Hellraiser (2022)

Like a radioactive isotope, the Hellraiser franchise has existed predominately in a state of exponential decay. Clive Barker’s 1987 original, which first introduced Pinhead and his Cenobite brood, is still revered as a classic of the genre, and for good reason. Few horror films before or since have felt more startlingly original or inimitable in their creative vision. Follow-up Hellbound: Hellraiser II remained potent, if somewhat diminished… and the series has been trending downwards ever since.  

The new Hellraiser installment, which landed at Hulu, has generated a certain level of fanfare… but basic competency can seem like a tall glass of ice water to a dying man in the desert when it comes to these movies (particularly the most recent iterations - Revelations and Judgment - the epitome of films that were crapped out solely to fulfill a rights obligation). Not surprisingly, this reboot doesn’t show much interest in pushing the narrative envelope. Following a prologue that introduces us to the less-than-scrupulous millionaire Roland Voight (Goran Visnjic) and his acquisition of the infamous puzzle box that serves as the catalyst of every Hellraiser film, we jump ahead six years as the box finds its way into the possession of recovering addict Riley (Odessa A’zion, who’s like Alia Shawkat’s more emotionally frayed sister). Screenwriters Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski do have some fun tweaking the core mythology though - the box now takes different forms (known as “configurations”), each one designed to claim the blood of a new victim. Once the process is complete, the box’s wielder is entitled to request a boon  (“knowledge,” “sensation,” etc…) from Leviathan, the god-like entity the Cenobites serve. If the underlying logic can seem a bit… hazy at times, at least there’s a defined structure to what’s unfolding, giving the movie the sort of shape so many of the latter sequels lack.

Riley’s brother Matt (Brandon Flynn) inadvertently becomes the box’s first sacrifice, setting the plot into motion… and the film falls into a familiar trap, in which a restless audience must wait impatiently for the characters to catch up over the mostly slow-burn first hour. Once the action shifts to Roland’s fallen-into-disrepair Berkshires mansion, however, the movie finds a more confident footing. Riley and her friends must contend with the Cenobites, as well as Roland himself, fitted with a ghastly contraption (a result of his choosing the “sensation” boon) designed to systematically tighten his nerve endings like guitar strings. Trans actress Jamie Clayton was selected to be the new Pinhead, and she’s an exciting choice. She plays the character as more of an androgynous, alien-like creature, with unnervingly black shark eyes and a slightly distorted vocal timbre. It’s difficult to fully shake the specter of Doug Bradley’s iconic portrayal, however, and that’s partly because the film, disappointingly, never gives Clayton her own signature moment (her own version of “We’ll tear your soul apart!”… or even one of the lesser Bradley “bon mots,” like “Do I look like I care what God thinks?”). Instead, she’s mostly asked to do cover versions of a few of the greatest hits (“We have such sights to show you”), but still - her potential in the role is clear to see. ​

Hellraiser was directed by David Bruckner, who released the moody and intriguing (if not altogether successful) Rebecca Hall vehicle The Night House last year. If he seems a potentially cerebral choice, one needn’t fear - he shows an unflinching hand with the film’s gnarlier body horror elements and graphic gore. Mostly, it just feels good to have a new Hellraiser entry that’s creditably crafted and acted for once (in A’zion specifically it has someone whose performance feels like the probing of an exposed nerve) - the last time the franchise’s creative embers genuinely flickered was likely 1996’s deceptively ambitious Hellraiser: Bloodline. For the first time in years - if not decades - the series has regained a sense of purpose. That may not seem like much, but the decay, at least, has decelerated.