HELLRAISER blu-ray

Clive Barker was once hailed as “the future of horror” by none other than Stephen King...and coincidently, both authors tried their hand at feature film directing. While Maximum Overdrive is tucked away in some dark corner of Netflix, Clive Barker’s Hellraiser still impresses as a uniquely twisted form of gothic horror story, dabbling in spiritualism, S & M and necrophilia. Of course, his signature demonic creation, Pinhead, has been pimped out for countless sequels, diluting the power of the original with each direct-to-video installment. But Arrow Video's limited edition Scarlet Box, which collects the first three films in the franchise, should resurrect some interest in Barker's directorial debut and the flawed by fascinating sequels that followed. Looking back at the first film – sporting a new 2K restoration – it’s easy to find fault; from the amateur acting of newcomer Ashley Laurence to Barker’s own neophyte directorial decisions (the hobo turns into a skeleton dragon at the end...really?!). Yet every moment spent with Julia (Clare Higgins) as she seduces and kills pudgy British businessmen to feed to her resurrected lover are pure gothic gold. The Cenobites, led by the iconic Pinhead (Doug Bradley), don’t make a significant onscreen appearance until over and hour into the picture, yet their presence in those final 30-minutes canonized them to into the pantheon of classic horror creations. Another director might have been able to shape Barker’s material into something more slick and professional, but it’s doubtful the author’s hell-borne obsessions would have made the cut. Hellbound: Hellraiser II attempts just that, expanding the scope and screen time for Barker's interdimensional baddies, complete with a Universal Horror-style showdown between Pinhead and a newly created demonic challenger. The film, directed by Tony Randel this time round, uses The Bride of Frankenstein as a template, bringing Julia back from the netherworld to tempt a twisted psychiatrist into opening the doors to hell once again. With a dramatic boost in gore (including a straight-razor self-mutilation scene that rivals anything put in a Saw film) and an epic scale, Hellraiser II gets points for taking the story into unexpected directions. But it often overreaches its budget (including some horrendous optical effects) and leans towards action rather than scares. Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth is easy to write off as the beginning of the end. After all, it introduces a new cast of "upgraded" Cenobites that dispatch their victims with video cameras and compact discs. And Pinhead's demonic dialogue is reduced to a series of Freddy Krueger-style quips. But, in the plus column, the acting from lead Terry Farrell has a leg up on cute-as-a-button Ashley Laurence and Doug Bradley gets his meatiest role outside of the Pinhead make-up. Unfortunately, the compliments end there as the film spins the series into a polished, formulaic direction it would never recover from. Hellraiser never seemed to lend itself to a crisp, grain-free presentation, but the new hi-def transfer works wonders with the image, pumping colors to a sickly yellow intensity while maintaining the “cinematic look” purists will appreciate. While the films have never looked better, it's the extras that will keep you busy for weeks to come. Each film gets a pair of audio commentaries, a Making Of documentary, interviews, deleted scenes, trailers, storyboards, and screenplays. There's also an extra disc (exclusive to the limited edition) that includes Clive Barker's two short films, a breakdown of his literary career, the new documentary Hellraiser: Evolutions and the more! Also included, but not available for review, is a 200-page hardback book, Damnation Games, with new writing about the Barker universe and the genesis of all three films. In fact, there's so much to cover, you're better off checking out the complete list of extras yourself on the Arrow website.