HELLRAISER

Hellraiser Movie Review

A mysterious box unlocks demons who take the possessor, Frank, to Hell--Frank escapes, and now calls upon his former lover Julia (Clare Higgins), his brother Larry's wife, to bring him the flesh and blood of others to bring him back to complete human form, all the while fearing the demons, known as Cenobites, will return to take him away again. This 1987 horror film from Clive Barker is an absolutely horrific film--in all the right ways. The story is interesting, original, and frightening, but the real highlight of the film comes from the makeup department--the progression of Frank alone is something to behold.

Frank coming back

Frank coming along

Frank almost there

The acting is pretty shaky throughout, with the exception of Ashley Laurence, who does a really good job as Larry's daughter/our hero Kirsty. While the makeup is fantastic, the special effects are a bit dated, especially the final scene, which is so bad it is hilarious--it reminds me of something you'd see from a 1950s creature feature. And interestingly, though Pinhead is the iconic character of this series (and rightfully so), he is not in the film much--in fact, there is not a lot that differentiates Pinhead from the rest of the Cenobites, and he's not even known as Pinhead yet--he's credited as "The Lead Cenobite".

The Cenobites

This movie kicked off a very successful horror franchise, and as a stand alone movie it is really good. It may not be a perfect film but it is innovative, brutal, intense, and a must see for all horror fans.

On A Scale Of One To Ten: 8

Hellraiser Movie Trailer