Hellraiser

Title: Hellraiser

Year: 1987

Summary: Larry decides to move back into his childhood home with his new wife Julia. What Larry does not realize is that the body of his brother (Frank) is in the attic. Frank becomes reanimated and we find out that Julia had an affair with Frank. In order to restore his body back to normal, he has Julia bring him men so he can drain their blood. While doing this, he explains that she must hurry or else the Cenobites will find him. Larry’s daughter Kristy discovers what Frank and Julia are up to and must fight them and the Cenobites.

Dave’s Rant: The 1980’s is often considered the greatest decade for horror. It produced some of the greatest scary movies that laid the foundation for the genre over the next few decades: The Shining, Nightmare on Elm Street, Evil Dead, and Poltergeist among others. Hellraiser is no exception. The combination of creepiness, sex, and pure horror kept my heart rate up throughout the film. There seemed to be a new scare around every corner whether it was Frank dragging his half dead body across the floor, a homeless man stalking Kristy, or the Cenobites’ overall level of terror. Seriously, these guys are like the Avengers from hell:

One went to acupuncture way too much, one needs to see a a dentist about his jaw, one could be used in an anti-smoking ad, and the last one looks like a fat Morpheus. Our other major villain is Frank who plays his role as the zombie lover extremely well. His desperation to regain human form while maintaining his emotional and sexual dominance over Julia is excellent writing. Some of his lines will make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. What drags Hellraiser’s rating down is the ending. It wasn’t terrible but compared with the rest of the movie it was the weak link. Remember to practice abstinence or else these bastards could show up and make your life a living hell.

Memorable Quote: “What’s your pleasure, sir?”

Rating: 7.5/10