Hellbound: Hellraiser II
Encyclopedia
Hellbound: Hellraiser II is a 1988 horror film
directed by Tony Randel
. It draws heavily upon, and was made by much of the same cast and crew as its precursor, Hellraiser
.
Captain
Eliot Spencer (Doug Bradley
) opens a puzzle box in his quonset hut
. Hooked chains emerge, ensnaring him, and the forces inside the box transform him into the Cenobite
Pinhead
.
In the 1980s, Kirsty Cotton (Ashley Laurence
) wakes in the Channard Institute, a psychiatric hospital, where she is questioned about the events leading up to the destruction of her home, which involved her stepmother, Julia, and a bloody mattress. Kirsty tells the police that her uncle, Frank, opened a puzzle box to an alternate dimension populated by monsters named Cenobites who torture human quarry for sadomasochistic purposes. Briefly taken as the Cenobites' prisoner and reduced to a barely-living corpse, Frank managed to escape and seduce Julia, with whom he'd previously had an affair. The pair set about murdering men-- including Kirsty's father-- in order to replenish Frank's body. Kirsty, after inadvertently summoning the Cenobites herself, made a deal with them to turn over Frank in exchange for her own freedom. Frank accidentally killed Julia in the ensuing melee (resulting in the bloody mattress), which ended with the Cenobites recapturing Frank and then attempting to seize Kirsty as well, before she closed the box and sent them back to their realm.
The story amazes the detectives, who are incredulous and take the bloody mattress as evidence. Kirsty is turned over to Dr. Phillip Channard (Kenneth Cranham
) and his assistant, Kyle MacRae (William Hope
), who instantly becomes smitten with Kirsty.
That night, Kirsty befriends another patient, Tiffany (Imogen Boorman
), a semi-catatonic young girl with an incredible skill for solving puzzles. Later, in her room, Kirsty finds a message written in blood stating "I AM IN HELL. HELP ME." Believing it was sent by her father, Kirsty tells her story to Kyle, who encourages her to tell Channard about the Cenobites. Unbeknownst to Kyle, Channard knows everything that has been happening: He is obsessed with the Lament Configuration, the box that opens the portal to the Cenobite realm, and has been collecting everything piece of information he can obtain on it.
Kyle goes to Channard's house to speak with him, and discovers Channard's "treasure room" of Cenobite-related paraphernalia. While he hides, Channard arrives with the bloody mattress that Julia died on, and goads a psychiatric patient into mutilating himself on it; the resultant blood summons up a zombie
-like Julia from the Cenobite realm, and she proceeds to consume the psychiatric patient to nourish herself. Kyle escapes and tells Kirsty, who encourages Kyle to break her out so she can help stop Julia.
At the house, Kirsty explores the treasure room, where she discovers (and takes) a photo of Eliot Spencer. Meanwhile, Kyle encounters Julia, now almost fully restored to her human form. Julia appears to seduce Kyle, only to begin devouring him when they kiss, completing her regeneration. Kirsty stumbles upon the scene, but her reunion with Julia is interrupted by the arrival of Channard with Tiffany. Channard gives Tiffany the puzzle box, which she quickly opens. The Cenobites-- Pinhead and his henchmen Chatterer
Butterball
, and The Female-- arrive, but refrain from harming Tiffany, knowing that Channard put her up to summoning them. Meanwhile, Kirsty, Channard, and Julia all slip into the Cenobite realm, followed by Tiffany.
In the Cenobite realm, Kirsty seeks out her father, while Julia shows Channard the sadomasochistic pleasures that await him. Julia explains that the Cenobite realm-- a gigantic labyrinth
in a stormy void-- is called Hell, and ruled over by Leviathan, a godlike entity that takes the form of a lozenge-shaped beacon floating above the maze. Julia sacrifices an ambivalent Channard to Leviathan, resulting in his being turned into a Cenobite. Leviathan fuses with his new creation by way of a massive tentacle, and Channard sets about looking for Kirsty.
Kirsty meanwhile finds her uncle Frank, who explains that her father is not there and that he wrote the message to lure Kirsty to him. After a brief fight, Julia arrives and tears out Frank's heart in revenge for her own death. Kirsty and Tiffany attempt to escape but are impeded by Julia; a struggle ensues, and Julia's flesh is ripped off like a glove, causing her to plummet down into a wind tunnel.
Heading back to the hospital, Kirsty and Tiffany and trapped by Pinhead and his entourage, who decide to lay claim to Kirsty again. Kirsty shows them the photo of Eliot Spencer, causing the Cenobites to remember that they were once human. Touched by this revelation, they attempt to protect Kirsty when Channard arrives and lays claim to her. A fight ensues, during which Chatterer, Butterball, and the Female are all killed, reverting to their human forms. Pinhead manages to stave Channard off long enough for Kirsty and Tiffany to escape, after which he himself is finally killed.
Back in the hospital, Kirsty and Tiffany discover that the Cenobite realm has begun to cross over into the real world, as Channard has provided all of the patients with puzzle boxes of their own to open. Tiffany decides to return to Hell and close the puzzle box, in the hopes that it will stop Channard. Channard attacks Tiffany, but relents from killing her when Julia appears and begins to kiss him. This provides enough of a distraction for Tiffany to close the puzzle box; Leviathan begins to transform into a cube, severing his connection with Channard; Channard's head is torn off by the retracting tentacle. Tiffany falls off the side of a ledge, but is rescued by Julia, who is revealed to be Kirsty wearing Julia's shed skin. She and Tiffany escape through the rapidly closing portal back to the hospital.
Sometime later, Kirsty and Tiffany are discharged from the hospital, Tiffany having regained her lucidity. Meanwhile, movers (the same movers from the original film) attempt to pack up Channard's treasure room; when one of them moves nearby the mattress he is sucked inside and killed. a intricately pillar known as the Pillar of Souls rises into the surface, containing writhing figures and distorted faces (including Pinhead); as the pillar rotates, it reveals the face of the vagrant (from the original film) with the voice of the man who initially sold the puzzle box to Frank, inquiring the surviving mover, "What's your pleasure, sir?", leading to the events of Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth
.
returned as producer for the sequel, with Tony Randel
directing due to his experience of working with Barker on Hellraiser
. Randel claims the dark tone of the move reflected his own mindset on the world at the time. The picture was due to have a much larger budget but it decreased after financial issues with New World Pictures.
Nicholas Vince
, who plays the Chatterer, received a hook to the jaw while filming a scene involving his character being impaled on a swinging torture rack surrounded by the many hanging chains. It's claimed the camera man stopped filming just at that instance. He also requested his character have eyes to help his vision, which caused some discontent with fans, who derided the new design. A scene in which the character receives his "vision" was removed from the final cut, causing some confusion at his introductory scene in Hellbound featured him in his original, "eyeless" guise.
British Shakespearean actor Kenneth Cranham
, who plays Channard, claimed his involvement was due to his grandson pestering him to take up the offer being a fan of the original.
Oliver Smith
, who played Skinless Frank in the original due to his skinny frame (allowing the body makeup to be realistic), reprised his role along with two extra roles as Browning (the mental patient who imagines bugs and insects crawl on his flesh) and as the skinless figure Kirsty sees in the hospital who writes "I Am In Hell Help Me" in blood on the wall.
Composer Christopher Young
also returned to compose a more bombastic score larger in scope. For the horn-like sound supposedly emanating from Leviathan in the center of Hell's labyrinth, he had the morse code for God incorporated.
Hellbound was due to be Pinhead's final appearance in a Hellraiser picture, since Randel and crew expected Julia to become the figurehead of the picture. Because the sequel was commissioned within a week of Hellraisers release and its strong returns, the producers did not realize the full extent of Pinhead's popularity until after Hellbounds completion.
, who derided the original, commented "this movie violates more rules than the First Rule of Repetition. It also violates a basic convention of story construction, which suggests that we should get at least a vague idea of where the story began and where it might be headed. This movie has no plot in a conventional sense. It is simply a series of ugly and bloody episodes strung together one after another like a demo tape by a perverted special-effects man." However, he did add "The images have been constructed with a certain amount of care and craftsmanship." Flimsy props and sets have also been criticized, as well as praised for their scope and design for such a low-budget picture.
Other critics later commended the film on strong visuals that echo and match Barker's own original. Browning's bed scene gained a lot of notoriety and was released in full on the uncut version of Hellbound on the Special Edition Lament Configuration boxset and the movie is widely regarded as the strongest of all the sequels and the closest in spirit of the original. Canadian actor William Hope
, who starred previously in Aliens
, called his experience on Hellbound his favourite of any movie he has worked on. The movie has a 47% Rotten status on Rotten Tomatoes
based on 19 reviews.
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
directed by Tony Randel
Tony Randel
Tony Randel is an American film director and screenwriter.-Film career:Randel's breakthrough into the film scene was when Clive Barker entrusted Randel with Hellbound: Hellraiser II, the 1988 sequel to the 1987 horror film Hellraiser...
. It draws heavily upon, and was made by much of the same cast and crew as its precursor, Hellraiser
Hellraiser
Hellraiser is a 1987 British and American horror film based upon the novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker, who also wrote the screenplay and directed the film. Hellraiser explores themes of sadomasochism and morality under duress and fear. The film spawned a series of sequels...
.
Summary
Sometime in the late twenties or early thirties, British armyBritish Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
Captain
Captain
Captain or The Captain is derived from the Greek word katepánō which was a senior Byzantine military rank and office.It may refer to:...
Eliot Spencer (Doug Bradley
Doug Bradley
Douglas William "Doug" Bradley is an English actor best known for his roles in the Hellraiser film series.- Early life :Bradley was born in Liverpool, England...
) opens a puzzle box in his quonset hut
Quonset hut
A Quonset hut is a lightweight prefabricated structure of corrugated galvanized steel having a semicircular cross section. The design was based on the Nissen hut developed by the British during World War I...
. Hooked chains emerge, ensnaring him, and the forces inside the box transform him into the Cenobite
Cenobite (Hellraiser)
The Cenobites are extradimensional beings who appear in the works of Clive Barker, including the novella The Hellbound Heart and the nine Hellraiser films...
Pinhead
Pinhead (Hellraiser)
Pinhead is a fictional character from the Hellraiser series. Created by Clive Barker and portrayed by Doug Bradley, Pinhead is a prominent figure in the series, mostly featured as the main antagonist....
.
In the 1980s, Kirsty Cotton (Ashley Laurence
Ashley Laurence
Ashley Laurence is an American film and television actress. She is noted for her appearances in horror films, particularly the Hellraiser series.-Career:...
) wakes in the Channard Institute, a psychiatric hospital, where she is questioned about the events leading up to the destruction of her home, which involved her stepmother, Julia, and a bloody mattress. Kirsty tells the police that her uncle, Frank, opened a puzzle box to an alternate dimension populated by monsters named Cenobites who torture human quarry for sadomasochistic purposes. Briefly taken as the Cenobites' prisoner and reduced to a barely-living corpse, Frank managed to escape and seduce Julia, with whom he'd previously had an affair. The pair set about murdering men-- including Kirsty's father-- in order to replenish Frank's body. Kirsty, after inadvertently summoning the Cenobites herself, made a deal with them to turn over Frank in exchange for her own freedom. Frank accidentally killed Julia in the ensuing melee (resulting in the bloody mattress), which ended with the Cenobites recapturing Frank and then attempting to seize Kirsty as well, before she closed the box and sent them back to their realm.
The story amazes the detectives, who are incredulous and take the bloody mattress as evidence. Kirsty is turned over to Dr. Phillip Channard (Kenneth Cranham
Kenneth Cranham
Kenneth Cranham is a film, television and stage actor. He starred in the title role in the popular 1980s comedy drama Shine on Harvey Moon. He also appeared in Layer Cake, Gangster No. 1, Rome, Oliver! and many other films. He is probably best known to horror genre fans as the deranged Dr...
) and his assistant, Kyle MacRae (William Hope
William Hope (actor)
William "Bill" Hope is a Canadian stage, film, television and voice actor.-Career:Most of Hope's stage work has been leading roles in a wide variety of regional, touring and West End theatres in England....
), who instantly becomes smitten with Kirsty.
That night, Kirsty befriends another patient, Tiffany (Imogen Boorman
Imogen Boorman
Imogen May Pratt Boorman is an English film actress and television actress. She is known for portraying Tiffany in the horror classic film Hellbound: Hellraiser II, Lorina in Dreamchild, Clothhide in May to December, and Hannah Preston in Westbeach.Educated at Benenden School in Kent, Boorman went...
), a semi-catatonic young girl with an incredible skill for solving puzzles. Later, in her room, Kirsty finds a message written in blood stating "I AM IN HELL. HELP ME." Believing it was sent by her father, Kirsty tells her story to Kyle, who encourages her to tell Channard about the Cenobites. Unbeknownst to Kyle, Channard knows everything that has been happening: He is obsessed with the Lament Configuration, the box that opens the portal to the Cenobite realm, and has been collecting everything piece of information he can obtain on it.
Kyle goes to Channard's house to speak with him, and discovers Channard's "treasure room" of Cenobite-related paraphernalia. While he hides, Channard arrives with the bloody mattress that Julia died on, and goads a psychiatric patient into mutilating himself on it; the resultant blood summons up a zombie
Zombie
Zombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
-like Julia from the Cenobite realm, and she proceeds to consume the psychiatric patient to nourish herself. Kyle escapes and tells Kirsty, who encourages Kyle to break her out so she can help stop Julia.
At the house, Kirsty explores the treasure room, where she discovers (and takes) a photo of Eliot Spencer. Meanwhile, Kyle encounters Julia, now almost fully restored to her human form. Julia appears to seduce Kyle, only to begin devouring him when they kiss, completing her regeneration. Kirsty stumbles upon the scene, but her reunion with Julia is interrupted by the arrival of Channard with Tiffany. Channard gives Tiffany the puzzle box, which she quickly opens. The Cenobites-- Pinhead and his henchmen Chatterer
Chatterer
Chatterer is a fictional antagonistic character appearing in the Hellraiser film series and the only Cenobite besides the group's leader, Pinhead to appear in more than two Hellraiser films. He is a Cenobite, an order of extradimensional sadomasochists who experiment in an extreme form of hedonism...
Butterball
Butterball Cenobite
Butterball is a character from Clive Barker's Hellraiser franchise. He is a Cenobite, a group of extradimensional beings who experiment in forms of extreme sadomasochism as part of a religious devotion to hedonism...
, and The Female-- arrive, but refrain from harming Tiffany, knowing that Channard put her up to summoning them. Meanwhile, Kirsty, Channard, and Julia all slip into the Cenobite realm, followed by Tiffany.
In the Cenobite realm, Kirsty seeks out her father, while Julia shows Channard the sadomasochistic pleasures that await him. Julia explains that the Cenobite realm-- a gigantic labyrinth
Labyrinth
In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth was an elaborate structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos...
in a stormy void-- is called Hell, and ruled over by Leviathan, a godlike entity that takes the form of a lozenge-shaped beacon floating above the maze. Julia sacrifices an ambivalent Channard to Leviathan, resulting in his being turned into a Cenobite. Leviathan fuses with his new creation by way of a massive tentacle, and Channard sets about looking for Kirsty.
Kirsty meanwhile finds her uncle Frank, who explains that her father is not there and that he wrote the message to lure Kirsty to him. After a brief fight, Julia arrives and tears out Frank's heart in revenge for her own death. Kirsty and Tiffany attempt to escape but are impeded by Julia; a struggle ensues, and Julia's flesh is ripped off like a glove, causing her to plummet down into a wind tunnel.
Heading back to the hospital, Kirsty and Tiffany and trapped by Pinhead and his entourage, who decide to lay claim to Kirsty again. Kirsty shows them the photo of Eliot Spencer, causing the Cenobites to remember that they were once human. Touched by this revelation, they attempt to protect Kirsty when Channard arrives and lays claim to her. A fight ensues, during which Chatterer, Butterball, and the Female are all killed, reverting to their human forms. Pinhead manages to stave Channard off long enough for Kirsty and Tiffany to escape, after which he himself is finally killed.
Back in the hospital, Kirsty and Tiffany discover that the Cenobite realm has begun to cross over into the real world, as Channard has provided all of the patients with puzzle boxes of their own to open. Tiffany decides to return to Hell and close the puzzle box, in the hopes that it will stop Channard. Channard attacks Tiffany, but relents from killing her when Julia appears and begins to kiss him. This provides enough of a distraction for Tiffany to close the puzzle box; Leviathan begins to transform into a cube, severing his connection with Channard; Channard's head is torn off by the retracting tentacle. Tiffany falls off the side of a ledge, but is rescued by Julia, who is revealed to be Kirsty wearing Julia's shed skin. She and Tiffany escape through the rapidly closing portal back to the hospital.
Sometime later, Kirsty and Tiffany are discharged from the hospital, Tiffany having regained her lucidity. Meanwhile, movers (the same movers from the original film) attempt to pack up Channard's treasure room; when one of them moves nearby the mattress he is sucked inside and killed. a intricately pillar known as the Pillar of Souls rises into the surface, containing writhing figures and distorted faces (including Pinhead); as the pillar rotates, it reveals the face of the vagrant (from the original film) with the voice of the man who initially sold the puzzle box to Frank, inquiring the surviving mover, "What's your pleasure, sir?", leading to the events of Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth
Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth
Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth is a 1992 American horror film and third installment in the Hellraiser series, directed by Anthony Hickox and starring Terry Farrell, Doug Bradley, Paula Marshall and Kevin Bernhardt...
.
Cast
- Ashley LaurenceAshley LaurenceAshley Laurence is an American film and television actress. She is noted for her appearances in horror films, particularly the Hellraiser series.-Career:...
as Kirsty CottonKirsty CottonFor the EastEnders character, see Dotty CottonKirsty Cotton is a fictional character from the Hellraiser series of films. Created by writer Clive Barker, the character first appears in the 1987 film Hellraiser and is based upon the character of the same name from the novel The Hellbound Heart... - Imogen BoormanImogen BoormanImogen May Pratt Boorman is an English film actress and television actress. She is known for portraying Tiffany in the horror classic film Hellbound: Hellraiser II, Lorina in Dreamchild, Clothhide in May to December, and Hannah Preston in Westbeach.Educated at Benenden School in Kent, Boorman went...
as Tiffany - Kenneth CranhamKenneth CranhamKenneth Cranham is a film, television and stage actor. He starred in the title role in the popular 1980s comedy drama Shine on Harvey Moon. He also appeared in Layer Cake, Gangster No. 1, Rome, Oliver! and many other films. He is probably best known to horror genre fans as the deranged Dr...
as Dr. Philip Channard/Channard CenobiteDr. Channard (Hellraiser)Dr. Philip Channard is a fictional character in the Hellraiser series. He is portrayed by Kenneth Cranham.-Biography:Dr. Philip Channard was a psychiatrist who ran the Channard institute, where patient Kirsty Cotton tells him about the Cenobites. At his home, it is revealed that Channard has the... - Clare Higgins as Julia Cotton
- William HopeWilliam Hope (actor)William "Bill" Hope is a Canadian stage, film, television and voice actor.-Career:Most of Hope's stage work has been leading roles in a wide variety of regional, touring and West End theatres in England....
as Kyle MacRae - Doug BradleyDoug BradleyDouglas William "Doug" Bradley is an English actor best known for his roles in the Hellraiser film series.- Early life :Bradley was born in Liverpool, England...
as Pinhead/Captain Elliot SpencerPinhead (Hellraiser)Pinhead is a fictional character from the Hellraiser series. Created by Clive Barker and portrayed by Doug Bradley, Pinhead is a prominent figure in the series, mostly featured as the main antagonist.... - Barbie WildeBarbie WildeBarbie Wilde is a Canadian actress and writer, perhaps best known for appearing as the Female Cenobite in Hellbound: Hellraiser II - the second of eight Hellraiser films based on Clive Barker's novella, The Hellbound Heart...
as Female CenobiteFemale CenobiteThe Female Cenobite is a Cenobite appearing in the movies Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II and in Clive Barker's comic book sequel to Hellbound published by BOOM! comics in 2011. The role was played by Grace Kirby in the first film and Barbie Wilde in the sequel.-Appearance:Like all... - Simon BamfordSimon BamfordSimon John Bamford in Bedford, England is an English film, television and stage actor. He is well known for playing the Butterball Cenobite in Hellraiser in 1987 and in its sequel Hellbound: Hellraiser II in 1988.-Career:...
as Butterball CenobiteButterball CenobiteButterball is a character from Clive Barker's Hellraiser franchise. He is a Cenobite, a group of extradimensional beings who experiment in forms of extreme sadomasochism as part of a religious devotion to hedonism... - Nicholas VinceNicholas VinceNicholas Vince was born in West Germany in 1958 and lives in South London. Whilst he was at Mountview Theatre Academy, he met Clive Barker and was later cast as The Chatterer Cenobite in Hellraiser in 1987 and in its sequel Hellbound: Hellraiser II in 1988. He also played the Chatterer II. Vince...
as Chatterer/Chatterer IIChattererChatterer is a fictional antagonistic character appearing in the Hellraiser film series and the only Cenobite besides the group's leader, Pinhead to appear in more than two Hellraiser films. He is a Cenobite, an order of extradimensional sadomasochists who experiment in an extreme form of hedonism... - Deborah Joel as "Skinless" Julia/"Skinless" Julia on Pillar
- Angus MacInnesAngus MacInnesAngus MacInnes is a Canadian actor. He is most famous for his role as Gold Leader in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, and as former hockey great Jean "Rosey" LaRose in the comedy Strange Brew...
as Homicide Detective Bronson - Oliver SmithOliver Smith (actor)Oliver Smith is an English actor. He is probably best known for playing the role of Frank The Monster from the original Hellraiser film in 1987, as well as Mr. Browning and Skinless Frank from Hellbound: Hellraiser II film in 1988...
as Mr. Browning/"Skinless" Frank - Sean ChapmanSean ChapmanSean Chapman is an English-born actor. He is best known for playing Frank Cotton in Clive Barker's Hellraiser, and its sequel, Hellbound: Hellraiser II. He is also known for voicing the character Sgt...
as Uncle Frank Cotton - James Tillitt as Officer Cortez
- Bradley LavelleBradley LavelleRichard Bradley 'Ivan' Lavelle was an actor, television actor and voice actor.Born in Toronto, Canada, Lavelle appeared in Clive Barker's Hellbound: Hellraiser II horror film as Officer Kucich, Cormack in Nightbreed, Party Guest in The Dressmaker, Sergeant in Memphis Belle, and did the voice for...
as Officer Kucich - Edwin CraigEdwin CraigEdwin Craig is an actor who has played supporting roles in many Hollywood Movies, his most notable role was as the gangster "Rotelli" in the Tim Burton film Batman. He says the line "What's with that stupid grin?" before the Joker kills him....
as Wheelchair Patient - Ron Travis as Workman 1
- Oliver ParkerOliver ParkerOliver Parker is an English film director.-Biography:Parker was born in London, the son of Jillian, Lady Parker, a writer and GP , and Sir Peter Parker, formerly Chief executive of British Rail...
as Workman 2 - Catherine Chevalier as Tiffany's Mother
- Geoffrey Portass as Pinhead on Pillar (as Geoff Portass)
- Little John as Puzzle Guardian on Pillar
- Pat Miller as Butterball (Human Form) (unconfirmed) (as Patrick Miller)
Production
Clive BarkerClive Barker
Clive Barker is an English author, film director and visual artist best known for his work in both fantasy and horror fiction. Barker came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories which established him as a leading young horror writer...
returned as producer for the sequel, with Tony Randel
Tony Randel
Tony Randel is an American film director and screenwriter.-Film career:Randel's breakthrough into the film scene was when Clive Barker entrusted Randel with Hellbound: Hellraiser II, the 1988 sequel to the 1987 horror film Hellraiser...
directing due to his experience of working with Barker on Hellraiser
Hellraiser
Hellraiser is a 1987 British and American horror film based upon the novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker, who also wrote the screenplay and directed the film. Hellraiser explores themes of sadomasochism and morality under duress and fear. The film spawned a series of sequels...
. Randel claims the dark tone of the move reflected his own mindset on the world at the time. The picture was due to have a much larger budget but it decreased after financial issues with New World Pictures.
Nicholas Vince
Nicholas Vince
Nicholas Vince was born in West Germany in 1958 and lives in South London. Whilst he was at Mountview Theatre Academy, he met Clive Barker and was later cast as The Chatterer Cenobite in Hellraiser in 1987 and in its sequel Hellbound: Hellraiser II in 1988. He also played the Chatterer II. Vince...
, who plays the Chatterer, received a hook to the jaw while filming a scene involving his character being impaled on a swinging torture rack surrounded by the many hanging chains. It's claimed the camera man stopped filming just at that instance. He also requested his character have eyes to help his vision, which caused some discontent with fans, who derided the new design. A scene in which the character receives his "vision" was removed from the final cut, causing some confusion at his introductory scene in Hellbound featured him in his original, "eyeless" guise.
British Shakespearean actor Kenneth Cranham
Kenneth Cranham
Kenneth Cranham is a film, television and stage actor. He starred in the title role in the popular 1980s comedy drama Shine on Harvey Moon. He also appeared in Layer Cake, Gangster No. 1, Rome, Oliver! and many other films. He is probably best known to horror genre fans as the deranged Dr...
, who plays Channard, claimed his involvement was due to his grandson pestering him to take up the offer being a fan of the original.
Oliver Smith
Oliver Smith
Oliver Prince Smith was a General in the United States Marine Corps and a highly decorated combat veteran of World War II and the Korean War...
, who played Skinless Frank in the original due to his skinny frame (allowing the body makeup to be realistic), reprised his role along with two extra roles as Browning (the mental patient who imagines bugs and insects crawl on his flesh) and as the skinless figure Kirsty sees in the hospital who writes "I Am In Hell Help Me" in blood on the wall.
Composer Christopher Young
Christopher Young
Christopher Young is an American music composer for both film and television.Many of his music compositions are for horror films, including Hellraiser, Tales from the Hood, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge, Urban Legend, and Drag Me to Hell...
also returned to compose a more bombastic score larger in scope. For the horn-like sound supposedly emanating from Leviathan in the center of Hell's labyrinth, he had the morse code for God incorporated.
Hellbound was due to be Pinhead's final appearance in a Hellraiser picture, since Randel and crew expected Julia to become the figurehead of the picture. Because the sequel was commissioned within a week of Hellraisers release and its strong returns, the producers did not realize the full extent of Pinhead's popularity until after Hellbounds completion.
Alternate screenplay
An alternate script with Kirsty's father Larry exists, written before Andrew Robinson declined to reprise the role. Dr. Channard was originally called Dr. Malahide.Reception
Released December 1988 in the US, Hellbound would gross $12,090,735 (USA) and £980,503 (UK). Critically response was initially mixed, many critics citing stronger violence and an incoherent plot. Roger EbertRoger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
, who derided the original, commented "this movie violates more rules than the First Rule of Repetition. It also violates a basic convention of story construction, which suggests that we should get at least a vague idea of where the story began and where it might be headed. This movie has no plot in a conventional sense. It is simply a series of ugly and bloody episodes strung together one after another like a demo tape by a perverted special-effects man." However, he did add "The images have been constructed with a certain amount of care and craftsmanship." Flimsy props and sets have also been criticized, as well as praised for their scope and design for such a low-budget picture.
Other critics later commended the film on strong visuals that echo and match Barker's own original. Browning's bed scene gained a lot of notoriety and was released in full on the uncut version of Hellbound on the Special Edition Lament Configuration boxset and the movie is widely regarded as the strongest of all the sequels and the closest in spirit of the original. Canadian actor William Hope
William Hope (actor)
William "Bill" Hope is a Canadian stage, film, television and voice actor.-Career:Most of Hope's stage work has been leading roles in a wide variety of regional, touring and West End theatres in England....
, who starred previously in Aliens
Aliens (film)
Aliens is a 1986 science fiction action film directed by James Cameron and starring Sigourney Weaver, Carrie Henn, Michael Biehn, Lance Henriksen, William Hope, and Bill Paxton...
, called his experience on Hellbound his favourite of any movie he has worked on. The movie has a 47% Rotten status on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
based on 19 reviews.