Hellraiser (The Last Drive-In)

Film Year:  1987
Genre:  Horror
Director:  Clive Barker
Starring:  Doug Bradley, Andrew Robinson, Claire Higgins, Ashley Lawrence

The Movie

*I HAVE SURVIVED WATCHING THIS MOVIE WITHOUT JOE BOB*

Based on the novella The Hellbound Heart written by Clive Barker (who directed this movie), Hellraiser is the story of Frank Cotton who buys a puzzle box that opens a gateway to Hell and subjects him to the horrors of the Cenobites, extradimensional beings of torture.  Later, Frank's brother Rory and his wife Julia, who had been having an affair with Frank, move into the house where Frank was taken by the Cenobites, and due to a drop of blood Frank started to resurrect.  Now a skinless creature, Frank begs Julia for more blood sacrifices to restore him to normal.  She then lures unsuspecting men into the house under the presumption of sex, only to have Frank feed on them.

It's actually a pretty complicated story now that I type it out, and that's not even all of it.  Hellraiser is a crazy experience that is always doing something gory, interesting, and sometimes both.  It's really a shame that when I watch the movie I never find myself swept up in the experience.  I admire the craft, the boldness, and lack of restraint, but I'm not too into the characters on display, nor does the sadomasochism aspect of the film really entice me.  I find myself distant from it while watching it, with a very unique feeling of admiration yet apathy.  It's kind of a sensory overload.  Too many horrific things, and I can't really focus on any of them.

It's strange, because the movie is seductive because it finds eroticism in the taboo, but this taboo subject has to do with pain, ripping flesh off, and lots of other gory details.  Hellraiser is a movie that is aimed at the most extreme of horrorphiles, who seek out the bloodiest of the bloody because they are attracted to the most extreme.  Extreme or not, I'm attracted to style and storytelling, preferably both at the same time, but if I can only have one I'd prefer storytelling.  The one exception to this is if the style of the film is really quirky and fun, such as an Evil Dead II or a Bride of Chucky.  Hellraiser is stylish, but it's not fun.  It's story isn't bad at all, but it doesn't really push itself far enough for me to be engaged.  So in the end, Hellraiser's seduction technique fails on me.  That doesn't necessarily mean it will fail for everyone, though.

If I'm in the mood for a horror film, Hellraiser usually isn't very high on my list of ones to pop in.  It's not a casual movie, because when you watch Hellraiser it demands you watch the fuck out of it and glory in it's gory splendor.  I can not claim it's a bad movie on the basis of it lacking rewatchability, though I'm hesitant to ever call it a good one because I can't honestly say I enjoy it if I ever do find it in front of me.

The Drive-In

It's time for a classic, and Joe Bob is excited to introduce Hellraiser, though he is not entirely sure what to say about it since it's been discussed to death.  Can Joe Bob say anything new about it?  I'm not entirely up to scratch on my Hellraiser trivia, so a lot of what Joe Bob discusses is news to me.  I think he has a lot of juicy details here, especially in relation to Clive Barker, who I know next to nothing about.  He discusses the story's origins in Barker's enjoyment of S&M clubs, and points out that Doug Bradley was a childhood friend who originally wanted to play one of the movers at the beginning of the film, but was talked into playing Pinhead.

Joe Bob also says at Barker's S&M club he was rated a "6."  Joe Bob then jokes that if the guy who made Hellraiser is a "6," he doesn't want to meet a "10."

There are also some rejected titles to the movie offered, including the novella's title of The Hellbound Heart, which was rejected for sounding too romantic.  Joe Bob lists off joke titles of Sadomasochist from Beyond the Grave and What a Woman Would Do For a Good Fuck.  He roasts the late Roger Ebert for his bad review of the film, while also wondering who the protagonist of the film is (he claims it's Frank).

More humorous digression sketches include his trademark opening rant that has nothing to do with anything, which this time is about the "Taking a knee" trend and how he doesn't know what it means.  This rant is glorious, because he goes so deep and detailed into history and when he finished I had no choice but to applaud.  He also lists off a list of sex clubs that were around the area that Clive Barker frequented, stopping on one named "Keller's" and pondering who would open a blandly named sex club like that?  My observation:  Obviously someone named Keller.

Joe Bob adores Hellraiser because of course he would.  I imagine most Joe Bob fans will also.  For that alone I'd consider this a must-see episode, though I'm not too into the movie presented, myself.

Joe Bob's Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐