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Review
Archives
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Today's
Date is:
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Hellraiser:
Hellseeker
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Reviewed
by: |
David
Litton |
| Genre: |
Horror
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| Video: |
1.85:1
anamorphic widescreen |
| Audio: |
English Dolby
Digital 5.1 Languages: English |
| Language: |
English
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| Subtitle: |
English
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| Length: |
89
min |
| Rating: |
R
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| Release
Date: |
10/22/2002
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| Studio: |
Dimension
Films |
| Commentary:
|
Feature commentary
with director Rick Bota |
| Documentaries:
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None |
| Featurettes:
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None |
| Filmography/Biography:
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None |
|
Interviews: |
None |
| Trailers/TV
Spots: |
Trailers |
| Alternate/Deleted
Scenes: |
Deleted scenes
with optional commentary |
| Music
Video: |
None |
| Other:
|
VFX walkthrough
with Jamison Goei |
| Cast
and Crew: |
Ashley Laurence,
Doug Bradley, Dean Winters, Ken Camroux, William S. Taylor,
Trevor White |
| Screenplay
by: |
Written by:
Carl Dupre, Tim Day |
| Produced
by: |
Joel Soisson, Mike Leahy,
Ron Schmidt |
| Directed
By: |
Rick Bota
|
| Music: |
Steve Edwards |
| The
Review: |
And I thought the countless "Friday
the 13th" sequels and direct-to-your-VCR installments of "Wishmaster"
were idiotic. Truth be told, the first "Hellraiser" wasn't
exactly the masterpiece everyone made it out to be, and while
the first film did respectable business at the box office,
the theatrical sequel and straight-to-video entries have gone
by largely unnoticed. And now we have "Hellseeker," which
is pretty much the same stuff done over in hopes of garnering
more attention from a new generation of movie renters and
buyers. ***
Once again, that damn puzzle box
brings about the Cenobites, led by Pinhead (Doug Bradley),
who takes pleasure in giving others pain. And making another
return is the heroine of the original two movies, Kirsty Cotton
(Ashley Laurence), now married to Trevor (Dean Winters), who
becomes trapped in what can only be described as a nightmare...
or is it? The story is full of twists and turns, but nothing
you don't see coming a mile away, while the acting is sub-par,
the effects gruesome but not scary, and the overall experience
turgid and relentlessly talky and boring. For true Pinhead
disciples only.
|
| Image
and Sound |
Despite
the fact that the movie sucks, the DVD transfer isn't half bad.
The image is framed at 1.85:1, is anamorphically enhanced, and
features well-saturated colors and accurate fleshtones, accompanied
by sharp edges and good detail. Some of the images suffer from
noise and artifacts, but it's direct-to-video, so certain limitations
are to be expected. The sound is mastered in Dolby 5.1, and
for the most part is a front-heavy track with limited use of
the surrounds or lower channel. Dialogue is centered nicely
and sounds natural, and that which comes from the front channels
is well-recorded without sounding distorted or uneven. |
| The
Extras |
You'd
have to be an avid "Hellraiser" devotee in order to appreciate
the special features that have been included here. In addition
to the commentary, a couple of deleted scenes with optional
commentary are also featured, though they don't add much to
the movie itself, and some visual effects analyses with Jamison
Goei. |
| Commentary |
The
commentary with director Rick Bota is somewhat entertaining,
and is certainly never lacking in informative detail, but you
have to appreciate the movie to appreciate the conversation,
so keep that in mind. |
| Final
Words: |
How this franchise got as far as it did is beyond me, but then
again, we live in a world where Jason never dies, Michael Myers
comes back every once in a while, and remakes and sequels have
become synonymous with the horror genre. "Hellseeker" is pretty
much for fans only, and the DVD doesn't do much to expand beyond
that. |
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