Customer Ratings & Reviews

Overpriced but a great horror classic. I’d recommend buying from other distributors for much cheaper however.

Hellraiser is an altogether unique vision of the horror genre. From the mind of horror-master Clive Barker, it's quite simply a type of horror unto its own; a film that seeks to cause the viewer nausea and dread while pushing them to consider much deeper aspects of human desire and what they're willing to sacrifice to that desire. Hellraiser begins simply enough. Frank Cotton, a depraved individual who has exhausted all of the pleasures that this world can afford him, barters with a mysterious man for a strange puzzle box. Frank conducts a dark and ancient ceremony in his grandmother's old house and opens the box, unleashing the Cenobites, a group of demons engaged in a sadomasochistic quest to find pleasure through pain. They tear Frank's body apart in the very room he unleashed them in, and take his soul back with them to their realm. Soon thereafter, Frank's brother Larry moves into the house with his wife Julia. Larry's daughter Kirsty, however, does not wish to live with Julia, who is her stepmother, and thus gets her own apartment. During a moving incident, Larry cuts open his hand, spilling blood on the floor of the room in which Frank was killed. Frank uses this blood to regenerate, but only partially. He entices Julia, who was his lover before Larry married her, to bring men to him that he can sucks dry of their blood to regain his energy. Thus the terrible acts unfold. It may be shocking for most to learn that this is merely the set-up of the film. A lot happens early on, but the pacing is not off. The film unfolds quite well. It is above all a film about depravity. The Cenobites, led by the demon Pinhead, who is the most recognized feature of the series this film spawned, are the highest level of deparvity. However, they are not the true villains of the piece, because they act merely according to nature. As they themselves state, they are "angels to some, demons to others". To them, no difference exists. The true evil here is found in Frank and Julia, who are so selfish as to sacrifice whoever it takes to achieve their evil goals. This is a more interesting film than many horror pieces. There is a boogeyman element, as represented by Pinhead and his gang, but it hardly overwhelms the film; in fact, the Cenobites take up little screen time. The film focuses more on the evils of its human characters. There's also plenty of blood and gore to satisfy the gore-hound, but it is the story that really grabbed me. It's very unique in the genre. I recommend this to any horror fan, or to those who enjoy unusual film stories. This easily appeals to both.

Clive Barker's HellRaiser finally makes it to Blu-Ray and probably will never look better than it does on this format.. But, with that said, this Blu-Ray's visuals are less than spectacular! The film has a very grainy quality about it, which will thrill purists but will disappoint the average viewer. The 5.1 TrueHD soundtrack does not approach reference quality, but is generally acceptable, being a step up from the lossy 5.1 DD soundtracks that have accompanied this film in the past. The Extra's on this disc have been ported over from the 20th Anniversary Edition DVD and are quite informative with background details on the film and crew. I would give this offering a 3 1/2 stars if it were possible. But I want to convey to all that have already purchased the Anchor Bay 20th Anniversary Edition to steer clear of this version. An up-converted Dvd comes real close to the picture you will receive from this Blu-Ray disc.

Essential film for horror fans. The beginning chapter of the Hellraiser series is a little less gory than the proceeding film (Hellraiser 2). The reason for this is that more time is spent on developing the story, characters, setting, etc. This in no way shape or form means this is a bad film! It's just more plot than blood and guts (but there are more blood and guts present than a large number of horror films that came before its release in '87.) Anyway, I recommend you watch Hellraiser 1 & 2 and don't waste your time with any of the other poorly made sequels.

This is a great horror movie to say the least. Though it has been out shined by its sequel, Hellbound: Hellraiser II, which is an amazing look into its mythos. Anyone lucky enough to get a hold of Hellbound's soundtrack knows the beauty of Christopher Young's music. I digress. This DVD would be nice to see on Blu-ray because there aren't too many great extras on this 20th Anniversary edition. Like I said, it is good for true fans only. I wish there were more tidbits in it about the mythos of the Cenobites and the Labyrinth. Guess I'll have to wait and read The Scarlet Gospels when it comes out. There's suppose to be a lot of background information in it and it's suppose to be the end of Pinhead/ Xipe Totec. If you have a Blu-ray or HDDVD player, wait until this baby comes out in one of those formats. You'll just have to buy it again later...it'll probably have more extras at that time too.

This horror film is not for everyone. I personally did think it was original in plot. It has a few scenes in where I think creep you out. I think it deserves to be seen by all horror fans. Once again it is not for everyones viewing. Do pick up the blurry version over the standard dvd.

The first of a series of Hellraiser movies, still the best.