Hellraiser II: Hellbound (1988)
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Well Kirsty is back again and is in a mental hospital after the events of part 1. After relaying her story to police she can understand why they don't believe her but she also knows what pain the box can bring. But it seems her psychiatrist, Dr. Channard, actually believes her stories since he is a fanatic of that stuff so he manages to find the mattress Julia died on. When he gets it to his home he uses the blood of a mental patient to bring Julia back to life, as Julia had done to Frank in the first film. The good doctor wants to see the netherworld, called the Labyrinth, and Julia is only happy to oblige, with the help of a young mute patient who happens to be good with puzzles. Once the door is opened, Kirsty goes in search of her father. The doctor seeking knowledge of the world becomes a victim to the box yet also is bestowed with great powers and
takes on the Cenobites for control of the Labyrinth. It is up to Kirsty to
bring everything back to normal or risk the Cenobites and other demons from a prolonged stay in our reality.
Overall: The best of the series by far. What makes this film work is the back-story on the box and the Cenobites. You learn more about them, more about the box and more about Hell. The effects have gotten outdated over the years but at time of release, it was pretty damn good stuff. What I enjoy most about this film is the battle between Chanard and Pinhead. But what also works are all the new directions they went in. They showed new characters, new visions into the box and into hell. I can’t say how impressed I was with this film and all the new ideas it brought out. Again, the gore and blood is not just necessary to make the ideas work but just so groundbreaking too. Once again, the film is not about only Pinhead and the cenobites…it’s about the other people. Kirsty’s love for her dad, Julia’s deceptive and evil character, and Chanard… What was also great is basically the series could have ended here. It didn’t need any more sequels or even if more sequels occurred, you could have started with new cenobites, new hells and new experiences. But it didn’t matter. This film was absolutely classic. In response to his review of “Deuce Bigalow 2 : European Gigolo,” the famed film reviewer, Roger Ebert decided to name his all-time worst films. This film made the list. Here is what he said: "Kirsty!" we hear. And "Tiffany!" And "Kirsty!!!" and "Tiffany!!!" And "Kirstiyyyyyyy!!!!!" And "Tiffanyyyyyyy!!!!!" I'm afraid this is another one of those movies that violates the First Rule of Repetition of Names, which states that when the same names are repeated in a movie more than four times a minute for more than three minutes in a row, the audience breaks out into sarcastic laughter, and some of the ruder members are likely to start shouting "Kirsty!" and "Tiffany!" at the screen. Comparison: Dead Alive meets Dark City |
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