Hellraiser [Blu-ray]

Director: Clive Barker Clive Barker

Overview

The feature-film debut of multi-talented filmmaker Clive Barker, this grim and surreal project is based on the writer/director's own novella The Hell-Bound Heart. The film opens with a chilling prologue in which globe-trotting pervert Frank (Sean Chapman) -- a connoisseur of sexual depravity seeking the ultimate sensual experience -- purchases a small, intricate puzzle box from an unseen dealer in an unspecified country. Upon solving the puzzle, Frank opens the door to a hellish alternate universe and is promptly torn to ribbons by a network of hooks and chains; his strewn body parts are subsequently collected by the Cenobites -- grotesque, S & M-clad denizens of hell. The story continues several years later, when Frank's brother, Larry (Andrew Robinson), moves into Frank's abandoned house with his daughter, Kirsty (Ashley Laurence), and his new wife, Julia (Clare Higgins). An accident causes some of Larry's blood to spill on the attic floor, which somehow triggers Frank's hideous resurrection. His body only half-composed, Frank seeks the tacit assistance of Julia -- with whom he had once had a torrid sexual liaison -- in restoring him to human form. Still secretly in love with Frank, Julia assists him by seducing men from the town and bringing them back to the house so her undead lover can drain their bodies of blood. Her increasingly furtive behavior arouses the suspicions of Kirsty, who had already moved to an apartment to get away from her despised stepmother. After following Julia and her next potential victim home, Kirsty comes face to face with the still-incomplete Frank, narrowly escaping with her life...and with the puzzle box. After losing consciousness, Kirsty awakens in the hospital, where she manages to solve the box's intricate mechanism and summon a trio of Cenobites -- including their apparent leader (played by Doug Bradley and dubbed "Pinhead" on subsequent sequels) -- who are prepared to claim her. In desperation, Kirsty offers them a bargain in which they agree to spare her soul if she leads them to Frank. Kirsty soon returns home to find Julia with her father...whose behavior has become disturbingly unnatural. Realizing that her father has become Frank's latest victim -- and that her uncle is now walking around in his brother's skin -- Kirsty hands Frank over to the Cenobites, who have particularly evil plans for their old friend.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/06/2011
UPC:	0014381732450
Original Release:	1987
Rating:	R
Source:	RLJ ENTERTAINMENT, INC
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Language:	English
Time:	1:33:00
Sales rank:	12,359

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Sean Chapman	Frank Cotton
Clare Higgins	Julia Cotton,Actor
Andrew Robinson	Larry Cotton
Ashley Laurence	Kirsty Cotton
Oliver Smith	Frank the Monster
Robert Hines	Steve
Leon Davis	2nd Victim
Mike Cassidy	3rd Victim,3rd Victim
Frank Baker	Derelict
Kenneth Nelson	Bill
Niall Buggy	Dinner Guest
Dave Atkins	Moving Man
Oliver Parker	Moving Man
Pamela Sholto	Complaining Customer
Doug Bradley	Lead Cenobite
Nicholas Vince	Chattering Cenobite
Simon Bamford	`Butterball' Cenobite
Grace Kirby	Female Cenobite
Sharon Bower	Nurse
Raul Newney	Doctor
Anthony Allen	1st Victim,1st Victim
Gay Baynes	Evelyn
Christopher Young	Composer

Technical Credits

Clive Barker

Mark Armstrong	Executive Producer,Producer
Clive Barker	Director,Screenwriter
Jim Dowdall	Stunts
Christopher Figg	Producer
Bob Keen	Special Effects
David Saunders	Executive Producer,Producer
Chris Webster	Executive Producer,Executive Producer,Producer
Dick Dimbleby	Special Effects
Stephen Banks	Sound Effects
David Beesley	Sound Effects
Michael A. Carter	Sound Effects
Graham V. Hartstone	Sound Effects
Joe Gilmore	Sound Effects
Selwyn Roberts	Producer
Dave Chagouri	Special Effects

Editorial Reviews

Medieval tortures and edgy sexuality intermingle in Clive Barker's cult horror classic Hellraiser. The story follows sexy, young Kirsty (Ashley Laurence), her father (Andrew Robinson), and her stepmother (Clare Higgins) as they grapple with a quartet of bizarre demons called Cenobites who are summoned by a strange, cube-shaped puzzle box. Hellraiser features some top-notch gore, particularly the startling appearance of Kirsty's evil -- and skinless -- Uncle Frank. But the movie also creates a strange alternative universe -- about which it raises more questions than it answers, most notably concerning those demonic Cenobites, described by Barker as "ageless experts in the arts of refined pleasures and pain." The S/M-inspired look of these demons -- lead by a character known among fans as Pinhead -- is alone worth the price of admission. Anchor Bay's collectors-edition DVD includes audio commentary by the Barker and Ashley Laurence, a specially made featurette, and theatrical trailers.

Barnes & Noble

Clive Barker's feature-directing debut is not only his strongest work as a filmmaker but one of the finest horror films of the 1980's. Barker's script is ambitious and carefully controlled all at once: the backstory weaves an elaborate mythology that is equal parts H.P. Lovecraft and S&M iconography but the author wisely roots these heady concepts in a scenario driven by a family unit of characters whose dysfunctional relationships give the viewer something to relate to. Barker the writer also works in a number of startling setpieces that allow Barker the director to show off a fully-formed set of filmmaking skills: highlights include the gruesome "rebirth" of Frank and the unnerving scene where reality folds in on itself as Kirsty unwittingly unleashes the Cenobites. Barker's stylish direction is aided immensely by slick lensing from Robin Vidgeon, who makes the film look much more expensive than its million-dollar budget, and the lush orchestral score by Christopher Young, which offsets the gruesome sights and sounds of the film with an almost romantic musical touch. Finally, and most importantly, the performances are fantastic: Clare Higgins is both sexy and scary as the unfaithful wife in thrall to the dark side while Sean Chapman exudes a sleazy charisma as Frank and Andy Robinson does a fine job cast against type as the nice-guy hubby caught in the middle. However, the heart of the film is Ashley Laurence's expressive turn as the daughter forced into fighting the film's evils: she does a fine job creating a character who is both sympathetic and resourceful (and she's also a great screamer). In short, Hellraiser is required viewing for fans of modern horror.

All Movie Guide