Year: 1988
Actors: Kenneth Cranham, Clare Higgins, Ashley Laurence, Doug Bradley
Director: Tony Randel
Formats: DVD
Price: £4.20
Mini Review
Following on directly from the first Hellraiser movie, Hellbound takes us further in to the box and the Hell that lies beyond. Kirsty receives a blood soaked message that her father is in Hell, she decides to make a rescue attempt along with a mute girl. We are introduced to Dr Charnard, a psychiatric doctor obsessed with the study of the boxes. It isn’t long before he finds the secret of the bloody mattress that can bring Claudia back to life and so begin his own descent in to Hell. I don’t want to give any plot spoilers here, needless to say we see the return of the Cenobites (including Pinhead), the blood and gore also return.
Verdict
What I like about Hellbound is that it is written as a traditional sequel. Part 1 left several hooks and unanswered questions for part 2 to address (and it does). So many modern franchises have to shoehorn in reasons for a sequel, Hellraiser genuinely needed one. The story focuses much more on what is behind the box when it is solved. We get to see an actual depiction of Hell which is suitably disturbing. One of the stand out points here is the character of Dr Chanard, he’s creepy, he’s cooky, he’s altogether messed up in the head. As creepy as he is there’s something about Clive Barker’s story telling that helps us understand and even empathise with his character at least in the early stages of the movie. He’s obsessed with solving the riddle of the boxes and is taking a serious approach to his research. I think the reason we can identify with him is that he has a chance to answer questions through his research. Who hasn’t at some point been curious enough to make their own research projects?
Needless to say the backdrop of a psychiatric hospital is always going to lead to a bit of madness. The scenes are incredibly blood-laden but they are necessary on account of the story line.
The return of Pinhead (previously credited only as “Lead Cenobite” in part 1) is back and as sinister as ever. To be fair he doesn’t have too much to do in terms of the plot line but Doug Bradley delivers every line to perfection, this is how to make a character. His character is neither really bad nor really good “Angels to some, demons to others” as he describes the Cenobites. For him, the torture of those that open the box is a full time job. When I see him on screen I always get the impression he’s been busy elsewhere up until the moment we see him, in some ways he seems quite indifferent and very matter of fact. This is in great contrast to other horrors of the time such as Friday 13th, Halloween and Nightmare on Elm Street where the protagonists are pretty much out for a high kill count as motivation. The other differential being that Hellraiser parts 1 and 2 actually have a plot rather than just a sustained massacre.
The plot works well as we see the return of many of the original cast and have a good stand-off situation between good and evil. There’s development of the main characters and also enough to leave questions surrounding the origins of the box. The movie is also quite arty in its own way. Clive Barker has a way of making ugly things look beautiful. Had the series stopped here at part 2 I think that the series would be a lot higher regarded than it now is due to the lesser sequels that followed.
On balance I really can’t decide if Hellbound is better than the original. It’s story is less contained than the first and certainly more bloody. Since part 1 and part 2 seem to come as a package I will recommend them both. Certainly if you like part 1 you will enjoy part 2 just as much.
Pros: A good overall watch with plenty of story and blood.
Cons: Left the series open to further sequels.
The Haunted Cinema Rating: 8 psychiatric patients out of 10.
Should our review not be enough for you try these links.
IMDB: Hellraiser 2: Hellbound
Wikipedia: Hellraiser 2: Hellbound
No comments:
Post a Comment