HELLRAISER

(1987)

written and directed by Clive Barker

reviewed by Adam Armstrong

4.19.09

Not exactly how I remember it…

Larry (Andrew Robinson) and Julia (Clare Higgins) Cotton are moving into a new home in England. Larry accidentally cuts his hand and bleeds on the floor in one of the upstairs rooms and unwittingly brings his brother, Frank (Sean Chapman), back from hell. Julia discovers what is left of Frank. The two were once lovers and Julia agrees to bring victims in order to help him regain his humanity before the cenobites come looking for him. Larry’s daughter, Kirsty (Ashley Laurence), follows her stepmother one day and finds Frank and Julia together in the attic. Kirsty escapes by taking a puzzle box away from Frank. She opens it only to discover that she has summoned the cenobites that plan on taking her back to hell with them. Kirsty makes a deal with them to trade Frank and Julia’s souls for her own.

After 22 years this film is starting to show its age but is still worth watching. Based on Barker’s novella The Hellbound Heart, Hellraiser still holds up as one of the best and one of the few unique horror films. Unlike most horror films, Hellraiser was never about body count or outside monsters killing for unknown reasons. There is a certain amount of logic and structure to what the cenobites engage in and the horrors that befall the victims, which have to be brought on by the victims themselves. This film also has the honor and introducing the world to Pinhead (Doug Bradley) one of the top five horror movie icons.

Sure the special effects aren’t so special anymore and the acting leans toward the bad end of the spectrum, but it is a must see for all horror fans.

5 out of 5