HELLRAISER

Hellraiser is (imo) one of the most seminal films of the 1980s. Written and directed by Clive Barker, based on his own novella, its a film that leaves your brain desperately craving something Disney. There is a mysterious exotic puzzle box which when solved can open doors to endless pleasures or eternal pain. Seemingly the destination is always the same, Hell, but how a victim choses to embrace or fight it determines whether or not it's pleasure or pain. During the 80s horror movies had started to become placid. The genre goes through cycles and having been through an era of hardcore horror (video nasties) in the 70s it had begun to soften in the mid 80s... And then Hellraiser came along. Its not an easy film to watch but I think its an excellent one. The movie's monsters are called Cenobites and they're servants of hell. Their leader is a tall menacing figure who was later dubbed Pinhead by fans. He is a movie monster unlike any other and his calm and composed ushering to the depths of Hell is chilling. Before Hellraiser even hit cinemas, test screenings had indicated a strong property and New World immediately green-lit a sequel. It is a shame that this was turned into a franchise because it is such a potent stand-alone movie. More movies to it's name only cheapened the material... but such is life and the nature of cinema (moreso horror) is that one good turn deserves another and so an onslaught of 8 sequels have been made to date. For Clive Barker purists the exciting news is that his original novella has a real sequel on it's way called The Scarlet Gospels. I cannot wait. 

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