I'm old enough to remember the original Hellraiser (1987). That was a true horror film. There were horrible people, doing horrible things. It left you feeling really quite disturbed about the worst aspects of human nature.

The follow-up Hellraiser 2 (1988) managed to recapture a small part of that. But after that it was downhill fast. The sequels were nothing but parodies.

Well, for some reason, Hulu decided to remake it.

Shamefully, the film fails on nearly every level. It's not well written (terrible dialogue) and poorly acted. There's little horror and you simply do not care about anyone or anything happening in it. It doesn't give you a reason to care either. The Cenobites are not scary, or grotesque looking... they just look like cheap make-up and some bad CGI.

Like the later Hellraiser films It has more in common with trashy slasher flicks than anything else. Poorly done ones at that.

As is common today they gender-switched the main role. Did it add anything? Nope. In fact, I keep hearing about what a good performance Jamie Clayton was as The Priest. I don't know what they were watching. There isn't a performance, it's literally all make up and some lines read out flat. Look at the originals: Pinhead's character is all about small, slow movements and looming dread. He's literally an overwhelming threat and you are the prey. Not in this one though.

Or look at the secondary villain. In the original it's Uncle Frank, who is an awful person who fully deserves his fate. Even in the end as he's pulled apart by the Cenobites... he's drawn to it, and much as he tried to run he still wants what the Cenobites offer. In this new version... there's none of that same grimy, disturbing look into subcultures. It's all clean, boring and badly acted.

Watch Hellraiser (1987) and Hellraiser 2 (1988) and stop there. They did it better on much smaller budgets.

Just watched and I really like it. i just love the cenobites designs, but i think some just looked like "plastic skin".
The story is "ok" to be fair, the first movie has a better "motivation" to drive the story forward ( [spoiler] the love of a woman to a man who has been taken by the cenobites and was willing to do everything to have him back [/spoiler] ). This movie has a similar story, but i think it lacked more development from the brother.
It's EASILY the best one so far after the original one.

and oh... [spoiler] the last scene where Voight is skinned inside the leviathan to become one of the cenobites [/spoiler] is awesome! that gives some backstory that I really appreciated. I just wish that the scene was longer and more detailed, like [spoiler] showing other cenobites or a "supreme" cenobite performing the procedures to turn voight into a cenobite. [/spoiler]

about the pinhead controversy.. it doesn't affect the movie at all. it was great to see a new design! I don't see the "sex" of the cenobites, just see them as "beings" the body is irrelevant to them, they just want pain extracted from the flesh and that's it. pinhead is a result of that, not a he or she.

Never been a fan of the *Hellraiser* franchise watched the original a few years back and thought apart from the practical effects and Cenobites it was boring as hell (pun intended). Now this is something that's not boring as hell I had a good time lots of gore, the box makes sense for once and we get to see the Cenobites for more than 2 minutes. The Cenobite costumes are eye candy so much attention to detail I had to put it on pause a few times to get a better look at the costumes. Pinhead looks like a horror icon more than ever! Couldn't see any fails in the CGI they did a good job with that. It feels like a slow burn in some parts but when there's action it's quite effective and entertaining. My favorite scene was what happened in the [spoiler] back of the van. [/spoiler]

On the other hand the acting is questionnable, the characters lack depth and the movie went on for 30 mins too long. Also I have to give it to the original the gore and practical effects were on another level it was so much more effective and gross.

Overall this left me satisfied and I would definitely like a sequel.

Not a bad movie... but not a decent movie either.
It's not as entertaining as most of the Hellraiser sequels to date.

It's predictable, in no way suspenseful and much of it makes little to no sense. It has nothing in common with the other Hellraiser movies and nothing in common with 'The Hellbound Heart' which is the Clive Barker novel that Hellraiser is based on.

The original Hellraiser movie was very true to the book and is still by far the best Hellraiser movie with the most suspense, horror and entertainment value.

I'm sure we'll see more Hellraiser movies... and I'm sure they will all be uninspiring.

After four theatrical and six direct-to-video releases “Hellraiser” has been given a reboot as a cinematic release for Hulu.

For those not familiar with the series based on a story by Clive Barker, it involves a cube-shaped puzzle box that when opened summons demons known as Cenobites who demand sacrifices and promise great rewards to those who summon them.

Naturally, their version of rewards is the stuff of nightmares as the line between pleasure and pain for them is even more distorted than their horrific visages leading those who encounter them to plead for death but often face tortures beyond imagination.

The new take on the series stars Odessa A’zion as Riley, a recovering addict who is living with her brother and his boyfriend as well as a roommate. Her brother is concerned over her relationship with her boyfriend as he believes anyone she met in recovery is not stable enough to support her in her times of need.

Desperate for money; Riley is convinced to take objects from an abandoned warehouse but finds only the mysterious puzzle box which she in time is able to reconfigure to one of the various options it is capable of. In doing so, she summons the Cenobites who promptly take her brother which forces Riley and her friends not only to question her sobriety but her sanity as well.

As they attempt to understand the nature of what is happening to them, their investigation leads them to a larger puzzle and encounters with more Cenobites including their leader Pinhead (Jamie Clayton) whose at times cryptic messages can tempt and torment those who try to survive and manipulate the events they find themselves in.

What follows is a mix of tension and gore as personal ambitions, survival, temptation, and base emotions are tempted as the characters attempt to understand a complex and rapidly changing nightmare from which there seems to be no escape.

While the new version does have a slow and more deliberate pace leading up to the finale, it was engaging enough to hold my interest. For me, the theatrical films became at times redundant as they did not advance the mythos as much as up the gore in an attempt to keep the audiences coming. The fact that the last theatrical release had the Director remove his name from the film shows how things had deteriorated too.

The six video releases were hit and miss with Barker no longer being involved and eventually the same for original Pinhead Doug Bradley who no longer wanted to be part of a series where a film was produced in a matter of weeks simply to maintain the rights.

This time around thanks to a good cast and effects along with a story that is true to the mythos yet updated and engaging, the franchise has had a much-needed new direction and it will be interesting to see where it goes next as there are already rumors of a prequel in the works.

Hulu has done well with their recent “Predator” film “Prey” which has invigorated the franchise and this new outing is not only ideal for their format but a fresh step for the franchise.

You can check out “Hellraiser” on Hulu on October 7th.