Hellraiser III

 

 

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I hate to be one of those people that gripes endlessly when a horror sequel changes things up and doesn't stick to the formula/rules that the original set-up, but this is ridiculous. Following up two mind-blowing and unique horror movies, "Hellraiser III: Hell On Earth" is limp on all accounts. In this installment, the film-makers opted to turn Pinhead into the star of the movie. These movies were never supposed to focus on Pinhead, rather, they revolved around ordinary people and how their decisions and lifestyles affect and destroy the lives of themselves and those around them. The story of Frank and Julia was compelling, because their severe selfishness and evil basically unleashed Hell on half a dozen innocent people. But I digress. Here, Pinhead is pushed into the spotlight and comes across as a Freddy Krueger clone. Obviously with the success of films like "A Nightmare On Elm Street" and "Friday The 13th" and their notorious villains, the people behind this flick had the mindset that they could do the same for Pinhead. Well folks, I have to say, it just did not work. For starters, Pinhead isn't funny, and shouldn't be funny. And don't even get me started on the mindless, droning speeches he would give throughout the film. Very frustrating and obnoxious to watch. And should I even bring up the CD spitting cenobite? The characters are way too cartoony and have no life in them. I didn't feel convinced or sympathic towards anyone. Whenever a plot-point would be presented that was supposed to enhance certain characters, it was never built upon correctly and was just presented very clumsily. A major slide from the first two flicks, which gave you colorful characters to love and hate as you wished. Another point that the movie fails on is it relies to heavily on gore. And I don't mind gore. I'm obsessed with horror movies, but gore is useless if it isn't accompained by suspense. Here, it just seems gratuitous and the effects themselves leave much to be desired. Towards the end, I started to fall asleep and didn't care too much to see how the movie ended up, the sign of a truly bad horror movie. "Hellraiser III: Hell On Earth" can be enjoyed on a somewhat superficial level. As a fan of slasher movies, I found this to be somewhat entertaining in bits, but overall, it's an utter failure. The DVD is pathetic. Special Edition? Hardly. There is not a single extra to be found on here. No trailer, no production notes, nothing. The only thing "Special" about this "Edition" is that it is hard to track down -- my copy is a Canadian import.

My problem with this movie isn't the hokey cenobites...in fact, I dont mind them at all. My problem is that this movie was nothing more than an attempt to expoit the slasher genre, thus cheapening Pinhead and the gang.

Its actually kind of a fun movie to watch. Ive noticed with the first two (that have Clive Barker written all over it) you need to be in a specific mood to watch. Hellraiser 3 can be watched under any mood since it isnt necessarily to be taken seriously. Still, not one of the best in the series. The 4th gets more back to the series' roots

I love Hellraiser, I love the Lead Cenobite/Pinhead, I love Clive Barker and the work he influences, I love the mythology of the Hellraiser series....I hate this movie. Mind you the intentions behind it were clearly good. Pete Atkins wrote it so you know the guy was in it for fun and love of horror...but the ultimate carryout is terrible.
THe acting is by far the worst of the entire series...I mean, yikes did they even try to get a good cast? The Cenobites have crap conceptualization behind them (the Terry Cenobite burns people with her cigarettes ...pointless, the Camerahead Cenobite has a ....camera...head...and sucks because of it). The effects are shoddy and the whole picture looks like it was staged and carried out in a matter of days. Amateur work at best. Its a shame to say it but this is not a good picture.
Hellraiser gave us solid story and characters and a creepy concept of a hell taken over by this new breed of demons. The Cenobites (the aforementioned demons) are geniunely creepy and awe-inspiring. Overall a geniune masterpiece of horror. Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 gave us an expanded mythology of hell and the elements within it, a history of the Cenobites, a study of an infatuation with the occult and strange visuals that despite their "eighties" feel still work wonderfully in context to the picture. Part Three...stunk and ruined the concept. I suspect its mostly due to inappropriate budget, bad actors, and the fact that the franchise had moved on to another studio. Add to that overuse of the Cenobites, a plot for those afflicted with ADD, and just laughable production values and you get this tripe. Mind you i have been known to love cheesy movies also..but not when they are supposed to continue a serious and weird vein of films. Bad movie with a good heart, buy it if you a fan of Hellraiser. STEER clear is you are not!

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1.0 out of 5 stars so boring i forgot it was on!
this is no hellraiser film, it's aload of crap!
I'd rather watch barney than this torture again, my son is only 10 and when he watched it, he thaught it was a comedy! Read more

Published on Jun 20 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW, what an installment!!!!
Well in this slasher movie, it just make all 6 of the other installments look like rubbish (even though they are all good, but compared to this installment). Read more

Published on Jun 11 2004 by Josh Mosher

1.0 out of 5 stars rubbish!!!!!
this is one of the worst films ever!
its childish and full of silly ideas that no one could possibly find scary. Read more

Published on April 29 2004

4.0 out of 5 stars Third times the charm!
In my opinion, "Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth" is just as good as the original 1987 cult classic and carries quite the resemblance to it with all the original blood and gore,... Read more

Published on Feb 22 2004 by Blade

5.0 out of 5 stars Really fun horror film
Pinhead is back! After escaping the Pillar of Souls he heads to a happening nightclud where the ole chains & hooks come out to play! Read more

Published on Dec 29 2003 by Brandon L. Harlow

5.0 out of 5 stars Cool Hellraiser sequal
This is a great gory sequal to one of the best Horror movies franchises ever!! get your's now!

Published on Nov 26 2003 by Deimos

3.0 out of 5 stars "I can dream now...and oh, the things I dream!"
So, while many viewers are revolted by these films, looking beyond the blood and gore, another class of fan wants very much to like the Hellraiser series, because it tries so damn... Read more

Published on Nov 24 2003 by Kevin Freeman

4.0 out of 5 stars I THOUGHT IT WAS PRETTY GOOD.
Even though this was not the best sequel of the bunch,it's still pretty good when you think about it. Read more

Published on Nov 13 2003 by Edgar Sanchez

3.0 out of 5 stars PROBABLY THE BEST OF THE SEQUELS
THIS TIME, A CLUB OWNER BUYS A SCULPTURE THAT HAS THE FACE OF THE PINHEAD ON IT. SOON, PINHEAD BREAKS FREE FROM THE SCULPTURE AND GOES ON A RAMPAGE AND THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN STOP... Read more

Published on Oct 8 2003 by MICHAEL TAYLOR

5.0 out of 5 stars BEST ONE EVER
This film is the best with Pinhead inside a sculpture and when the Boiler Room owner J.P. Monroe buys the sculpture he notices that Pinhead wants human souls to make him... Read more

Published on July 14 2003

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