kmashburn-00043
Joined Nov 2019
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Reviews14
kmashburn-00043's rating
The positives: good acting, interesting premise, decent character development. I was invested in the characters, and I liked the complexity of Riley as the lead. Very flawed, but genuine and believable as an actual human being.
Negatives: story meanders quite a bit. The disturbing, menacing atmosphere from the original is completely missing here. And the extreme S&M vibe is gone, something that made the original incredibly unique among horror movies. The cenobytes are iconic and unlike any other movie antagonists. The new Pinhead did a good job, but there was something "generic" about the cenobytes in this one. This just didn't feel dark or - to me - scary at all. Granted, I am not a huge Hellraiser fan, but the imagery and atmosphere of the first movie set it apart from everything else in the genre. As a major horror junkie, even movies that are not necessarily in my top ~50 get my utmost respect for bringing something outside the cookie-cutter horror box, and the original definitely did.
And the worst to me and something that COMPLETELY took me out of the story - TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE cenobyte costumes. And that's exactly what they looked like - costumes. Cheap vinyl and plastic. The designs were not bad, but nothing looked realistic in the least. I could imagine these costumes hanging in the Halloween aisle at CVS. I'm not a gore hound - I would say I tolerate it and can appreciate it when it's integral to the story. But fake, cheap effects ruin the horror experience (though to its credit, at least a lot of the effects were practical; don't get me started on CGI horror). And the lighting when the cenobytes made their entrance was way too bright and distracting, a complete atmosphere killer.
I really would give this 5.5 if that had been an option. I adore David Bruckner and thought he did a decent job with the material he had, but unlike his other films, I have no desire to re-watch this one. A step above meh. But (though the bar is low), the reboot is far superior to most of the sequels in the franchise. Worth a watch. Just don't expect to be blown away.
Negatives: story meanders quite a bit. The disturbing, menacing atmosphere from the original is completely missing here. And the extreme S&M vibe is gone, something that made the original incredibly unique among horror movies. The cenobytes are iconic and unlike any other movie antagonists. The new Pinhead did a good job, but there was something "generic" about the cenobytes in this one. This just didn't feel dark or - to me - scary at all. Granted, I am not a huge Hellraiser fan, but the imagery and atmosphere of the first movie set it apart from everything else in the genre. As a major horror junkie, even movies that are not necessarily in my top ~50 get my utmost respect for bringing something outside the cookie-cutter horror box, and the original definitely did.
And the worst to me and something that COMPLETELY took me out of the story - TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE cenobyte costumes. And that's exactly what they looked like - costumes. Cheap vinyl and plastic. The designs were not bad, but nothing looked realistic in the least. I could imagine these costumes hanging in the Halloween aisle at CVS. I'm not a gore hound - I would say I tolerate it and can appreciate it when it's integral to the story. But fake, cheap effects ruin the horror experience (though to its credit, at least a lot of the effects were practical; don't get me started on CGI horror). And the lighting when the cenobytes made their entrance was way too bright and distracting, a complete atmosphere killer.
I really would give this 5.5 if that had been an option. I adore David Bruckner and thought he did a decent job with the material he had, but unlike his other films, I have no desire to re-watch this one. A step above meh. But (though the bar is low), the reboot is far superior to most of the sequels in the franchise. Worth a watch. Just don't expect to be blown away.
It's difficult to score this movie. There is no baseline for comparison - I have never experienced anything like this. I am an avid horror fan, so I'm a bit desensitized to visual onslaught. But I had a hard time getting through this one. I really need to watch it again and do a deep dive into the insane symbolism, but I'm honestly not sure I can watch it again. At least not yet. That being said, this is one of the most riveting, viscerally disturbing, disgusting, artistic movies I have ever seen. The lovechild of multiple dark fathers - Giger, Bosch, Lovecraft, Roger Waters. Dirty, wet, nasty, depressing, dystopian. Why would anyone want to watch? Aside from morbid curiosity? Well, I don't know, but I'm still glad(?) I did. I HIGHLY recommend this to a very select audience. Anyone squeamish, not into horror, or prone to nightmares should probably pass on this one. But for those who can take the relentless visual/psychological/repulsive bombardment, this is too creative and psychotic to miss. Hey Phil - you doing OK, buddy?
Don't worry about spoilers. I'm not entirely sure I know what happened.
I love obscure, ambiguous endings open to broad interpretation...up to a point. The ending here was a bit too "not sure how to wrap this one up, so...here you go." Roll credits. Or maybe it was the result of slash and burn editing. I don't know.
The lead (James) was believable and intense, and the mystery, atmosphere, and creepy imagery definitely held my attention. The music was...ugh. Distracting and, well...intrusive at times. Almost like the composer was scoring a completely different film.
I have my own theory about the ending, but this one requires a re-watch. Few horror movies warrant revisiting, but even with its flaws, this isn't one I'll forget 20min after the end credits. I'm not lazy about probing alternate interpretations, but I need something a bit more solid to work with. That being said, I will watch this one again and scour for clues. I rarely write reviews, but this one was effective as an "experience," if not as a full-fledged narrative.
If you're OK with the slow burn and can tolerate a "WTF" ending, give this one a shot. I can overlook some of the technical drawbacks if a movie is unique, memorable, and brave enough to abandon the horror formula. The cliches are here, too, of course, but this movie is miles above 90% of current horror fare.
I love obscure, ambiguous endings open to broad interpretation...up to a point. The ending here was a bit too "not sure how to wrap this one up, so...here you go." Roll credits. Or maybe it was the result of slash and burn editing. I don't know.
The lead (James) was believable and intense, and the mystery, atmosphere, and creepy imagery definitely held my attention. The music was...ugh. Distracting and, well...intrusive at times. Almost like the composer was scoring a completely different film.
I have my own theory about the ending, but this one requires a re-watch. Few horror movies warrant revisiting, but even with its flaws, this isn't one I'll forget 20min after the end credits. I'm not lazy about probing alternate interpretations, but I need something a bit more solid to work with. That being said, I will watch this one again and scour for clues. I rarely write reviews, but this one was effective as an "experience," if not as a full-fledged narrative.
If you're OK with the slow burn and can tolerate a "WTF" ending, give this one a shot. I can overlook some of the technical drawbacks if a movie is unique, memorable, and brave enough to abandon the horror formula. The cliches are here, too, of course, but this movie is miles above 90% of current horror fare.