We'll Tear Your Soul Apart....Eventually (Movie only) (Hellbound - Hellraiser 2 (DVD))

Member Name: marandina

Product:	Hellbound - Hellraiser 2 (DVD)
Date:	03/03/07 (201 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Wonderful depiction of Hell

Disadvantages: Rough production values at times

Finding decent sequels can be a tricky business. Finding good horror sequels is even trickier so when they do come along it’s something of an event. Having made its mark in 1987, Toney Randel took over the director’s chair from Clive Barker for the second outing in the Hellraiser series - “Hellbound: Hellraiser II”, released in 1989. Having introduced the minions from Hell - the Cenobites - in the first movie, most of the cast was reformed for the second movie in what was to become one of the biggest horror franchises in movie history.

Having survived the ordeal with the Cenobites and the demise of her father, her step-mother and the evil uncle Frank, Kirsty Cotton (Ashley Laurence), finds herself in a psychiatric ward. Dr Channard (Kenneth Cranham) is keen to hear her story and upon discovering that the bloody mattress central to the conclusion of the first movie may hold esoteric secrets, Channard has it delivered to his home where he forces a patient to cut himself, releasing blood into the mattress which, in turn, allows the soul of the malevolent Julia (Clare Higgins), Kirsty’s step mother (why are all step mothers shown as evil?), to escape the dimension it‘s trapped in and enter the world partially formed. Part and parcel of Channard’s curiosity is his search for the Lament Configuration, a doorway to another dimension. Seduced by the partially formed Julia, Channard lures more patients back to his house for Julia to feed on, thus reforming again from the semi-skeletal state she is in. Discovering the gruesome cabal, Channard’s assistant, Dr McRae (William Hope) takes both Kirsty and a young patient called Tiffany (Imogen Boorman) to Channard’s home in an attempt to find Kirsty’s father who she believes is held captive in another world, accessible through the secrets of the puzzle box that Channard holds precious. As McRae meets an unfortunate ending at the hands of the now completely rejuvenated Julia, Tiffany is forced to unravel the puzzle box, opening a portal of Hell and allowing Channard and Julia to enter and the Cenobites to seek out new flesh.

“Hellraiser II” caused some consternation amongst its fan base after its release. Not so much because the movie was bad. Far from it, for a sequel, “Hellraiser II” was inventive, highly visual and took the viewer to the labyrinthine bowels of Hell and is a testimony to Peter Atkin’s screenplay. No, it was more the alleged humanisation of the demonic creations - the Cenobites - reprised and recreated for the follow up movie. There’s no doubt that their dialogue is more prevalent although, once again, we get some inspired lines like Pinhead’s taunting of Kirsty “Oh, Kirsty. So eager to play, so reluctant to admit it.”. The movie has some rough edges too. Julia’s reincarnation is not as marked as Frank’s from the first movie where the impressive under the floorboard to partially fleshed uncle is replaced by a somewhat briefer rejuvenation in the sequel. Once again, the Cenobite’s appear all too easy to evade for the most part, despite their mystical properties although without this aspect, the story would quickly grind to a halt. Some of the special effects appear cluncky and the stop animation is decidedly inferior when compared to Nick Park’s work on land mark creations like “Wallace and Gromit” but then maybe that was too much to expect for a low budget, British horror flick.

Where the movie succeeds is in its wonderfully imaginative screen inventions once again. Channard’s conversion from flawed doctor to spawn of Hell is the stuff of nightmares; as is the movie’s depiction of Hell complete with rotating obelisk along with corridors and morgue-like rooms straight from Dante’s Inferno. Tony Randel was a relatively unknown director at the time and his work in “Hellraiser II” went on to see him write the story for the third movie in the sequence, albeit “Hellraiser III” heralded the start of a terminal decline in quality. Essentially, the story should have concluded at the end of the second movie. With the original cast largely in tact, acting performances are what you would expect from a horror movie of this magnitude. Ashley Laurence spends most of her time mentally tortured by the whole experience as well as running away a lot, ably backed up by the mute Imogen Boorman playing Tiffany the savant. Sean Chapman is reduced to cameo as evil uncle Frank with a nominal part of the story, locked in one of the vaults of Hell. Archive footage reintroduces both Julia and Larry Cotton from the first movie whilst the skinless Julia is played by Deborah Joel. Apart from the now customary iconic exchanges with Douglas Brady’s Pinhead and the rest of the Cenobites, the star of the movie for me is the ponderous Kenneth Cranham as Dr Channard. Convincing as the curious but cruel doctor, his role is central to the movie and whilst he is reduced to a semi-cartoon creation later on, his depiction of the naivety of someone looking for things best kept secret is credible and he does get the best scenes of carnage towards the end of the movie (you‘ll never want to stay in a hospital ward again!) as well as featuring in a particularly memorable scene that will ensure that you never look at straight-jackets in quite the same light.

“Hellraiser II” was a commendable sequel following on from the seminal original that had etched a line in the horror/fantasy genre sand. With a viable story, imaginative effects and a highly visual screen landscape, the movie is a natural progression in the story even with its minor flaws and rough production edges. With another doom-laden but potent musical score from Christopher Young, “Hellraiser II” is as gory and graphic as its predecessor and with a strong theme of horror and violence, it lives up to its 18 certificate. Again, this is one for adults only and with a reasonable 97 minute run time, fans of the franchise will be pleased with this one whilst horror/fantasy aficionados will find it a very decent movie to watch. For everyone else, it may tear your soul apart. Eventually.

Thanks for reading

Mara.

More info at:www.houseofhorrors.com/hellraiser.htm
DVD available at Play.com from £9.99

Summary: Overview of movie