Hellraiser: Quartet of Torment

Let’s be honest, it’s starting to feel like one of the Cenobites most ingenious torture techniques is seeing how many times they can convince fans to buy a new copy of the same movie.  Few horror franchises have had more releases in the boutique video era than Hellraiser and its disparate sequels…outside of the Evil Dead (Anchor Bay took up a whole shelf with that one) or maybe Texas Chainsaw (there’s probably a new 4K in the works as we speak).  But it just goes to show the longevity of Clive Barker’s creation and its unique standing in the overstuffed horror community.  Even 27 years later, there’s still nothing else quite like it.

Once hailed as “the future of horror” by none other than Stephen King, few would have predicted Clive Barker’s debut as a director, not to mention his transgressive approach to horror itself, would have such broad appeal.  (Meanwhile, King is still apologizing for Maximum Overdrive).  Hellraiser still impresses as a uniquely twisted gothic horror story, dabbling in spiritualism, S & M and necrophilia.  Of course, Barker’s 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’s new 4K Ultra HD Quartet of Torment gathers the best of them - installments 1 through 4 – for what should stand as the defining home theater experience.

 

It’s easy point out some of the original Hellraiser’s flaws: 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 an 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 slicker and more 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.

The most surprising twist in the franchise comes with Hellraiser: Bloodline, or as it was written off at the time: Hellraiser in Space.  But director Kevin Yagher’s time-jumping history of the Lament Configuration (Pinhead’s puzzle box) has finally gotten the re-appraisal it deserves.  Built around the descendants of the toymaker responsible for unleashing hell on earth in the first place, the film ambitiously bounces between the sumptuous renaissance era and an abandoned space station as the Cenobites are set up for sci-fi destruction.  Behind the scenes struggles kept this one from realizing its full potential, but what remains is still fascinating stuff.

 

The first two Hellraisers never seemed to lend themselves to a crisp, grain-free presentation, but Arrow’s brand new 4K restorations work wonders with the image, pumping colors to classic Hammer levels of intensity while maintaining the cinematic look purists will appreciate.  Parts three and four get the same treatment as well,  but it's the extras that will keep you busy for weeks to come.   No matter how many previous versions you own, the Quartet of Torment will still surprise you, with all new commentary tracks, scholarly discussions, visual essays and  rediscovered EPK material for each film in the franchise!  It’s an immense body of work that also includes as 200-page hardback book with new writing from Barker himself. The expression “We have such sights to show you!” never seemed so apropos.