I’ve reached the end, for now. The end of my mission to watch all the HELLRAISER movies. The experience was far less painful than I had feared. For the most part, in fact, the movies were good, with the last installment being a notable exception. HELLRAISER: REVELATIONS was written by Gary J. Tunnicliffe, longtime makeup artist for the series; the script wasn’t what was wrong with the film, and Tunnicliffe was reportedly unhappy with the way the project turned out. Tunnicliffe wrote, directed, and starred in HELLRAISER: JUDGMENT, and let me tell you, the guy is worthy. When they get around to doing the remake/reboot, if Clive Barker takes a pass, they should give it to this Tunnicliffe dude.
There are genuine ideas at play in this movie. Actual, honest-to-goodness ideas. New things, new ground broken. HELLRAISER: JUDGMENT is now my second favorite film in the series, after the original. And as for the guy playing Pinhead this time, Paul Taylor, the guy ain’t bad. If they can’t get Doug Bradley back for future films, I wouldn’t mind seeing Taylor back in the role. That’s the best compliment I can give him, and Tunnicliffe, too. I wouldn’t mind having them back for another HELLRAISER movie.
