen, as well as him being mainly a loner, it is possible that he may be a hoarder.
- If the player returns to Curtis' junkyard before going back to the Shepherd residence after getting the ceremonial dagger, there is ammo and a health drink outside. If the player tries to go into the junkyard, it will say that it's locked and that Curtis must have "skipped town".
- There is a glitch where if the player leaves the junkyard and goes to the Shepherd backyard then returns to where Curtis is, he will be standing and will follow the player if they shoot their gun. This is confirmed in the PlayStation 3 version.[1]
- Curtis bears a physical resemblance to actor Peter Stormare.
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