Once they ditched the numbers, the Hellraisers become a big blur to me. Why ditch them? Probably because they are ashamed of the previous installment. Or perhaps they don't want to intimidate renters. "Wait a minute, I have to rent 3 other movies before I can rent this one?"
Incidentally, JPX has holed himself up in his house to watch movies all the livelong day. I fear his progress...
But this gives me a chance to share his embarrassing nickname "Boom Boom". Yup, you read that right! A few weeks ago his secretary said to him "Your 10:00 and 11:00 appointments both showed up at the same time, boom boom." Amused with her own wording, she started calling him Boom Boom, much to his dismay.
Why he told me this story is completely beyond me. Surely he knew I would do everything in my power to make the nickname stick.
Hmmm... I wonder if I ever made 8 a day during the Terrible Horrorthon of '04. Seems possible, but not certain enough that I can make any claims. Maybe I wrote it down in a review that year. That number sticks in my head for some reason.
Anyway, whatever -- Boom Boom! I'm dyin' over here! That's priceless. We all need to call the office and ask for "Boom Boom" just to keep it going at work.
Re: ditching sequel numbers, I think they do it for JSP's suggested reason and just to avoid the stigma surrounding high-numbered sequels, which I say is lame-ass. If you're going to grind some more loot out of a ever-drooping franchise, be proud!
Personally I don't see why the sequel stigma still exists after all these years -- how can it when so many titles reach five? Five's considered short, if you talk to the Shrek folks.
More over, Bloodline is actually better than its predecessor, which makes the "heaps of sequels" philosophy look good.
October 08, 2007 9:09 PM
[Image](1996) *** This is Hellraiser #4, by the way. Did anyone notice when it became vogue to leave the number of the sequel out of the title? Personally, I think it's obnoxious.
I've only ever heard bad things about this movie, and as a result I was pleasantly surprised. The first selling point is that it's about the puzzlebox itself, and I've always found the box to be one of this franchise's more interesting bits. It starts with a buzz-cut dude on a space station being arrested by some Space Marines moments after Pinhead and Co are summoned and flit away into the recesses of the station. Buzzcut appeals to the team's shrink to hear him out before everybody gets hooked.
Flash back to the box's inventor, who is played by Buzzcut but with a lot more hair (see above). He makes the puzzle box for an occult-loving nobleman, then peeks in the window and sees the box get used in a bloody ritual that summons a demon and sticks it into a recently-deceased body.
At this point I was furrowing my brow at the movie, since it was utilizing pentacles and other traditional occult garb that the Hellraiser series always seemed too cool to use. Having watched a couple of these movies I wondered about the cosmology at play -- are the Cenobites actually from Hell? Maybe this is more of an "other dimension" kind of thing. The elements of God, Heaven etc. are never mentioned except as an occasional quip. Clearly they have some connection to the afterlife, but is that necessarily Hell? The pentacle would say yes, but I figured this was just sloppy storytelling.
And while I'm griping, couldn't they have found a more attractive actress to play the Seductress from Hell? This woman has a face like a hammer.
[Image] Anyway, it turns out being the "best toymaker in France" doesn't make you sneaky, and while trying to steal the box back the dude gets caught and killed. It takes a couple centuries before his particular Hell-box talents awaken in one of his decendants. This is where HR #4 shows off a nice bit of responsible continuity; HR #3 ends with Terry Farrell dumping the box into a building's foundation, and then a shot of the lobby done up with puzzlebox designs. Now we're seeing that building's architect's story, which involves Hammerface spotting an article about him and digging the original puzzlebox out of the foundation. She uses her hammery charms on a fat, comically horny guy and tricks him into opening the pesky old gateway to Hell. Enter Pinhead, who's first line tied the movie together in a way I didn't think possible. Greeting Hammerface, he says "Hell has grown far more ordered since your time, princess." Ahhhh...so it IS Hell, and it's subject to the same kind of vanity and upheaval as the fashion industry. Gotta admit, that's kind of cool.
However, this chapter contains the flick's weakest parts. A new Cenobite is formed, and it's just as ridiculous as those dorky ones from Hell on Earth. The ending of the chapter involves a lot of wind and bad special effects and Pinhead going "NOOOOOOOO" but it's not clear at all what's going on. I guess the good guys win.
Moreover, it was at this point that I found within me a sensation of immense apathy towards the motifs of this franchise. Pinhead looks over there, and from that dark corner...out come the chains with hooks! Then he looks over into that dark corner, and you get the idea. Gross, sure, but boring.
[Image]As the puzzlebox building starts taking on the aspect of Hell, stuff like this is everywhere. C'mahhhn, these are props from a honkytonk carnival's haunted house. This is meant to be Hell we're dealing with. "Ordered" or not, it should be more interesting.
Finally we're back to the future, and naturally the Space Marines start getting picked off. Dr. Buzzcut is freed to try to spring his demon trap, one based on designs his long-haired ancestor drafted back in France. Pinhead gets another good line, as he's mocking our good scientist for having hope. "What do you have, fiend?" "Nothing" says Pinhead, "I am so exquisitely empty."
See? While never presenting us with a solid through-and-through winner, the Hellraiser series does shape itself a good idea or moment sometimes. This one's got enough game to earn it three stars.
"Hellraiser: Bloodline"
6 Comments -
Once they ditched the numbers, the Hellraisers become a big blur to me. Why ditch them? Probably because they are ashamed of the previous installment. Or perhaps they don't want to intimidate renters. "Wait a minute, I have to rent 3 other movies before I can rent this one?"
Incidentally, JPX has holed himself up in his house to watch movies all the livelong day. I fear his progress...
But this gives me a chance to share his embarrassing nickname "Boom Boom". Yup, you read that right! A few weeks ago his secretary said to him "Your 10:00 and 11:00 appointments both showed up at the same time, boom boom." Amused with her own wording, she started calling him Boom Boom, much to his dismay.
Why he told me this story is completely beyond me. Surely he knew I would do everything in my power to make the nickname stick.
October 08, 2007 10:40 AM
OMG! That is a riot.
"she started calling him Boom Boom, much to his dismay." I can almost picture the look on his face every time she says that.
LO-freakin-L.
October 08, 2007 11:38 AM
Is there a record number of movies watched for the thon in one day? Has anyone ever kept track?
October 08, 2007 12:24 PM
As a matter of fact, yes the record is 8, set by myself one lonely Sunday in October.
October 08, 2007 1:02 PM
8 in one day! That is absolutely unbelievable. Were there any ill effects, JSP?
October 08, 2007 3:23 PM
Hmmm... I wonder if I ever made 8 a day during the Terrible Horrorthon of '04. Seems possible, but not certain enough that I can make any claims. Maybe I wrote it down in a review that year. That number sticks in my head for some reason.
Anyway, whatever -- Boom Boom! I'm dyin' over here! That's priceless. We all need to call the office and ask for "Boom Boom" just to keep it going at work.
Re: ditching sequel numbers, I think they do it for JSP's suggested reason and just to avoid the stigma surrounding high-numbered sequels, which I say is lame-ass. If you're going to grind some more loot out of a ever-drooping franchise, be proud!
Personally I don't see why the sequel stigma still exists after all these years -- how can it when so many titles reach five? Five's considered short, if you talk to the Shrek folks.
More over, Bloodline is actually better than its predecessor, which makes the "heaps of sequels" philosophy look good.
October 08, 2007 9:09 PM