Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)

TONY RANDEL

HELLBOUND: HELLRASIER II

UK, 1988

6.5/10

FOLLOW-UP TO HELLRAISER (1987)

"The mind is a labyrinth, ladies and gentlemen, a puzzle. And while the paths of the brain are plainly visible, its ways deceptively apparent, its destinations are unknown. Its secrets still secret. And, if we are honest, it is the lure of the labyrinth that draws us to our chosen field to unlock those secrets"

Reviews for other films in the franchise found here.

*Some spoilers afoot, all rather minor, but if you wish to go into the film 100% un-spoiled, it is best if you skip this review*

HELLBOUND: HELLRAISER II (1988) picks up right where the original HELLRAISER (1987) left off. Fans of the original can expect more of the same, yet while this film is a worthy follow-up, it is still vastly inferior.

Something that made the original so unique (even different from all of its sequels) was its use of the Cenobites: instead of using them to advance the plot, they use them to emphasize it. While the sequel does this in some regards, the plot of this film could basically be summed up as "Kirsty and some other forgettable characters fight monsters". The first 40 minutes of the film, before the gates to Hell are opened, are the film's strength: keeping the spirit of the original and still feeling strangely frightening, though it is too similar to the plot of the original to stand on its own. I, for one, preferred Claire Higgins's performance as Kirsty's step-mother Julia in this film to her performance in the original, though she was written better in the original. But once the puzzle is solved and Hell is opened, the film loses much of its strength.

Dr. Channard begins the film as a wonderfully creepy villain, but the second he becomes a monster similar to that of the Cenobites, he loses all of his power, and even defeats the Cenobites so easily that any fear you may have held at the beginning of the film is instantly lost. The last ten minutes of the film is a mess as director Randel tries and fails to create any tension or suspense, and the Leviathan being incredibly disappointing, and the final "twist" (though it's honestly more of a "reveal") is forced, unnatural, unoriginal, and boring.

Part of the reason I love the original is because it is so character- driven in a genre filled with characters who just let things happen to them, rather than being the force behind everything in the film (the Cenobites, as I said before, are more of an epilogue/conclusion in the original, rather than the entire plot). While many people argue that the film cannot be enjoyed because almost every character is, in some way, shape, or form, extremely unlikable and complicated, yet this is, in my opinion, what adds to the film's strength. All of the characters are human, which adds a level to the film, as it is much easier to place yourself in the characters's shoes. The sequel, however, lacks that character complexity, with all of the new characters being clichéd, one- dimensional shadows of people, and even some of the recurring characters lose some of their complexity.

Still, for all of the films downfalls, it also contains a lot of strengths. The scene in which Tiffany finds her own personal Hell is probably the creepiest in the entire film, and Frank's Hell is rather intriguing and disturbing. The beginning half of the movie truly delivers, and is up to the standard that the original had, and before Dr. Channard ruins them, the Cenobites are quite threatening, perhaps even more so than in the original. Pinhead delivers some truly great lines ("Your suffering will be legendary, even in Hell!", "But please, feel free, explore. We have eternity to know your flesh.", "It is not hands that summon us. It is desire."). The film delivers some backstory on Pinhead, which is interesting and creepy, adding to the quality of the film. All in all, the film is rather unique, even among the others in the series, and it will be difficult to find a film that is quite like this one. So, despite all of its mistakes and failures, this film still holds a special place in my heart.

Hellraiser (1987)

CLIVE BARKER

HELLRAISER

UK, 1987

8/10

"I thought I'd gone to the limits. I hadn't. The Cenobites gave me an experience beyond limits... pain and pleasure, indivisible."

After writing a novel, THE HELLBOUND HEART, Clive Barker wrote and directed an film adaptation of his novel, the cult classic HELLRAISER (1987). Barker wrote the novel with the intention of turning it into a film, so the transition is quite nice, though there are a few differences.

The film opens with this weird-ass guy Frank buying a mysterious puzzle box, and solving it, bringing in some weird-ass monsters named the Cenobites, who torture him. Eventually, his brother Larry and unfaithful wife Julia move in to the house. When Larry bleeds on the floor, Frank is revived (without skin, which is pretty disgusting yet I couldn't bring myself to look away) in front of Julia, and convinces her to lure horny men into the attic so he can kill them to grow his skin back.

Of course, one of the things this film does masterfully is blur the line between pain and pleasure. I have not read THE HELLBOUND HEART, although I plan to, and I have heard that during one of the torture scenes, Frank is masturbating, and his semen is on the spot in the attic in which he is revived. Of course, this was cut out, as that would probably be difficult to get into a movie today, let alone 1987. If I remember correctly, the scene in which Larry accidentally cuts his hand on a nail is interwoven with a flashback scene of Frank and Julia having sex. As the quote above states, the Cenobites gave pain, and within that, deeper pleasure.

Even if you've never seen HELLRAISER, you've no doubt heard of it, and have most likely formed a connection in your mind to this movie and the Cenobites, namely Pinhead, the most known and infamous of the Cenobites (seen on the poster above). However, this film, unlike the sequels, is not about the Cenobites. Sure, Frank wants Julia to get as many men as possible so he can grow his skin back quickly and escape the Cenobites, but they really only exist to advance the plot and emphasize the pain/pleasure parallel. In fact, HELLRAISER is a very character-driven horror film, more so than others. Almost every consequence comes as a result because of a character's actions, not some unseen supernatural force, whereas the sequels threw this out the window to focus on Pinhead and other Cenobites. I understand that the Cenobites eventually had to take on a larger role because it's much easier to market these films with Pinhead as the center of focus, but I honestly do believe that's why all of the sequels were generally disappointing.

Incredibly gory and disturbing, though some of the effects have not aged as well as others, HELLRAISER is a film that, quite honestly, must be seen by anyone who claims to be a fan of horror. While the franchise quickly went downhill, the original is still worth watching. It is probably one of the most unique films in the entire genre, I have had difficulty finding any film that is similar to it. While it definitely will not appeal to everyone, it is still a great film. It will, as Pinhead says in one of the most iconic lines in horror history, tear your soul apart.