Over twenty years since it’s release, Hellraiser remains a seminal--and deeply disturbing--horror classic. Written and directed by then horror wunderkind Clive Barker, Hellraiser marks the first appearance of Pinhead and his fellow Cenobites. They’ve since gone on to become famous movie monsters for the generation that came of age in the 1980s, and the original Hellraiser is the reason why. Filled with imaginative and unsettling imagery that still manages to shock to this very day, the film deals with a middle aged couple, Larry and Julia, who move into his family’s home in England. Larry’s an easy-going, decent sort of guy who doesn’t realize that Julia’s got a roving eye for the guys--particularly Larry’s brother Frank, with whom Julia’s had a wild affair with just days before her wedding to Larry.
Before Julia reluctantly agrees to move into the house, she and Larry find evidence that Frank had spent some time there--but what they do not know is that Frank was killed by his meeting with Pinhead and the Cenobites. His flayed body parts had been kept in storage under the floorboards of an attic room, until an accidental spillage of blood from a wound on Larry’s hand revives Frank, who can easily say that he had been to hell and back, literally. But he’s lost more than his shirt in the bargain; Frank has no skin. And when Julia finds what remains of her lover, she agrees to help bring him back completely by giving him bodies to feed upon.
Larry is sympathetically played by veteran actor Andrew Robinson, who memorably threatened Clint Eastwood in the first Dirty Harry movie. Claire Higgins also does a superb job as the initially conflicted Julia, who eventually dives into the dark side with Frank. Ashley Lawrence makes her screen debut as Larry’s daughter from a previous marriage, and her screen presence lights up every scene she’s in. Doug Bradley is suitably commanding--and scary--as Pinhead, delivering such potentially corny as lines as "we will rip apart your soul" so convincingly that he sends chills down your spine. And Clive Barker is remarkably self-assured for a first time director.
Some of the make up effects, such as a foul beastie that chases Lawrence, look a bit dated. However, the effects on the skinned Frank’s body still looks very good, and is stomach-churning--which is the point of the film. But lest a non-horror fan thinks this is yet another mindless slasher film, Hellraiser has an actual story to tell, and it’s told extremely well by a tight script and some great acting. The DVD I reviewed has a retrospective documentary that may be very hard for some folks to watch, as it includes footage of real-life pinheads who abuse their bodies for pleasure. There’s also a commentary of the film by Barker and Lawrence. Twenty years on,
Hellraiser still effectively raises hell with such sights that it has to show us.
This was followed by Hellraiser 2 --SF
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