HORROR DOUBLE FEATURE [Blu-ray]

Great movies only ones I needed and on bluray

Nostalgia

good

What is better for a horror aficionado than one HELLRAISER movie? Two HELLRAISER movies in the same package, for a surprisingly reasonable price. Never mind special features, DVD extras, and all that jazz; what we've got here is a (pardon the pun) "stripped to the bone" double feature which showcases the only two really good films in this entire franchise.HELLRAISER is the story of Frank Cotton (Sean Chapman), a degenerate hedonist who, having run out of illicit pleasures, purchases the so-called "Lament Configuration," a beautiful but spooky-looking puzzle box said to open the gates of "heaven or hell" when correctly solved. Frank is so debauched, so jaded and burned out, that he no longer cares which, provided he can go "beyond the limits" of pleasure or pain as he knows them. Unfortunately for Frank, he gets precisely what he wants at the hands, or rather the hooks, of four demonic beings called the Cenobites, only to discover, too late, that he doesn't want it. Exit Frank to the sound of screams. Enter Frank's nice-guy brother Larry (Andrew Robinson) and his unhappy, scheming second wife Julia (Claire Higgins), who move into the old family homestead Frank occupied before he solved the box. Unbenknownst to Larry, Julia had an affair with Frank long ago, and still lusts after his memory, so when Larry cuts himself moving in, and the blood re-animates the scattered remains of Frank beneath the floorboards, Julia readily agrees to supply him (Frank) with more blood so he can complete his regeneration and run off with her. To do this, of course, she'll have to murder a number of people, but she's so completely under Frank's spell she doesn't much care. The fly in the ointment is Larry's plucky daughter Kirsty (Ashley Lawrence), who loves her dad and distrusts Julia. When Kirsty discovers Frank is still alive (albeit without his skin), she opens the box and strikes a bargain to deliver him back to the Cenobites, who, let's face it, aren't the most trustworthy folks to deal with. Bloody hell ensues, culminating in a climax as gory as it is satisfying.Writer-director Clive Barker views HELLRAISER (based on his novella "The Hellbound Heart") as a love story first, and he's right, but the real love in the movie is not between Frank and Julia, but between Kirsty and her well-meaning dad, who is the complete innocent caught between horrible millstones. As for the Cenobites, forget it. A more awe-inspiring and mesmerizing gang of villains you will not find anywhere, though I must say Frank Cotton remains one of the most disgustingly evil characters in the history of cinema -- that rare baddie who has absolutely no redeeming qualities at all, yet remains oddly charismatic. And the soundtrack, by Christopher Young, is one of the best film scores I've ever heard. While not a perfect movie, HELLRAISER is a damned good one, a classic to stand the test of time.The sequel, HELLBOUND is not anywhere near as good taken on the whole, but at its best it approaches and even occasionally exceeds its progenitor. It begins with Ashley incarcerated in a mental institution since, of course, nobody buys her story about cursed puzzle boxes and leather-clad demons. Unfortunately for her, the hospital is run by the sinister Dr. Chennard (Kenneth Cranham), who is obsessed with the legend of the Cenobites and uses his influence to obtain the bloody mattress upon which Julia met her fate in the first film. Through methods too disgusting to recount here, he resurrects Julia and uses a traumatized mental patient who is a savant with puzzles (Imogen Boorman) to "safely" open the Lament Configuration, whereupon he begins a tour of Hell with the ever-scheming Julia as his guide. At the same time, Ashley is contacted by the "ghost" of her father, who pleads with her to rescue him from that same Hell. Ever the devoted daughter, Ashley, uniting with a sympathetic doctor (William Hope, of "Aliens" fame), does just exactly that, and confronts her old foes, the Cenobites, on their own turf. As usual, there is a tangle of different motives at work, lubricated by blood and gore, as well as an unwelcome appearance by the loathsome (yet charismatic) Frank Cotton. More bloody hell ensues, spilling out into the "real world" before the "puzzle" is finally solved.I saw HELLBOUND in the theater when it was released, and the scanty audience was extremely confused by the melange of tones in the storytelling. Working from a story by Clive Barker, director Tony Randel labors mightily to recapture the gory yet hi-concept feeling of the first film, and there are moments when he succeeds brilliantly, aided, once again, by a towering score from Christopher Young, and some terrific production design. Unfortunately, the film is hamstrung by the absence of Andrew Robinson, who was low-balled by the studio and refused to reprise his role as Larry Cotton, thus gutting the most poignant part of Barker's original script (which I have read). In addition, the latter portion of the film degenerates into a somewhat incomprehensible mess, at times slipping into a pastiche of slasher horror movies as Chennard takes over from the Cenobites as the movie's principal villain. All in all, HELLBOUND is a glorious and gory mess of a movie, far superior as individual parts rather than a whole, and for all of its flaws, it is infinitely better than any of the innumerable and often unwatchable sequels that followed.So, my advice is to buy this double feature. Light some candles. Get on your knees. Open the box. And go to hell.

big horror fan the hellraiser series is one of my favorites finally found them for a good price and had to scoop them up

Very good and very graphic horror movies.

The first and the second movies are the best movies in the franchise... especially the first one. They don't look particularly bad for their age, and the price is good too.

These are the best 2 Hellraiser Movies ever made. And what a great price. I was a teen when they came out and have loved them ever sense.

Classic Horror Movie!

El "casi" es, obviamente, porque no tiene subtítulos de ningún tipo, no otro idioma mas que el original, Inglés, pero como todo fan, que las busca hasta el fin del mundo, tenerlas es una bendición. Así que si se te da el inglés, y eres fan del género, es un recomendado en extremo.

This is so dated - it's worth watching to see the 80's hairstyles! A bit of gore, silicone body parts and lots of strawberry jam go to make this a wonderfully dated and funny film.

My favourite Hellraiser movies in 1 pack 👍. And the picture quality is decent considering both movies are on 1 disc (DVD).

Las 2 mejores películas de Hellraiser