'Hellraiser' (2022)

Yeah, the plan was to post this much earlier but, it was another one of those days wasn't it? Oh well, fingers crossed for a better one tomorrow ;o) Anyway...

It's not just zombie movies that I love; I really enjoy the 'Hellraiser' movies as well, even the bad ones (although I may have to revise that if I ever manage to watch 'Hellraiser: Revelations', I've heard that it's particularly bad...) Most of it is down to Doug Bradley just being amazing as Pinhead but there's a whole mythos behind it (which is developed further in the books and comics) that is really engaging for someone like me who likes a little bit of meat on their plot.

So when I heard that 'Hellraiser' was being rebooted... Yep, I was a little bit wary when I heard there would be a new Pinhead (no matter how bad a 'Hellraiser' film is, Doug Bradley will rescue it) but it was more excitement than anything else. 'Hellraiser: Judgement' felt like a step in the right direction and so it was exciting to see it taken one step further though. The important question though, was the new 'Hellraiser' any good...? Well, lets have a chat about that.

A young woman struggling with addiction comes into possession of an ancient puzzle box, unaware that it's purpose is to summon the Cenobites, a group of sadistic supernatural beings from another dimension. While she fights to keep her friends alive, there is somebody else, lurking in the shadows, with a vested interest in making sure that new victims are chosen. If Leviathan is to come, the box must taste more blood...

This new version of 'Hellraiser' is something more than a little bit special, at least from where I'm sat. We've moved away from the morality tales of the 'straight to DVD' instalments and we're right back to all the stuff that made the first few 'Hellraiser' films so good (and yes, I'm counting 'Hell on Earth' and 'Bloodline', I like them). A mystery that eventually leads us to the Cenobites (who again, take their time appearing here) and at least one human character who is truly evil in a way that the Cenobites, having lost their humanity, can't match. Yes, you know what's coming but there are enough foreboding moments and little jump scares to keep it just fresh enough. Is it drawn out a little too much? Your mileage will vary but two hours was pushing it just a little bit too much for me, that's just me though. There is a lot to get into here and it's a great mix of little nods to the original movies and moments where you can see the franchise start to take little steps in a direction of its own choosing.

And nowhere is that more apparent than in the new Pinhead and their retinue. The Chatterer is still about (for a bit at least, another step from the old into the new) but it's the other members of Pinhead's group that are worth the price of entry and you just know that the effects team just had the best time coming up with literally anything and then using it as bodily decorations. Damn...

And if you've read this far, you're probably thinking, 'when is Graeme going to talk about the new Pinhead?' Well thanks for waiting so patiently ;o) Here goes...

Jamie Clayton was never going to be Doug Bradley's 'Pinhead' but that's just fine as it becomes clear, very quickly, that Jamie Clayton's 'Pinhead' is just what's needed to take the franchise forward. She makes the role her own very quickly and really comes across as an explorer in the further regions of experience. I'd be very keen to see Clayton reprise the role, fingers crossed.

Slightly excessive runtime (well, to me anyway) to one side, the 2022 'Hellraiser' reboot is a welcome return to what made the originals so good and a sweet little glimpse of where the franchise could go next if it's allowed to Hopefully it will be.