Hellraiser (1987)
78%RT Audience Score: 72%
Awards & Nominations: 2 wins & 6 nominations
Elevated by writer-director Clive Barker’s fiendishly unique vision, Hellraiser offers a disquieting – and sadistically smart – alternative to mindless gore
Hellraiser is a movie that will make you scream, cringe, and maybe even laugh a little bit. Clive Barker’s twisted imagination is on full display in this horror classic, which features some of the most gruesome and disturbing imagery you’ll ever see. From the iconic Pinhead to the grotesque Cenobites, the creatures in this movie are unforgettable. Sure, the plot is a little predictable and the acting is a bit hammy, but that’s all part of the fun. If you’re a fan of horror movies that push the boundaries of good taste, then Hellraiser is a must-see. Just don’t watch it alone in the dark.
Production Company(ies)
Distributor
New World Pictures, Anchor Bay Entertainment, Image Entertainment Inc.
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
187 Dollis Hill Lane, Dollis Hill, Brent, London, England, UK
MPAA / Certificate
R
Year of Release
1987
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Stereo
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 33m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Sep 18, 1987 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 19, 2000
Genre(s)
Horror
Keyword(s)
starring Sean Chapman, Andrew Robinson, Clare Higgins, Ashley Laurence, Oliver Smith, Robert Hines, Christopher Figg, directed by Clive Barker, written by Clive Barker, horror, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Ryan Murphy, Miami Herald, Chris Stuckmann, ChrisStuckmann.com, William Thomas, Empire Magazine, Bob McCabe, Empire Magazine, Peter Bradshaw, Guardian, Eric Henderson, Slant Magazine, Josh Larsen, LarsenOnFilm, Roger Hurlburt, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Tony Black, Cultural Conversation, Chris Plante, Polygon, Mike Massie, Gone With The Twins, MPAA rating R, sexual deviant, Frank, portal to hell, Cenobites, gruesome beings, tear Frank’s body apart, Julia, Frank’s one-time lover, lure men back to the house, blood to reconstruct himself, sadistically smart, alternative to mindless gore, disquieting, fiendishly unique vision, elevated
Worldwide gross: $14,575,526
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $38,905,502
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,446
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 4,242,694
US/Canada gross: $14,564,027
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $38,874,809
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,178
US/Canada opening weekend: $4,453,232
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $11,886,722
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 899
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): £1,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Clare Higgins – Julia Cotton
Ashley Laurence – Kirsty Cotton
Sean Chapman – Frank Cotton
Oliver Smith – Frank the Monster
Robert Hines – Steve
Director(s)
Clive Barker
Writer(s)
Clive Barker
Producer(s)
Christopher Figg
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
2 wins & 6 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (51) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (36) | Rotten (15)
The conclusion is pat and predictable, an amateurish effort at showing the advantages of good over evil.
August 17, 2021 | Rating: 1.5/4
Ryan Murphy
Miami Herald
TOP CRITIC
The reason the movie works as well as it does is because of its human characters.
October 14, 2019 | Rating: B+
Chris Stuckmann
ChrisStuckmann.com
TOP CRITIC
Horror is at its best when it’s relentless. Clive Barker knows this, and his debut feature as director is so gleefully vicious, so relentlessly grim that it’s going to be very hard for fans of the genre not to like it.
November 13, 2017 | Rating: 4/5
William Thomas
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
With Hellraiser, Clive Barker created one of the most genuinely disturbing movies of the last 20 years.
November 13, 2017 | Rating: 4/5
Bob McCabe
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Utterly bizarre and entirely ridiculous – and yet effective, an imaginative guignol festival, like the goriest of soap operas, in which one wrong move opens a portal to hell.
October 11, 2017 | Rating: 4/5
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
Barker’s vision cribs equally from the mythos of vampires and zombies, but Hellraiser’s overriding ridiculousness (and nagging budgetary shortcomings) can’t disguise the fact that the movie is at least unwittingly a product of the AIDS crisis.
April 20, 2009 | Rating: 2.5/4
Eric Henderson
Slant Magazine
TOP CRITIC
…a demystifying experience, especially if the movie’s Pinhead poster was a staple of your youth.
June 10, 2022 | Rating: 1.5/4
Josh Larsen
LarsenOnFilm
Hellraiser [is] one of the most gruesome, visually horrific fantasy films you will ever see. Written and directed by Clive Barker, the film is a relentless, unflinching foray into a netherworld of monsters, murder and the supernatural.
August 19, 2021 | Rating: 3/4
Roger Hurlburt
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
A heady combination of sadism, grubby under the counter porn shop erotica, ’80s glam and visceral, viscous body horror.
February 14, 2021 | Rating: 4/5
Tony Black
Cultural Conversation
It’s gross! It’s unenjoyable! And I can’t stop thinking about it!
December 1, 2020
Chris Plante
Polygon
One of the most original and unequaled horror films of the decade.
September 6, 2020 | Rating: 9/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
More than with terror, the movie plays with revulsion. And that is its (relative) novelty. [Full Review in Spanish]
June 25, 2020
Ángel Fernández-Santos
El Pais (Spain)…
Plot
When Kirsty’s father, Larry, and stepmother, Julia, move into Larry’s childhood home, Kirsty and her boyfriend take a room nearby. Unfortunately for all involved, Larry’s house is already occupied: before the family’s arrival, Larry’s disreputable brother, Frank, used a supernatural puzzle box to summon a gang of other-dimensional demon sadists. Now, Frank requires a series of blood sacrifices to escape the clutches of Pinhead and the cenobites.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film Hellraiser on Fresh Kernels.
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