Tonight's Midnight Movie: "Hellraiser 4: Bloodline"

Year: 1996

Actors: Bruce Ramsay, Valentina Vargas, Doug Bradley, Charlotte Chatton

Director: Alan Smithee, Kevin Yagher

Formats: DVD

Price: £1.99

Mini Review

“Hellraiser: Bloodline” follows the bloodline of the Merchant family. Since the creation of the original box right through to the future the family has dealings with the box and the Cenobites. Each generation makes attempts to destroy what their ancestors created and set loose but will they succeed? The movie gives us a window on several historical time periods, each with their own chapter on how the box came to be and how the Cenobites can be destroyed.

Verdict

“Hellraiser: Bloodline” takes a real risk in being set in several time periods, a clear contrast from previous outings. Generally the movie gets poor reviews (having Alan Smithee as a director is not too encouraging). However, I’m not going to be too harsh on it. The plot involves the creation of the first box which is always good to see and also we receive a new Cenobite in Angelique. Personally I like the plot thread that the box haunts the bloodline of the Merchant family, for a fourth movie plot it’s not a bad concept at all. Thinking of another of my favourite mediums (video games) “Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem” uses the same idea and was applauded for essentially the same concept.

Time after time the Merchants are visited by the Cenobites throughout history and in to the future. This leads to an obviously plot floor in that if they so wanted I’m certain that the Cenobites could wipe out a bloodline if they really tried. Escaping the Cenobites for generations just seems to go against previous form. However, horror movies are generally full of these discussion points and I won’t hold it against what is generally an interesting movie.

As ever Doug Bradley’s return of Pinhead is excellent, he was simply made for the part. I’m not so sure about Angelique though, the idea of a female lead Cenobite is good but she seem to lack the on screen presence of Pinhead. A fourth Hellraiser movie was always going to be a real stretch in terms of keeping an audience. I’m pleased to say that the movie did re-invent the plot. Looking at Parts one to four, each movie is unique and not yet too repetitive on plot line. My personal opinion is that no more movies past part four should have been made, the franchise effectively died with this one.

My verdict on “Hellraiser: Bloodline” is that it is the last Hellraiser movie worth watching, especially if you are a fan of the first three movies. Past this point there can only be repetition, lesser directors and lower budgets. Inferno and Hellseeker are just dire attempts at generating money from the corpse of a franchise, I may not ever make time to write a specific blog about these. The can be summed up as “simply terrible”.

Pros: Interesting plot concept. Great acting from Doug Bradley.

Cons: The end of an era. Not ground-breaking enough.

The Haunted Cinema Rating: 6 cursed bloodlines out of 10.

Should our review not be enough for you try these links.
IMDB: Hellraiser: Bloodline
Wikipedia: Hellraiser: Bloodline
Amazon: Hellraiser 4 - Bloodline [DVD]

Happy hauntings, Jiblet.

Your views: Watched this? Own this? Recommend this? Have a question about this? Please feel free to comment.

Tonight's Midnight Movie: "Hellraiser 3: Hell On Earth"

Year: 1992

Actors: Terry Farrell, Doug Bradley, Kevin Bernhardt

Director: Anthony Hickox

Formats: DVD

Price: £2.99

Mini Review

“Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth” continues the franchise of Pinhead and the Cenobites. Pinhead emerges trapped in a block of concrete along with the box. Pinhead must convince young Playboy JP Monroe to help him escape the block by luring victims to their death (the blood regenerating Pinhead). Pinhead then seeks to destroy the box forever so that he can create a lasting Hell on Earth.

Verdict

Now here’s where the Hellraiser series takes its first wobble. Parts one and two are exemplary in terms of quality. Part three was always going to be a struggle to continue the form. The loss of Clive Barker’s direct involvement and a change from most of the original cast really show here. Since part three wasn’t penned as part of the original story it does seem a little disjointed from the first movies. Another issue is that we’ve seen the Cenobites and Hell close up already, part three was always going to suffer from the familiarity of the setup. The same can be applied to most horror movies, once you’ve seen Freddy Kruger kill in six movies the 7th really doesn’t leave much open for surprise.

So where to go with the plot? Well I think that the series did take a good decision here on focussing on the Pinhead character. The movie is much more revealing than the first two regarding his origins and a little bit more of the history of the box. This movie turns much more mainstream than he first two with an obvious emphasis on kill count and shock rather than the storyline.

The characters are at least memorable, Pinhead steals the show with his manic killing spree. We are also introduced to JP Monroe, he’s one of those guys that really needs a visit from a Cenobite. He’s rude, misogynistic, dumb and you just really want to see him get butchered in nasty ways.

Oddly enough though “Hellraiser: Hell on Earth” is a movie that I still enjoy. Seeing Pinhead rampage a nightclub with his chains is good viewing. There’s also some nice flashback scenes of the journey to becoming a Cenobite. Whilst I can’t support that this is a great classic I would defend that for a movie that is essentially the “cash in” movie it keeps true to the main ideas and is at least entertaining. It’s certainly better than Halloween Part 3 or Nightmare on Elm Street Part 3 and perhaps even Friday 13th Part 3. Keeping a good idea going is difficult and “Hellraiser: Hell on Earth” was a real test, I think it’s as good as I could have expected.

Pros: Pinhead is set loose. Story is progressed.

Cons: The new Cenobites are a little bit lacking in terror. Movie leaves the series open for more sequels.

The Haunted Cinema Rating: 6 new Cenobites out of 10.

Should our review not be enough for you try these links.
IMDB: Hellraiser 3: Hell On Earth
Wikipedia: Hellraiser 3: Hell On Earth
Amazon: Hellraiser III - Hell on Earth [DVD] [1993]

Happy hauntings, Jiblet.

Your views: Watched this? Own this? Recommend this? Have a question about this? Please feel free to comment.

Tonight's Midnight Movie: "Hellraiser 2: Hellbound"

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

Amazon: Hellbound - Hellraiser II [DVD] [1989]

Happy hauntings, Jiblet.

Tonight's Midnight Movie: "Hellraiser"

Year: 1987

Actors:Andrew Robinson, Clare Higgins, Ashley Laurence, Sean Chapman, Doug Bradley

Director: Clive Barker

Formats: VHS, DVD, Blu-Ray

Price: £4.50

Mini Review

So, what's it all about? Hellraiser can be loosely categorised as an '80's slasher movie. In truth though I think it follows the gore/suspense formula a little closer. The story takes much from the original Clive Barker novel "The Hellbound Heart" which in turn took at least part of it's inspiration from Edgar Allan Poe's "Tell-Tale Heart" short story. The Hellraiser story has a clear set up. There is a puzzle box which when solved acts as a gateway to Hell. Those that open the box are greeted by the Cenobites, demons that deliver sadistic torture on the opener.

The main focus of the story surrounds Larry Cotton, a middle aged business man type. His daughter Kirtsy, his wife Julia and the evil uncle Frank. Having opened the box Frank is ripped to shreds by the torture of the Cenobites and his remains lie under the floorboards of Larry's house. Carelessly cutting his hand on a loose nail Larry drips blood on to the floorboards. For a reason never really fully explained the blood resurrects Frank in a horrifically gruesome scene. It is at this point that Frank enlists Claudia to help him complete his skinless body by luring men to their deaths in the house. Frank can then suck their blood and regenerate, if you listen closely there is actually the sound effect of someone sucking through a straw in one scene, it's very creepy.

With Frank back and having escaped the Cenobites there is much mischief and mayhem as you would expect. Kirsty becomes involved looking for her father and encounters Frank and uncovers his relationship to the box and Hell. I don't want to give any more detail in this review so as not to spoil any surprises. Needless to say though there is a lot of blood, the appearance of the infamous Pinhead and plenty more blood.

Verdict

From my perspective Hellraiser has a lot going for it as a Horror movie. There is well thought out pacing, the characters have depth and the movie is not fixated on the Pinhead character but rather the fear of the Cenobites and Hell. One of the highlights has to be the special effects. Often the effects can ruin a movie like Hellraiser if they are not believable. However, the skinless Frank Cotton is superbly disturbing and the images of tearing flesh are really well executed. Although we associate the character of Pinhead with the Hellraiser series he actually has less than 10 minutes of screen time in this first outing. This adds to the mystery of the character, his role is very functional and clearly not a demon to mess with. Lines like "Your suffering will be legendary!" are delivered with such conviction that what could come off as incredibly cheesy really doesn't.

The other characters feature heavily in driving the story forward. Uncle Frank is a complete bad guy, to him nothing matters apart from what he wants. Julia has a slow descent from being a slightly creepy mother-in-law figure to an all out evil sidekick, this idea is then later revisited in part 2. I think what I like most in the character work though is Kirsty Cotton. We're so used to seeing annoying blonde girls keep falling over when chased and being generally a bit dappy. Kirsty on the other hand reacts very much as you would expect someone to in real life. I'm particularly fond of the "Get the f**k off me!" line, it's exactly what you would say if an evil, skinless bleeding man was trying to kill you. It's also refreshing seeing Kirsty bargaining with the Cenobites, emphasising that from her perspective evil uncle Frank is actually more of a threat to her. This also has the benefit of revealing more of Pinheads character; he's not a mindless killer and does have a sense of right and wrong (or at least who should be punished in terms of the rules of the box). Pinhead is more of a functional character with a job to do, there's a sense that he is ageless and very composed in his line of work.

I'm not a professional critic but I will try to comment on the directing style. Clive Barker seems to have a real vision in to how the movie should look and feel. Gory scenes are nicely detailed with flesh and blood, lighter scenes of the movie have a normality feel about them. The light use of on screen Cenobite killings also adds to the threat. By "kill count" Hellraiser would not rank particularly high, however the menacing appearance of the Cenobites makes up for this. Hellraiser is a triumph for the genre. It plays with all our fears of curiosity in games like the Ouija board and also reveals and grim interpretation of what awaits us in Hell.

Pros: Well made, well directed, solid story.

Cons: If you don't like blood this one isn't for you. Also the very final 20 seconds of the movie is somewhat disconnected.

The Haunted Cinema Rating: 8 blood soaked floorboards out of 10.

If you liked this try: Hellraiser II,

Should our review not be enough for you try these links.

IMDB: Hellraiser

Wikipedia: Hellraiser

Amazon: Hellraiser 1-3 Boxset [DVD] [1987]

Hellraiser (1987): Trailer

Happy hauntings, Jiblet.

Your views: Watched this? Own this? Recommend this? Have a question about this? Please feel free to comment.