Preface
Almost since its inception in 2013, the principal focus of Old Sins Cast Long Shadows has been nineteenth-century supernatural horror in English literature. It will continue to remain so for the foreseeable future. Lately, however, I find myself wanting to explore works and topics, in various media, only tangentially related to this blog's focus. In addition perhaps, though rarely, I would like to discuss horror-related subjects not even closely related to this focus.
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Recently, I saw Hellraiser: Judgment for the first time . . . Wow!
Following on and building upon the discussion from my previous post of a few weeks ago on the Hellraiser fan film No More Souls, I find I can no longer contain my inner fan-boy over Hellraiser: Judgment.
This is not a review of the film, Hellraiser: Judgment, per se . . . I loved this movie! There, that is my review!
Hellraiser franchise. This post is a consideration of a few interesting aspects of Hellraiser: Judgment. To start, I need to share that in watching Hellraiser: Judgment the first time (and there have been, and will be, more times), I experienced the same feeling of unease I felt when I saw the first Hellraiser movie so many years ago. To feel that again in a Hellraiser-franchise film was both a surprise and a pleasure. It was a feeling of disquiet or dread that I haven't felt while watching a film in a long time.
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Hellraiser: Judgment completed filming in early 2016 and, though originally slated for a 2017 release, was lost in the limbo of film distribution till January 2018. Insight into this limbo was hinted at in a 16 October 2017 Facebook post by new Pinhead actor, Paul T. Taylor, who wrote:
Seriously, I have a reliable source who just informed me that HELLRAISER: JUDGEMENT has been on a shelf for a while, unfinished. But now that Harvey Weinstein is out of the picture, HR:J has been taken off that shelf and is back in post-production, thanks to Bob Weinstein's love of horror films and his new-found freedom. He runs Dimension Films, the owner of the HELLRAISER franchise. I suspected something like this might happen and I'm so glad I was right.[i]
If I read Taylor's statement correctly, he is saying that without Harvey Weinstein's fall from grace due to his sexual predation, Hellraiser: Judgment might still be in limbo! Well, Mr. Taylor was much clearer in an interview two months later. He came right out and stated as much:
I think the reasons are many, but probably mostly due to the studio (Dimension Films) not doing the film for the love of the franchise, but rather to legally hold onto the franchise. It’s a Weinstein property, and we all know how that’s turning out! I wonder if the movie would have EVER been released if the women who have come forward to share their stories about Harvey had remained silent. I think it just wasn’t a priority for the studio to release it, but now they need all the money they can get.[ii]
Pinhead will have such sights to show Harvey . . .
Thankfully, Hellraiser: Judgment was released on home media and V.O.D. on 13 February 2018 by Lionsgate Films.
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"Jesus wept."
~final words spoken by Frank Cotton (while wearing Larry Cotton's skin) just prior to his dismemberment in Hellraiser (1987).
"Jesus wept."
~final words spoken by the angel Jophiel just prior to her dismemberment in Hellraiser: Judgment (2018).
Jesus wept.
~John 11:35.
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Depictions of Diabolical (or Divine, depending on how you see it) politics in fiction is a favorite subject of mine. Hellraiser: Judgment revealed another faction in the Hell in which the Cenobites reside–the Stygian Inquisition, led by the Auditor. Interestingly, it is not made clear in the film whether there were any other groups or organizations in Hell. This leads to further questions. Are the Cenobites and the Inquisition the only two? Is there a devilish hierarchy? And if so, who (or what) is at the top?
The Angel Jophiel is able to command both Pinhead and the Auditor on pain of Divine punishment, which strongly suggests to me that, at the top of Hell's hierarchy stands . . . Heaven! With all that this disquieting statement implies.
The Angel Jophiel, whose name means “Beauty of God,” is believed to be the angel that banished Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. Thus, this makes the conclusion of Hellraiser: Judgment a little more feasible in light of this Judeo-Christian lore. I am not sure how I feel about the Angel Jophiel. Not for the character which was great, but rather what it indirectly meant.
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Clive Barker introduced the character of Pinhead, as an unnamed being from Beyond, in The Hellbound Heart in late 1986. He further expanded upon the character in the 1987 movie, Hellraiser by giving Pinhead the face and voice of Doug Bradley. In 2015, Barker published The Scarlet Gospels after an excruciatingly long wait. Barker wrote The Scarlet Gospels to be his final word on Pinhead and reveal his ultimate fate.
I hold strong negative feelings toward Barker's The Scarlet Gospels. Not least of which concerned its portrayal of Pinhead (or The Hell Priest as he was actually known). In this work, Pinhead is a petty thug; not at all how he has been imagined. This disconnect was jarring and even uncomfortable for me to read.
In The Scarlet Gospels, Barker, not only draws from imagery of Heaven and Hell, a central figure in the story is Lucifer himself! Talk about Judeo-Christian! However as Barker is the original creator of Hellraiser and Pinhead, his works are official canon. Doesn't mean I have to like it.
I believe this closer connection with the Judeo-Christian afterlife detracts from the "horror" of the experience of the story. Rather than a mythos which stands apart from our reality, this inclusion of the all-to-familiar Judeo-Christian Hell and Lucifer calls to my mind the H.P. Lovecraft versus August Derleth interpretations of the mythos behind and around Lovecraft's tales; one, a cold and uncaring universe, the other, an eternal war between Good and Evil.
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I opened this discussion with a quote—the shortest verse in the Bible—as well as the quote's dual (to the best of my knowledge) appearances in the Hellraiser franchise.
"Jesus wept."
In 2018's Hellraiser: Judgment, the Angel Jophiel, finding herself in a similar situation as Larry did in the original 1987 film, repeats the quote in homage back to that first Hellraiser.
And, according to Clive Barker, that phrase was the result of an actor's ad-lib in the first 1987 Hellraiser film:
The most famous line in the film is an ad-lib
Andrew Robinson (who later played Garak on Deep Space Nine) plays Larry, and he's probably the most famous actor in the movie. He also contributed a lot of ad-libs to the dialogue. For example, Robinson contributed the line, "Enough of this cat and mouse shit."
Barker also mentions in the commentary that it was Robinson's idea to replace the script's generic "fuck off" as his last line with the now oft-quoted phrase (and, incidentally, the shortest verse in the King James Bible) "Jesus wept!"[iii]
In an interesting side note to "Jesus wept" in Hellraiser: Judgment, Tunnicliffe responded to a discussion on The Clive Barker Podcast and provided feedback to the commentary. Focusing on the inclusion of the "Jesus wept" dialogue in Hellraiser: Judgment, Tunnicliffe stated that this phrase wasn't even in the script![iv] Tunnicliffe was, and frankly still is, unsure whether its inclusion was the best decision or not![v]
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"The sweet suffering."
~final words spoken by Pinhead in No More Souls: One Last Slice of Sensation (2004).
"The sweet suffering."
~final words spoken by human-Pinhead after his banishment from Hell into Earth in Hellraiser: Judgment (2018).
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In my previous post, I discussed Gary Tunnicliffe's involvement with the Hellraiser franchise and, in particular, his fan film No More Souls: One Last Slice of Sensation, which he wrote, directed and starred in (as Pinhead). No More Souls, made for the pitiful sum of $2,500, showed Tunnicliffe how to make every dollar count and make a little go a long way.
It was the fact that Tunnicliffe wrote, directed and starred in (not as Pinhead, however) the new Hellraiser: Judgment that allayed my fears regarding Judgment's place in the franchise.[vi] It has been reported that the budget for Hellraiser: Judgment was between $350,000 and $500,000; a pittance for a feature-length production of today. Fortunately, Tunnicliffe had experience with the restrictions this placed and how to circumvent them.
. . . it became clear that Judgment was made solely for fans of Hellraiser with complete disregard for mainstream audiences.[vii]
I could not agree more with the above quote. Another review pointed out that Hellraiser: Judgment has the feel of a fan film and that was a good thing.[viii] Truly, I think Tunnicliffe's experience on his Hellraiser fan film, No More Souls, provided him with exactly the know-how he needed to make Hellraiser: Judgment a film for the fans.
I must confess that as entertaining as Tunnicliffe's rendition of The Auditor was in Hellraiser: Judgment, I would have liked more Pinhead; though his time on screen was superb. The actor who portrayed Pinhead here, Paul Taylor, showed himself to be a worthy successor to Doug Bradley's Pinhead. He understood, as did Bradley, that when wearing such an over-the-top costume, the "less is more" acting philosophy is the way to go and carried it off superbly, in my opinion.
Regarding the elephant in the room of the Hellraiser franchise, I do not intend to comment upon the public falling out between Tunnicliffe and Doug Bradley over the casting of Pinhead. However, I do hope that two old friends can reconcile themselves and find that friendship again.
And lastly, I found deeply satisfying the homage to the first Hellraiser film I referred to above ("Jesus wept"). Along those lines, I like to think that Tunnicliffe threw himself a little wink-wink when the last words in Hellraiser: Judgment spoken by Pinhead, harkened back to the final words of Pinhead in his No More Souls fan film.
"The sweet suffering."
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The conclusion of Hellraiser: Judgment was excellent with a wild set-up for a possible sequel. Or, as a reviewer with Bloody Disgusting online magazine put it:
. . . a wild finale that makes it all worthwhile. Everything comes full circle in the final moments, adding an entirely new dimension to the Hellraiser franchise. Tunnicliffe delivers on his promise with an overly ambitious conclusion that beautifully ties it all together.[ix]
If this is an example of what Tunnicliffe can do, then all I can say is . . . When is the sequel coming out?
References
Print Resources
Digital Resources
Online Resources
Danhauser, Ryan. "Hellraiser Judgment – Audio Commentary." The Clive Barker Podcast. The Clive Barker Podcast. 4 February 2018. Web. 10 March 2018.
http://www.clivebarkercast.com/2018/02/04/hellraiser-judgement-audio-commentary/
Das, Abhimanyu and Anders, Charlie Jane. "All The Weirdest Secrets You Never Knew About Clive Barker's Hellraiser." IO9 Gizmodo. Gizmodo Media Group. 24 October 2014. Web. 09 March 2018.
https://io9.gizmodo.com/all-the-weirdest-secrets-you-never-knew-about-clive-bar-1650487166
Davison, Jacob. "Review: ‘Hellraiser: Judgement’ Verdict, a Step Up in the Franchise." iHorror.com. iHorror.com. 13 February 2018. Web.17 February 2018.
http://www.ihorror.com/review-hellraiser-judgement/
Decker, Sean. “Editorial: Why Ingrate Fanboys Need to Let Go of Territorialism (and Why Hellraiser: Judgment Might Be Awesome).” Dread Central. Dread Central Media LLC. 29 July 2016. Web. 24 March 2018.
http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/180233/editorial-ingrate-fanboys-need-let-go-territorialism-hellraiser-judgment-might-awesome/
Green, Adam & Lynch, Joe, hosts. "Gary J. Tunnicliffe." The Movie Crypt, episode 232. GeekNation. 2017.
http://geeknation.com/podcasts/the-movie-crypt-ep-232-gary-j-tunnicliffe/
Malone, Stephanie. “INTERVIEW WITH GARY J. TUNNICLIFFE, WRITER/DIRECTOR OF HELLRAISER: JUDGMENT (2017).” Morbidly Beautiful. Morbidly Beautiful. 19 September 2016. Web. 24 March 2018.
http://morbidlybeautiful.com/tunnicliffe-hellraiser-judgment/
Miska, Brad. "[Review] Sluggish ‘Hellraiser: Judgment’ Still Has Grotesque Charm." Bloody Disgusting. Bloody Disgusting, LLC. 1 February 2018. Web. 7 March 2018.
https://bloody-disgusting.com/reviews/3480486/review-hellraiser-judgment/
Posey, Arthur. "Interview: Hellraiser: Judgment star Paul T. Taylor drops by 1428 Elm." 1428 Elm. FanSided Inc. 29 December 2017. Web. 07 March 2018.
https://1428elm.com/2017/12/29/hellraiser-judgement-star-paul-t-taylor-drops-by-1428-elm-for-a-chat/
Ridenour, Rob. "My Personal Feelings on Hellraiser: Judgment – Part One." The Clive Barker Podcast. The Clive Barker Podcast. 20 March 2016. Web. 22 February 2018.
http://www.clivebarkercast.com/2016/03/20/my-personal-feelings-on-hellraiser-judgment-part-one/
Taylor, Paul T. HR:J in post-production. Facebook, 16 October 2017, 2:49 p.m., https://www.facebook.com/pinheadpaul/posts/833189600186864. Accessed 4 March 2018.
Wikipedia contributors. "Gary J. Tunnicliffe." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 05 February 2018. Web. 15 February 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gary_J._Tunnicliffe&oldid=824049886
[i] Taylor, Paul T. HR:J in post-production. Facebook, 16 October 2017.
[ii] Posey, Arthur. "Interview: Hellraiser: Judgment star Paul T. Taylor drops by 1428 Elm." 1428 Elm. FanSided Inc. 29 December 2017.
[iii] Das, Abhimanyu and Anders, Charlie Jane. "All The Weirdest Secrets You Never Knew About Clive Barker's Hellraiser." IO9 Gizmodo.
[iv] Just like in the original Hellraiser movie's script!
[v] Danhauser, Ryan. "Hellraiser Judgment – Audio Commentary." The Clive Barker Podcast. 4 Feb. 2018.
[vi] We can all agree that Hellraiser: Revelations (2011) was an abomination, Tunnicliffe's script notwithstanding. And, yes, the plot of this new film did have plot elements in common with 2000's Hellraiser: Inferno.
[vii] Miska, Brad. "[Review] Sluggish ‘Hellraiser: Judgment’ Still Has Grotesque Charm." Bloody Disgusting. 1 February 2018.
[viii] Davison, Jacob. "Review: 'Hellraiser: Judgment' Verdict, a Step Up in the Franchise." iHorror.com. 13 February 2018.
[ix] Miska, Brad. "[Review] Sluggish ‘Hellraiser: Judgment’ Still Has Grotesque Charm." Bloody Disgusting. 1 February 2018.
Looking forward to future tangential horror movie reviews Sean!
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