Hellraiser: A Review

A review of one of my favourite horror movies of the 1980's. Enjoy!

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Horror
• movies
• movie reviews
• film
• film reviews
• 1980s
• Clive Barker
• Barker
• Hellraiser
• the hellbound heart
• pinhead
• cenobites

[DarkHeartedMusician]

Question: It is mentioned that the Lament Configuration can unlock the gates to either heaven or hell. But, does it mean a literal "heaven/paradise", or does it mean the same exact place as "hell", but just from a perspective of a person who would enjoy the pleasures/pain of the experience that the cenobites would place upon them?

[ExaggeratedElegy]

@DarkHeartedMusician

Hey there Darkhearted. Barker has been very clear in stating that in this instance the terms "Heaven" and "Hell" are just memetic markers meant to signifiy particular states of being: they are not the mythologicallly specific judeo-christianic Heaven and Hell; rather a state (or states) that transcend the limitations of both.

George

[Vange1us]

I adore Hellraiser, hehe.

Might recommend one or two of the post-Hellraiser 4 DVDs if I could remember which ones they were; there were two that struck me as getting the idea right despite a wonky execution, but I forgot their titles.

(Not Hellworld. ;) )

[ExaggeratedElegy]

Hey Vange1us, I stopped watching the films after Hellraiser 4, which was just....ugh, too painful to even speak about (and not in a good way). I did catch "Inferno" in passing; it wasn't too bad a film, it was just obvious that the Hellraiser motiff had been tagged on in order to draw in an established audience. The others I don't know a great deal about (though heard that Kirsty reappeared in one of them?!?!?!)

[Bluedragon111]

Fascinating. You make it so much more interesting than any of the offical film critics.

Makes me want to check it out. Nice one!

[ExaggeratedElegy]

Hey Bluedragon, it is a genuinely (though somewhat perversely) fascinating piece of work. though I much prefer Barker's novels, Hellraiser really does deserve its status as a classic of modern horror.

[BelatedCommiseration]

Interesting. I understood the cenobites are more central in the novella, which I have yet to read, but I still feel that the ideas the film poses, such as the thin line between heaven and hell, pleasure and pain and existence through this idea in various means, forms and planes is extremely thought provoking. The only effect that really jarred me in the film was that 'hanging monster sperm' (as I call him) ceneobite who was obviously fake and you could even see the people pushing him!

[ccabrera153]

@Lee201024 Me too I have discovered this excellent series I want to explore every facet of it.

[tuberofyou1]

you make a mediocre movie sound like an incredible work of art lol, I enjoyed the concept of the movie and the scenes with the cenobytes but the cenobytes were only in the movie for a total of like 5 minutes, the majority of the movie was just frank trying to become a person again by sucking the life out of the other people, dragged on, and i dont get why people dont just say they want pleasure, then the cenobytes would be angels, but frank says he doesnt care, so he gets hell, dumbass

[BleedingWalls420]

Great review. Hellraiser freaked me out as a kid. Two scenes in particular are where the skeletal figure pulls himself out of the bed and where that horrid looking monster chases them down that dark hallway.

[XHeath86]

Ive read the Hellbound Heart, enjoyed it immensely, the films also, Clive Barker is one cool dude, interesting review.

[waterangel251983]

Gotta love that Clive lol. I take it you've probably read Coldheart Canyon as well? I really hope that becomes a movie.

[00MORDRED]

~hell bound heart~

can't wait to read it....my local book store sucks....have to order it.

[Lee201024]

A classic review, i'm actually about to read the Hellbound Heart, it arrived in the post today, i also admire the film, Hellraiser, seen it countless times, have a huge respect for Clive Barker, he's one talented writer etc etc.

[Westwoodboy1]

It angered me that they blurred out the accents and changed it to american!

[DarkHeartedMusician]

Thanks Elegy.

I actually knew that Barker created a higher plane that was different from the traditional view of the judeo-christian "heaven and hell". I'm sorry that I didn't specify, my apologies.

So there are in fact two different higher states of conciousness in the Hellraiser universe? A positive one and a "negative" one? Well, depends on interpretation I guess. As Pinhead stated that the cenobites were "demons to some, and angles to others..."