Hellraiser
Hellraiser is a 1987 British supernatural horror film written and directed by Clive Barker in his directorial debut. Based on Barker's 1986 novella The Hellbound Heart, the film's plot concerns a mystical puzzle box that summons the Cenobites, a group of extra-dimensional, sadomasochistic beings who cannot differentiate between pain and pleasure. It stars Andrew Robinson, Clare Higgins, Ashley Laurence, and Doug Bradley as the leader of the Cenobites.
Development of the film began before Barker's novella was published. Disappointed by previous adaptations of his work, Barker elected to direct himself, appropriating several actors and crew from his earlier career as a playwright. With the backing of independent producer Christopher Figg and financing from New World Pictures, filming took place in London in autumn 1986.
Hellraiser had its first public showing at the Prince Charles Cinema on 10 September 1987. It was widely released in the United Kingdom by Entertainment Film Distributors, and was a considerable commercial success, grossing $30 million from its $1 million production budget. Critical reception was initially divided, but the film has since been evaluated as a classic of the horror genre.
The film launched the Hellraiser franchise which includes nine sequels, the first seven of which featuring Bradley reprising his role as Pinhead. A reboot, also titled Hellraiser and executive produced by Barker, was released in 2022.
Plot
In Morocco, a hedonist named Frank Cotton buys a puzzle box said to open the door to a realm of otherworldly pleasure. At home in his bare attic, Frank solves the puzzle and hooked chains emerge, tearing him apart.Later, Frank's brother Larry moves into the same house. He intends to rebuild his relationship with his second wife, Julia. Larry is unaware that Julia had an affair with his brother Frank before her marriage to him. When Larry accidentally cuts his hand moving furniture, his blood drips on the attic floor and resurrects Frank in a ghoulish form. Julia later finds Frank; still obsessed with him, she agrees to help restore his body, so they can run away together. Julia picks up men in bars and brings them back to the attic, where she mortally wounds them. Frank then drains their life, which regenerates his body. Frank explains to Julia that, having exhausted all sensory experiences, he sought out the puzzle box, which was supposed to provide access to a realm of new carnal pleasures. When the puzzle was solved, the "Cenobites" came to subject him to extreme sadomasochism.
Kirsty, Larry's teenage daughter and Frank's niece, sees Julia bringing a man to the house and follows her to the attic, where she finds Frank. She evades Frank and escapes with the puzzle box, collapsing shortly thereafter. Awakening in a hospital, Kirsty solves the box out of curiosity, unknowingly summoning the Cenobites and a monster called the Engineer, from which she narrowly escapes. The Cenobites' leader explains that although they have been perceived as both angels and demons, they are simply "explorers" from another dimension seeking carnal experiences, and they can no longer differentiate between pain and pleasure. When they attempt to force Kirsty to return to their realm with them, she informs Pinhead that Frank has escaped them. The Cenobites agree to spare Kirsty and recapture Frank instead, with the condition that Frank must confess to escaping them.
Kirsty returns home, where Frank has killed Larry and has taken on his identity by wearing his skin. Julia shows her what is purported to be Frank's flayed corpse in the attic. Julia then leaves the attic, locking the door behind her. The Cenobites appear and, not fooled by the deception, demand the man who "did this". Kirsty tries to escape, but is held by Julia and Frank. Frank reveals his true identity to Kirsty and, when his sexual advances are rejected, he decides to kill her to complete his rejuvenation. He accidentally stabs Julia instead and drains her without remorse. Frank chases Kirsty to the attic and, when he is about to kill her, the Cenobites appear after hearing him confess to killing her father. Now certain he is the one they are looking for, they ensnare him with chains with hooks and tear him to pieces. When the Cenobites double-cross Kirsty and attempt to take her, she grabs the puzzle box from Julia's dead hands and banishes them by reversing the motions needed to open the puzzle box. Kirsty's boyfriend Steve arrives and they both escape the collapsing house.
Afterwards, Kirsty throws the puzzle box onto a burning pyre. A vagrant who has been stalking Kirsty walks into the fire and retrieves the box before transforming into a winged skeletal creature and flying away. The box ends up with the same merchant who sold it to Frank, where he offers it to another customer.
Cast
Production
Having been dismayed at prior cinematic adaptations of his work, Barker, who had experience from writing, directing and starring in plays and had made two short films, decided to attempt to direct a film himself. He asked Christopher Figg, who became his producer, how small the budget would have to be for someone being willing to hire him as a first time director. Figg said the budget had to be less than a million dollars, which could be done if the film was just about a house and some monsters, and if he used more or less unknown actors. Barker decided to adapt The Hellbound Heart, as the story fit those parameters. New World Pictures agreed to fund the film for $900,000.Hellraiser was filmed at the end of 1986 and was set to be made in seven weeks, but was extended over a nine- to ten-week period by New World. The film was originally made under the working title of Sadomasochists from Beyond the Grave. Barker also wanted to call the film Hellbound but producer Christopher Figg suggested Hellraiser instead. Barker spoke fondly in The Hellraiser Chronicles about the filming, stating that his memories of production were of "unalloyed fondness... The cast treated my ineptitudes kindly, and the crew were no less forgiving". Barker admitted his own lack of knowledge on filmmaking, stating that he "didn't know the difference between a 10-millimetre lens and a 35-millimetre lens. If you'd shown me a plate of spaghetti and said that was a lens, I might have believed you". After filming, New World convinced Barker to relocate the story to the United States which required overdubbing to remove some English accents.
During production, Doug Bradley had trouble hitting his marks during his takes in make-up as he could not see through his black contact lenses and was afraid of tripping over Pinhead's skirts. The special effects of the unnamed creature, known as "The Engineer" in the novels, proved challenging as the creature was difficult to maneuver. Other issues included a rushed shoot of the Chinese restaurant scene with Kirsty and Larry, due to the lateness of the person responsible for letting the cast and crew into the establishment. Numerous props of the Lament Configuration, which were constructed from wood and cut-out brass, were produced by special effects designer and maker Simon Sayce; due to the box's delicate construction, Sayce would lie on the floor under the Cenobites during some takes in case it was dropped, to save himself the eight hours it took to create another.
About seven or eight weeks after principal photography had finished, the executive producers saw the footage and liked the film enough to invest more into it. Because of this, a few scenes were redone with a higher budget, like the scene near the end where Frank's body is ripped apart. To produce Frank's resurrection, effects like reverse motion were used to give his skeleton flesh and inner organs.
The film had two editors: Richard Marden and an uncredited Tony Randel.
Censorship
Clive Barker had to make some cuts on the film after the MPAA originally gave it an X rating. Two and a half shots were excised from the first hammer murder, including a closeup of the hammer lodged in the victim's head. In the scene where Julia murders another man, the actor playing the victim felt that it made sense for him to do so naked. The nude murder scene was shot, but was ultimately replaced with a semi-clothed version. Close-ups of Kirsty sticking her hand into Frank's stomach, exposing his guts, a longer version of the scene where Frank is being torn into pieces, and the final shot where his head explodes were also cut.In an interview for Samhain magazine in July 1987, Barker mentioned some problems that censors had with more erotic scenes in the film:
Barker also said that the seduction scene between Julia and Frank was initially a lot more explicit:
Soundtrack
Barker originally wanted the electronic music group Coil to perform the music for the film, but that notion was rejected by New World. Editor Tony Randel then suggested Christopher Young as a replacement for Coil for the film's score. Young had previously composed scores for other horror films such as the 1985 slasher A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge and the 1986 Tobe Hooper film Invaders from Mars.The score for Hellraiser was released in 1987. AllMusic stated that the score proved that Christopher Young "hadn't used up all of his ideas for the horror genre" and that Young had matched "Barker's stylish look with a gothic score that mixed in exciting synthesizer effects". The music that Coil had recorded as a demo for their version of the score was later released as The Unreleased Themes for Hellraiser.
Release
Hellraiser had its first public showing at the Prince Charles Cinema on 10 September 1987. The film was released in the United States and Canada on 18 September.Hellraiser was initially banned in Ontario by the Ontario Film and Video Review Board. By a 3–2 majority vote, the film was deemed "not approved in its entirety as it contravenes community standards". It was banned because of its "brutal, graphic violence with blood-letting throughout, horror, degradation and torture". In August 1987, Hellraiser was passed by the Ontario Film Review Board, but only after several cuts were made to the film. New World Mutual Pictures of Canada cut about 40 seconds to get the film passed with an R rating. Thirty-five seconds of an extended torture scene featuring hooks pulling apart a body and face were removed, as well as a scene of squirming rats nailed to a wall.
Hellraiser received a wide theatrical re-release in the United States on 5 and 6 February 2025, accompanied by featurette Under the Skin: Doug Bradley on Hellraiser.