Open the Door to Hellraiser: I, II, IV and V

.  HELLRAISER: 1987: +-: Horror:  After watching Dead Silence and being pretty disappointed by it, I needed to get my fix of gratuitous gore and I didn't have to search far.  One of my favorite franchises in the horror movie genre is Hellraiser, which was initially a novella by Clive Barker, the Hellbound Heart.


Hello old friend, looking as well rested as ever!

Not because it's mentally provoking or evocative in the sense that it could be true in the vein of The Last Exorcist, The Possession, or even the first Paranormal Activity ( which in some critics minds still stands as a decent paranormal horror movie) but because it's utterly revolting and terrifying.  I had no nightmares last night after watching Dead Silence but I suspect that I will after my marathon of the Hellraiser movies tonight.  I'm still watching one as I write this, but I will continue.  


Help me get some nightmares tonight Pinhead!

Call me a masochist, but I enjoy a good scare, especially in the form of a nice, long, nightmare.  Especially during a lucid one as I described in an earlier post.  Don't get me wrong, the first Hellraiser is definitely the best and was directed by Clive Barker.  It boasted some excellent music, amazing makeup and a plot line that turned and twisted to my delight after a few early banalities.  It is still a horror movie so you have to expect some predictability during the first portions.  After that, all hell breaks loose, (pardon the pun).


Hell is portrayed as a sadomasochistic paradise.

Some of the acting was questionable, but it worked overall.  One of the things I like about this franchise is that the main female heroine, Clare Higgins stays in them for the most part in the other iterations and sequels.  She plays Julia Cotton exceedingly well. She seems to enjoy the role.  


The Julia Cotton character is a strong female role present in most Hellraiser iterations.

For readers of this blog, you might notice that this post is going to be a little graphic but as I mentioned, I am going on a marathon of horror movies and before I approach the paranormal/ supernatural ones, I have to go through the gory ones.  Hellraiser  is a must in this category.  Sure the Nightmares on Elm Streets and Friday the 13ths are gory, but most of them are tongue in cheek and really don't give you the chills like this one.


Killing and blood doesn't guarantee a great horror movie.

Enough backdrop and praise for this franchise, let's get to some of the high points.  Although the movie is a bit cheesy at first, you quickly get over this when you start delving into the mythology and overall, it's original, inspiring and pretty interesting.  Revolving around a box that opens the doors to hell, it set the stage for various encounters with people who are interested in the powers, intrigued by what it does, frightened of it and want to destroy it and finally some who simply stumble upon it by mistake.  


The Lament Configuration no doubt inspired by the myth of Pandora and her box.

During the first Hellraiser, there is a love story of sorts between a married woman and an occultist who uses and opens the box to obtain what he thought was everlasting life and to satisfy his curiosity of hell.  He definitely got what he was looking for.


Sometimes things are better left undisturbed but like Adam and Eve, sometimes curiosity kills.

Without giving away too much of the plot, the woman needs to lure humans to rebuild the body of her lover which has succumbed to mere blood and guts, literally.  The more he devours living flesh, the more he becomes human.  On top of that they are in constant odds with the cenobites, who are the demons of hell.  They feed on pain and misery and actually revel it in.  They love pain, inflicting it upon themselves and others.  The Cenobites are one of my favorites parts of the series and I dare say some of the most frightening creatures in horror movies period.  


The Cenobites are awesome examples of pure terror and dread.

There was no CGI during this period and therefore all the models were real and absolutely grotesque but at the same time anatomical marvels.  The muscles, the blood, the organs the skeletal structure, and their composition were nothing short of amazing for the time and even rival anything put out now since they are just computer images.  There's nothing like the real thing.  The lighting made them look so real that it just amazes.  This is especially true of the lover who is slowly becoming human and goes through various transformations to become more and more like a man.


The makeup was amazing.  Look at the attention to detail.


Don't forget to drink your milk, it builds strong...well you know!

Aside from the impressive and revolting makeup and special effects, the first Hellraiser actually had an engaging plot that kept you interested in waiting for the next scene and subsequent killing. As the lover of the occultist accumulates bodies for his revitalization, you see her descent into evil.  The music compliments this perfectly.  


She wants her lover back, but it will come at a price.  Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, assuming they have eyes!

The scenes in hell are also amazing and truly leave you with a sense of uneasiness and horror.  They are not commonplace depictions of fire and brimstone, but room after room of torture contraptions. Here is where people atone for their sins and Pinhead is happy to oblige.  There is a strong theme of sadomasochism.


Hell is not a place you would like to have an extended stay.


Pinhead is always happy to be your tour guide, provided you pay in pain!

As mentioned, the plot in Hellraiser I  is important because it sets the stage for subsequent sequels but leaves enough unanswered to set the stage for sequels, some of which are good and some of which I would rather not mention.  Julia Cotton goes deeper and deeper into the world of the Cenobites and starts experiencing their revelry in the revolting.  She also starts understanding the ramifications of the box, which is called the lamentation configuration.  



She explores and actually becomes Pinhead's favorite study in human perseverance and their ability to resist temptation and show strength.  She also gets to meet some of the Cenobites who all have their respective main methods of suffering which they wear like a badge of honor.  Some have had their eyes removed, some have had their scalps peeled off while others have had other disgusting disfigurements.   


Even Pinhead has some friends.  I like the one without eyes who chatters his teeth!


Man, err, Demon's best friend.  Awww, look at his collar, just in case he gets lost.  "Don't worry, he doesn't bite"!

This movie was a nonstop horror, thrill ride that kept me wanting more.  Aside from some out of dated effects, the other elements were outstanding and set a new mark for horror makeup and the definition of evil.  

The other movies in the series that I liked were II, IV and V, but they weren't really much different from this, just sort of updates. Like the new Apple 6, some had some glaring defects, but as a fan of the franchise I still watched them and enjoyed my favorite elements including the Cenobites, the depiction of hell, and the way in which Pinhead dishes out punishment, while always providing a glib and condescending lesson.  This gives his character more substance and adds to his mystique.  Am I wrong to have a certain respect for him?  Have I been watching too many horror movies? How cares, he's awesome! 


Pinhead has a penchant for hooked barbed wires and ripping flesh.  "Delicious" he says.!

The variety of the Cenobites keeps all the sequels interesting and I enjoy their self-righteous, didactic preaching of those they are punishing for solving the riddle.  

So if you are looking for a movie that will definitely get your blood flowing, give you the creeps and inspire nightmares, look no further than Hellraiser.  You won't regret it, or maybe you will.  Sweet Dreams!  

Hellraiser I :  84%
Hellraiser II:  79%
Hellraiser IV:  69%
Hellraiser V: 72%

Marvel at some of the outstanding makeup and special effects done by Doug Bradley:


One of my favorites, the "Chattering teeth" cenobite


A girl who probably was once pretty decided to have her face pierced through her speech box.


Chatterbox scaring Julia. She really did do a great job acting in these movies!


The twins in IV were pretty original takes on cenobites


No doubt the femme fatale of the cenobites.  She's the hottie apparently for cenobites


Overweight, "Sunglasses at night" cenobite who likes his treats!


Until next time!

Black Death: It Should Just Die Already!

BLACK DEATH: 2010: HORROR: +-: Seeing this on the Netflix cue, I decided to give it a chance since it dealt with some interesting subject matter and had Sean Bean, who I've seen in other movies like Lord of the Ring.

It's not that it's a terrible movie, it just lacked focus and became lost in it's own plot line.  While the scenery and music were well done, the characters were only mildly developed and their overall motivation was unclear.  There is a plague ravaging the society, but why exactly are they gallivanting about on their horses with a monk? It's only vaguely detailed.  

 
Some of the scenery and locations were excellent.

I also don't know how this is a horror movie.  There were some gruesome torture sequences during the end, but overall, it was not scary in the sense that it triggered the usual effects of a horror movie like a quickening pulse, anxiety, or dread.  It just was violent and gory.  


Is violence equivalent to fright?

There was also a fight scene midway through the movie that didn't really make any sense at all.  They were just raided by thieves and had to kill them in order to survive.  That was it. 


There was some action in the movie but it had no bearing on the plot.

A horror movie set in this time period would be great and in some ways the sets and the overall mood were in line with a horror movie, but it just wasn't enough to make it scary.  


The atmosphere attempted to set the stage for horror, but ultimately fell short.

The movie gets it's most interesting elements when the team of knights, vagabonds, and rogues come to a village that seems untainted by the black death plague.  Although they are welcomed but, Ulric, played by Sean Bean, is skeptical of the village, especially of its beautiful leader, played by Carice van Houten. She seems like a benevolent leader, but things aren't always as they seem.


She seems nice at first, or does she?

The group is invited to imbibe on some ale while being entertained by the women folk.  They are actually poisoned and wind up in a cell where they have to renounce their faith in order to live or get tortured.  At this point, the torture scenes are pretty gruesome.


One of the gruesome scenes and this isn't the worst of the bunch..

The monk had an inkling that there was something wrong because the night before he saw the woman leader performing necromancy, bringing back a love he once had before becoming a monk.  This confuses him but ultimately sets up the final battle.


The necromancy scene where the leader shows she is a witch was a high point.

I won't give away the ending because if you like this time period and want to watch a movie that has some action and other elements of the medieval epoch, watch it.  I just didn't think it lived up to expectations: 69%