Hellraiser (1987)

By Saša Avramović

This review may contain spoilers.

Clive Barker is certainly one of the most important writers and artists working today. He cemented that position at the beginning of his career with a short story collection 'Books of Blood', issued in six volumes during 1984 and 1985. This collection is more than enough evidence of the wild imagination of the author, and quite sufficient for entry into the pantheon of immortals. A true Renaissance man, Barker writes books, directs movies, paints and designs video games.
In 1986 Barker adapted his story from the 'Books of Blood'  called 'Rawhead Rex' into the script which was made into a very weak movie (directed by George Pavlou). Unhappy with the results of the adaptation, Barker decided to write and direct a film based on his novella 'The Hellbound Heart' (issued in 1986). 'Hellraiser' was born. 

Frank (Sean Chapman) wants to go beyond the limit of sensual and spiritual pleasures by acquiring and solving a mysterious puzzle-box (the Lament Configuration), which opens a new doors of perception. What he gets is a slavery in the underworld of Cenobites, a demons who in their experiments on people are constantly crossing the border between pain and pleasure. The family of Frank's brother Larry (Anrew Robinson) will soon have to face the world which they never dreamed existed. Frank wants to escape from the depths of Cenobite SM hell. Few drops of Larry's blood spilled on the floor of the attic where Frank was torn apart by Cenobites will bring him back (in a magnificent scene of rebirth), but horribly deformed. For complete recovery he needs flesh and blood of the victims brought to him by Larry wife Julia (Clare Higgins), his former lover and partner in research of (at that time still just physical) limits of experience. Larry's daughter Kirsty (Ashley Laurence) will soon discover the secret hidden in the attic. Even greater problems arise when she solves a puzzle and Cenobites come for more flesh.
With 'Hellraiser' Barker found perfect art form for expressing his thematic preoccupations. For him there are no borders between different worlds and limits between layers of experience, seemingly distant worlds are mixed together building a new world that exist beneath the thin surface of the "normal world", a surface that sooner or later breaks and the underworld exposes itself. In Barker's work, supernatural horrors attack and consume our physical world, transforming it and forming new unbreakable unity of mutated flesh and spirit. His Sadean demons are not the "bad guys" in traditional sense of the word. He gives them space to speak and explain, he is successfully balancing on the border. 'Hellraiser' is his own "sympathy for the Devil". As the main Cenobite says, in his concise and effective reply to the question: "Who are you?" "Explorers, in the further regions of experience. Demons to some, angels to others." 

Pain and pleasure are inextricably mixed, and the flesh is a playground of inhuman forces. Those forces are represented by the Cenobites, who subject their victims to a continuous and extreme sadomasochistic experiments. Their design is completely in accordance with that: piercings, pins protruding from the head, leather suits cutting through the skin. Original creations in every sense of the word. Cenobites are the priests of new religion of flesh and spirit (the word "cenobite" comes from the Middle Ages and have direct religious conotation, meaning "the member of the monastic community"). The actors who play them are perfect in their roles: Doug Bradley plays Lead Cenobite, Grace Kirby plays Female Cenobite, Nicholas Vince plays Chattering Cenobite and Simon Bamford plays 'Butterball' Cenobite. They are the demons of human flesh, completely dedicated to their work. Using chains and hooks they are tearing apart human bodies, which is just the beginning of the process. Those extreme sadomasochistic experiments are the rituals of their faith, a faith of the seekers who solved the puzzle. The element of religious ecstasy ("Doors of plesures of heaven or hell, I didn't care which") are perfectly fused with pain and pleasure in the scene when Cenobites come back for Frank. Seconds before he is torn apart, while hooks and chains are holding him in the crucifixion pose, deforming his skin and body, he perversely licks his lips, smiles and says: "Jesus wept." and is immediately torn apart. 

Another important religious element of the film is the portrait of the demonic. Barker shows the figure of the Devil (not necessary a Christian one) in five shapes through the film. The first and obvious one are the Cenobites, the priests-surgeons of the new religion. The second one is the figure of the Tramp (another synonym for the Devil in mythology and literature), shown in one scene in a pet shop while eating the crickets from his hand. At the end of the film he transforms into the dragon-like creature, The Guardian of the Lament Configuration who takes the puzzle-box from the fire and flies away with it. In the last scene he is presented as the salesman of the puzzle, asking the next candidate: "What's your pleasure, sir?" The fifth one is the creature that visually resembles the cross between scorpion and worm. Its anatomy is fittingly inverted, the sting and the head exchanging places. All five incarnations are part of the same religion, the religion of the seekers and the curious ones. 

In the world of 'Hellraiser', people who are looking for new sources of satisfaction (and thus knowledge) are getting much more from what they initially wanted. But although Cenobites clearly say that their task is exploring the further limits of experience and winning a new landscapes of knowledge, even though Frank at one point says that Cenobites brought him the experience beyond every border in the form inextricably mixed pain with pleasure, still their experiments have the form of punishment. In a way, it becomes a punishment for those who want to explore new worlds.
Here Barker makes direct link between sensual pleasures and desires with the forbidden, some would even say with a sin. The angle from which that element is viwed is far from the traditional (Christian) perspective, but have its roots deeply in Christianity. In Christianity, the body is directly connected with forbidden desires and sin, which Barker uses to create his own mythology that exist beyond good and evil, which connects him with Marquis de Sade. In his mythology, the punishment for curiosity and desires has no form of Christian punishment in the eternal torments of hell. In Cenobite SM hell pain and pleasure are inseparable from each other and brought to such extremes that even the people like Frank did not count on that.
Julia is the woman who neglects her marriage, relationship with her husband and stepdaughter because of the desire for Frank. This craving for new sensual experiences is a major factor in the decision to help him bringing his victims. By living with Larry, she repressed her desire for Frank, and when she had the opportunity to renew the relationship, she will do it, no matter what the obstacles are. In this sense, the film exposes the dark family secrets and the consequences that arise when instincts come to the surface.

Before this film, Barker directed only two (solid) experimental short films ('Salome' and 'Forbidden') but with 'Hellraiser' he proved to be a true master. The film is drenched in a dark atmosphere, it combines intriguing ideas, physical horror, gothic iconography and the excellent acting into one highly original film. Makeup effects (designed by Bob Keen) are excellent and give another level of quality to the film. The budget for 'Hellraiser' was extremely low (about one million US dollars). Most of the film was shot on single house location, which Barker used to the maximum (although the filming in the house partially restricted movement of the camera), turning it into gothic torture chamber. 

My only serious objection goes to very end of the film, which at times looks like it was done in a hurry. Which is actually true, at the end very little money was left and everything was actually filmed quickly, including the weak animation effects. With regard to the budget, it can be said that the Barker achieved most of what he wanted in the film, but still we are left wondering how it would all look with improved effects at the end of the film. Also, the other problem arises from the scenes when Kirsty sends Cenobites back to their hell by solving the puzzle backwards. That element is not in sync with the rest of the film, it breaks the established rule - Cenobites are the ones who are bringing in new members. But because of the other enormous qualities, that element is not that much problematic for the construction of the film. Especially because nothing is final at the end, the doors are still opened for new seekers and new pleasures. 

The acting is on very high level, Clare Higgins and Doug Bradley are the best of the group, although everybody gave their maximum. Music by Christopher Young ('Hellbound: Hellraiser II', 'The Dark Half') is another element important for the success of the film. The original version of the music was composed by industrial band Coil, but it was rejected by the studio, and issued on their album The Unreleased Themes for Hellraiser. Young's very dark, beautiful, and elegant orchestral compositions are effectivelly fused with the visuals, pervading the events with the sounds from the Cenobite hell.
'Hellraiser' became a modern classic and his strength, intensity and strong conviction in presenting both visceral and intellectual elements, his refusal to draw any borders remained an inspiration to future filmmakers and a guide for achieving their goals. No limits!