I admit to not being much of a fan of horror films , I can take them or leave them , but that doesn`t stop me from knowing what a good horror film should be. Horror films should be about irony , protestant ethics and above all - fun . That`s why HELLRAISER is my all time favourite horror film . I`m not a fan of sequels either so I wasn`t really expecting much with HELLBOUND which is just as well because this a poor film with some disturbing scenes that are just plain cruel
The script is really bad with confusing continuity with the first film . Why is Kirsty confined to a hospital ? She looked relatively well in the final scene of HELLRAISER , but no explanation is forthcoming . And - unlike stomach churning blood letting - explanations are a scarce commidity in this film , we see a woman which I take it is Tiffany`s mother pleading for someone to help her daughter then a hand clamping over her mouth . What`s that about then ? It`s got nothing do with the plot because HELLBOUND has no plot , everyone runs back and forth through corridors like a bad episode of DOCTOR WHO. Another irritant is the fact that everyone states the obvious " It`s coming ....it certainly is ..... Weird . F****** weird " and the all time classic howler " It was horrible . She had no skin " Maybe HELLBOUND was originally written for radio ? Oh and watch out for the cop out ending where Kirsty saves Tiffany
Clare Higgins and Kenneth Cranham do the best they can with the script and they give the best performances of the film which isn`t saying much. Ashley Laurence is a very attractive young woman but being drop dead gorgeous is no substitute for acting talent and it comes as no surprise she didn`t win an oscar for HELLBOUND , but the worst performance award goes to William Hope as Kyle though perhaps I shouldn`t be so critical since he gets landed with the worst lines and Sir Alec Guinness would be hard pressed to make something of the laughable dialogue Kyle has to speak
Tony Randell seems to have taken the script too literally :" It`s a dire script so this calls for dire directing " Watch out for the umpteen revealing mistakes that can be spotted and also look out for the atrocious editing especially at the end where Channard menaces Tiffany . Tiffany has a terrified look on her face then when the camera cuts to another angle she has an entirely different expression ! This happens just before Kirsty saves the day . I know I`ve mentioned that before , but I`ll mention it again because I couldn`t believe the cop out ending, what an insult. Tony Randell also seems to think horror films are all about blood and boy do we get it by the bucket load . Most infamous scene as everyone has pointed out is the lunatic with razor blade which is just sick
HELLBOUND does have one thing that makes it worth watching and that`s the music . Christopher Young deserved at the very least an oscar nomination for the haunting score , but it`s a shame we got saddled with such a poor unpleasant film
The script is really bad with confusing continuity with the first film . Why is Kirsty confined to a hospital ? She looked relatively well in the final scene of HELLRAISER , but no explanation is forthcoming . And - unlike stomach churning blood letting - explanations are a scarce commidity in this film , we see a woman which I take it is Tiffany`s mother pleading for someone to help her daughter then a hand clamping over her mouth . What`s that about then ? It`s got nothing do with the plot because HELLBOUND has no plot , everyone runs back and forth through corridors like a bad episode of DOCTOR WHO. Another irritant is the fact that everyone states the obvious " It`s coming ....it certainly is ..... Weird . F****** weird " and the all time classic howler " It was horrible . She had no skin " Maybe HELLBOUND was originally written for radio ? Oh and watch out for the cop out ending where Kirsty saves Tiffany
Clare Higgins and Kenneth Cranham do the best they can with the script and they give the best performances of the film which isn`t saying much. Ashley Laurence is a very attractive young woman but being drop dead gorgeous is no substitute for acting talent and it comes as no surprise she didn`t win an oscar for HELLBOUND , but the worst performance award goes to William Hope as Kyle though perhaps I shouldn`t be so critical since he gets landed with the worst lines and Sir Alec Guinness would be hard pressed to make something of the laughable dialogue Kyle has to speak
Tony Randell seems to have taken the script too literally :" It`s a dire script so this calls for dire directing " Watch out for the umpteen revealing mistakes that can be spotted and also look out for the atrocious editing especially at the end where Channard menaces Tiffany . Tiffany has a terrified look on her face then when the camera cuts to another angle she has an entirely different expression ! This happens just before Kirsty saves the day . I know I`ve mentioned that before , but I`ll mention it again because I couldn`t believe the cop out ending, what an insult. Tony Randell also seems to think horror films are all about blood and boy do we get it by the bucket load . Most infamous scene as everyone has pointed out is the lunatic with razor blade which is just sick
HELLBOUND does have one thing that makes it worth watching and that`s the music . Christopher Young deserved at the very least an oscar nomination for the haunting score , but it`s a shame we got saddled with such a poor unpleasant film