‘Clive Barker takes us on a descent into Hell.’
Hellbound: Hellraiser II is a 1988 British horror feature film directed by Tony Randel from a screenplay written by Peter Atkins, based on Clive Barker’s story.
The movie stars Doug Bradley, Ashley Laurence, Clare Higgins, Kenneth Cranham and Imogen Boorman.
Plot:
Kirsty (Ashley Laurence) is brought to an institution after the death of her family, where the occult-obsessive head resurrects Julia (Clare Higgins) and unleashes the Cenobites once again…
Reviews:
” …less about horror than some cheesy mythmaking and good guy/bad guy reductionism utterly out of place in this film. There was a really good story in here and some really striking imagery, but the demands of franchising […] really compromise it throughout.” A Lifetime in Dark Rooms
” …violates a basic convention of story construction, which suggests that we should get at least a vague idea of where the story began and where it might be headed. This movie has no plot in a conventional sense. It is simply a series of ugly and bloody episodes strung together one after another…” Roger Ebert
“Hellbound loses its sense of purpose once the labyrinth shows up, with too much of Kirsty and Tiffany running about, and not enough plot. The Cenobites are disappointingly revealed as ex-humans, with does nothing for their mystique, and they are overshadowed by Channard. Still, the effects are good…” The Spinning Image
“Great special effects and a more indepth look at a truly hellish world (get a load of the chase scene in which the young girl is running through what looks like something out of an N64 game.) Contains one of the all-time gross out scenes in which a man in the hospital cuts open his body because he thinks he’s covered in maggots…” The Terror Trap
” …taking the story into the labyrinths with minimal explanation for it just doesn’t work and it all ends-up becoming muddled, a bit slower than the original and just not that watchable. This is just a sloppy and, I suspect, quickly thrown together sequel that disappoints more than anything.” The Video Graveyard
Soundtrack:
Hellbound: Hellraiser II’s original motion picture soundtrack was released on vinyl on October 12, 2018, via Lakeshore Records. The score was composed by Christopher Young (Hellraiser, Sinister) and performed by the Graunke Symphony Orchestra.
Remastered for the film’s 30th anniversary, the soundtrack includes material never before released on vinyl. The double-LP release is pressed on “Bloodshed” (red with black smoke) vinyl and features a foil embossed cover.
Cast and characters:
Clare Higgins … Julia Cotton
Ashley Laurence … Kirsty Cotton
Kenneth Cranham … Dr Philip Channard / Channard Cenobite
Imogen Boorman … Tiffany
Sean Chapman … Uncle Frank Cotton
William Hope … Kyle MacRae
Doug Bradley … Pinhead / Captain Elliot Spencer
Barbie Wilde … Female Cenobite
Simon Bamford … Butterball Cenobite
Nicholas Vince … Chatterer Cenobite / Chatter II Cenobite
Oliver Smith … Mr Browning / Skinless Frank
Angus MacInnes … Homicide Detective Ronson (as Angus McInnes)
Deborah Joel … Skinless Julia
James Tillitt … Officer Cortez
Bradley Lavelle … Officer Kucich
Filming locations:
Pine Ridge House, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England
Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England
Technical details:
97 minutes | 99 minutes (uncut)
Sound: Dolby
Technicolor
Aspect Ratio: 1.85: 1
Trailer:
