'Hellraiser: Evolutions (2015)' is a documentary which focuses on the 'Hellraiser' franchise, with particular focus on the impact of the series. Featuring talking-head interviews with various people involved with the production of these movies (as well as some journalists and famous fans), most of the piece is dedicated to different interpretations of why the movies are so liked by so many different people. The problem is that none of this is insightful in the slightest. After all, I know why I like (some of) these films. I know that they centre on sadomasochism, that they include iconic imagery, that they play on the push-pull dynamic of pleasure and pain, that they hint at a darkness that's desired by all of us deep down, that Pinhead has pins in his head. Pretty much everyone who enjoys these films knows all that, too. Most of the people involved give very basic responses to these types of question and they all tend to repeat one another. There's very little in the way of interesting analysis, let's put it that way. There's not all that much actual behind-the-scenes content, either. Even though the documentary is mainly about the post-'Hellraiser: Bloodline (1996)' pictures, it only uses footage from the first three films (save for a few brief stills) and it doesn't really give you a sense of anything specific about any of those efforts. It all just feels a bit odd, really, and it borders on being boring on occasion due to its rudimentary and somewhat repetitive nature. It doesn't include enough insight to justify its runtime. However, it's not all bad. There are a few interviews, mainly towards the beginning, that are rather interesting. A few moments delve into the reasoning behind some choices made in certain entries, such as the decision to redub most dialogue in the first film or to recast Pinhead in the most recent one at the time of recording (Doug Bradley basically turned the script down because he didn't think it was particularly good and he didn't like the fact that the flick was being made mainly to keep hold of the franchise rights). While it may seem like faint praise, snippets such as these make the piece worthwhile if you're a fan. Plus, the people involved all talk with a fair amount of passion and it's nice to hear from people usually not given the spotlight in these kinds of thing. The range of interviewees is suitably eclectic and includes some relatively big names, and the documentary is well put together on the whole. It's somewhat disappointing and it gets less compelling as it goes on, but it's a fairly enjoyable effort that includes a couple of stand-out moments.
