Hellraiser
What?
The first (and best) Hellraiser, written and directed by horror writer and first-time-director Clive Barker, was, and still is a very original and well written horror film that was good enough for Stephen Kind to proclaim; "I have seen the future of horror fiction and his name is Clive Barker". Made for less than most Hollywood star’s hairdressing fees, Hellraiser enjoyed a certain amount of box office success but is really judged by it’s huge cult following who love the gore, the horror, the classic lines and of course, the iconic Cenobites. As a horror film it works well, it is very original, and while more disturbing than actually scary, first time watchers will feel uneasy during the numerous scenes of twisted imagery and suspense. The special effects from gore-meister Bob Keen are very impressive considering the budget and age of the film, while the cast on the whole do a good job.
If I’m being honest I will admit that every time I watch the film it seems to get ever so slightly worse. The first two thirds simply pale in comparison to the final third, the snake-like tunnel monster seems to look worse and worse with every watch and Clare Higgins’ acting smells more and more wooden every time I sit through the film. Obviously Hellraiser is not the perfect horror film but it is certainly a classic. Make no mistakes, numerous elements of varying success make up Hellraiser, but the star of this film is definitely Pinhead, a totally original movie monster who will remain as one of the most iconic in history.
Optics:
Hellraiser looks pretty much as I expected it would do on Blu-ray which is by no means a bad thing. Colours have been vastly improved with reds standing out more and blacks now looking much more convincing in their darkness. The image still looks very soft in places, which is much more down to the original source material and its low budget origins, and sharpness as a result is never particularly impressive throughout. There is no doubt that Hellraiser in high definition looks as good as it ever has, but as a Blu-ray it fails to blow any socks off.
Sonics:
A TrueHD mix has been included here which adds a little more weight to the old, DTS/Dolby Digital sound mix. That’s not to say that Hellraiser is a film full of low frequency effects but it does sound a little fuller than before. Dialogue – ADR and all – sounds clear while Christopher Young’s excellent score sounds as good as it ever has.
Extras:
‘Under The Skin: Doug Bradbury on Hellraiser’ is the pick of the extras if only to hear the man behind Pinhead talk so seriously about how he played, and dealt with being the film’s star. The commentary is an interesting listen and the pop up film facts are a very nice edition. The set is rounded out with four more featurettes, an image gallery and a selection of trailers and TV spots.
Well?
Although not a huge leap forward in audio and visual quality, Hellrasier on Blu-ray is an improvement none the less and should prove an interesting proposition for fans with Blu-ray capabilities.
Tom Day
The first (and best) Hellraiser, written and directed by horror writer and first-time-director Clive Barker, was, and still is a very original and well written horror film that was good enough for Stephen Kind to proclaim; "I have seen the future of horror fiction and his name is Clive Barker". Made for less than most Hollywood star’s hairdressing fees, Hellraiser enjoyed a certain amount of box office success but is really judged by it’s huge cult following who love the gore, the horror, the classic lines and of course, the iconic Cenobites. As a horror film it works well, it is very original, and while more disturbing than actually scary, first time watchers will feel uneasy during the numerous scenes of twisted imagery and suspense. The special effects from gore-meister Bob Keen are very impressive considering the budget and age of the film, while the cast on the whole do a good job.
If I’m being honest I will admit that every time I watch the film it seems to get ever so slightly worse. The first two thirds simply pale in comparison to the final third, the snake-like tunnel monster seems to look worse and worse with every watch and Clare Higgins’ acting smells more and more wooden every time I sit through the film. Obviously Hellraiser is not the perfect horror film but it is certainly a classic. Make no mistakes, numerous elements of varying success make up Hellraiser, but the star of this film is definitely Pinhead, a totally original movie monster who will remain as one of the most iconic in history.
Optics:
Hellraiser looks pretty much as I expected it would do on Blu-ray which is by no means a bad thing. Colours have been vastly improved with reds standing out more and blacks now looking much more convincing in their darkness. The image still looks very soft in places, which is much more down to the original source material and its low budget origins, and sharpness as a result is never particularly impressive throughout. There is no doubt that Hellraiser in high definition looks as good as it ever has, but as a Blu-ray it fails to blow any socks off.
Sonics:
A TrueHD mix has been included here which adds a little more weight to the old, DTS/Dolby Digital sound mix. That’s not to say that Hellraiser is a film full of low frequency effects but it does sound a little fuller than before. Dialogue – ADR and all – sounds clear while Christopher Young’s excellent score sounds as good as it ever has.
Extras:
‘Under The Skin: Doug Bradbury on Hellraiser’ is the pick of the extras if only to hear the man behind Pinhead talk so seriously about how he played, and dealt with being the film’s star. The commentary is an interesting listen and the pop up film facts are a very nice edition. The set is rounded out with four more featurettes, an image gallery and a selection of trailers and TV spots.
Well?
Although not a huge leap forward in audio and visual quality, Hellrasier on Blu-ray is an improvement none the less and should prove an interesting proposition for fans with Blu-ray capabilities.
Tom Day
Director:
Clive Barker
Starring:
Andrew Robinson
Clare Higgins
Ashley Laurence
Sean Chapman
Ashley Laurence
Kenneth Cranham
Imogen Boorman
William Hope
Doug Bradley
Best line:
- "What's your pleasure My Cotton?" - "The Box."
Tagline:
"It will tear your soul apart."
Description:
Anchor Bay
UK
Region B
Rated 18
1Hr 33 Mins
1.85:1
Dolby TrueHD 5.1
(English)
Subtitles: English, Spanish
BD50/MPEG4
Audio commentary with writer/director Clive Barker, star Ashley Laurence and screenwriter Peter Atkins
Fast Film Facts
'Mr Cotton, I Presume?'
'Actress From Hell'
'Hellcomposer'
'Hellraiser: Resurrection'
'Under the Skin: Doug Bradley on Hellraiser'
Trailers and TV spots
Stills gallery
Ratings: (Out of 10)
Film 7.0
Optics 7.0
Sonics 7.0
Extras 7.0
Overall 7.0
