shatteredx

Finally got around to watching this one. I was not into horror as a kid but as I approach middle age, it has been fun to visit these types of films for the first time.

The basic plot of Hellraiser is straight out of a1930s horror or suspense anthology radio program. This is a morality play and quite similar to those on those old-time programs like "Suspense" or "The Mysterious Traveler" people listened to up through the 1950s. However, the hellish images, nasty depictions of torment, and gross, practical gore effects give a nice coat of fresh paint to this type of story.

The direction is OK but certainly has a B-movie quality at times, much like the rest of the production. Claire Higgins is great, though. Ashley Laurence is not a great actress here but is strikingly beautiful. You could make this movie today with almost the same script and make it much scarier or even nastier if you wanted. But I think it's nice to keep it a bit cartoony, keep it fun, not nasty.

The practical gore effects still hold up for the most part. Some of the skin looks excessively rubbery but still very wince-inducing in a few scenes (especially the famous "nail on the wall" scene). Does it look real? No, but you can appreciate the work and lack of dated CGI.

No jump scares here. The movie's horror relies more on the nasty gore and hellish depictions of torture and torment.

Anyway, this is a fun movie I think. Not a great one. Mediocre acting, a very genre script and OK direction. However, it delivers fun, oldschool thrills, not far from what your grandparents heard on the radio.

I'm not sure whether to give this a 7 or an 8. I think it may deserve an 8 just based on fun factor.

Overall, it's a nice remake, despite being more-or-less scene for scene the same. It starts off slower than the original but I think the second half and ending are bit better than HCMJ (the original has some stuff in the second half that feels dated).

Warren Beatty is good in the main role. He adds a nice touch to the character. I didn't like Julie Christie at first but liked her by the end. I thought James Mason actually WAS Claude Rains at first. They look and play the role REALLY similarly, both great.

AFAIK, the original invented this genre of film and since then, there have been probably dozens of movies and TV shows that have riffed on the same type of afterlife/supernatural romantic drama. Because of that, I would imagine some viewers might feel a bit underwhelmed as they have already seen movies with these same tropes and plot devices.

Still, I enjoyed it. If you've seen Here Comes Mr. Jordan, you don't really need to see this one. But, it's a nice update. 7/10.