Hellraiser hits a series peak
David Bruckner, the man behind “The Night House” and one of the directors of “V/H/S,” gave followers of the franchise the first “Hellraiser” movie in five years and the first great one in four decades. This movie tells the story of a drug addict with family issues who comes into connection with the Lament Configuration, the puzzle box that summons demons who tempt people with desires.
I’ll get my few nitpicks out of the way first: a couple moments were a little difficult to follow, which may call for a rewatch. Additionally, the boyfriend character, Trevor, was stereotypical at times but these moments were short-lived.
This movie, released on Oct. 7, blew me away. As someone who’s seen all 11 movies in the Hellraiser franchise, this is easily my favorite of them all. This says a lot as I love the original “Hellraiser” and its sequel. Thanks to Bruckner and everyone who worked on this movie, fans finally have an installment that demonstrates the potential the franchise always had. Right as the movie ended, I remember saying to myself, “This is what Hellraiser should be.”
The cast did a really great job making their crazy situation believable. The standout to me was Jamie Clayton as Pinhead (or as credited “The Priest”), she did an excellent job that rivals Doug Bradley’s iconic portrayal of the same character. Speaking of which, the makeup for Pinhead and the other cenobites, the demons, is top tier for this franchise in both quality and design, and given their appearance, that includes costume design as well.
After decades, fans finally have a fitting story worth telling, not at all like the recycled detective script used in the past. Partially written by David S. Goyer, one of the writers of the Dark Knight Trilogy, he brought in new lore while bringing back and respecting what came before, and the combination felt epic at times. The epic moments come with large visuals that are so cool it’s a shame this won’t get a theatrical release. The production design was also on point, there are moments where walls shift and spin to completely transform the space the characters are in. Lastly, the music was the perfect piece to boost everything on screen, the influence of Christopher Young, the original soundtrack’s composer, was present in the movie along with his theme.
I love this movie as it places high among my top 100 favorite horror movies, I score it a 4.5/5!
