upcoming

Hellraiser (1987)

What:

Hellraiser(1987) with hellraiser drink specials and costume contest with fabulous prizes Friday, October 29 at 8 p.m. at Arcata Theatre Lounge, 1036 G St in Arcata. Doors open at 7 p.m., costs $5 and is rated R.

It will tear your soul apart.

Hellraiser (1987) is a horror film exploring themes of sadomasochism and morality under duress and fear. The story is based upon the novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker, who also wrote the screenplay and directed the film. The film opens with a chilling prologue in which globe-trotting pervert Frank (Sean Chapman), a connoisseur of sexual depravity seeking the ultimate sensual experience, purchases a small, intricate puzzle box from an unseen dealer in an unspecified country. Upon solving the puzzle, Frank opens the door to a hellish alternate universe and is promptly torn to ribbons by a network of hooks and chains; his strewn body parts are subsequently collected by the Cenobites, the grotesque, S & M-clad denizens of hell. The story continues several years later, when Frank’s brother, Larry (Andrew Robinson), moves into Frank’s abandoned house with his daughter, Kirsty (Ashley Laurence), and his new wife, Julia (Clare Higgins). An accident causes some of Larry’s blood to spill on the attic floor, which somehow triggers Frank’s hideous resurrection. Secretly in love with Frank, Julia assists him by seducing men from the town and bringing them back to the house so her undead lover can drain their bodies of blood. Her increasingly furtive behavior arouses the suspicions of Kirsty, who had already moved to an apartment to get away from her despised stepmother. After following Julia and her next potential victim home, Kirsty comes face to face with the still-incomplete Frank, narrowly escaping with her life with the puzzle box. Kirsty manages to solve the box’s intricate mechanism and summon a trio of Cenobites including their apparent leader (played by Doug Bradley and dubbed “Pinhead” on subsequent sequels) who are prepared to claim her. It is the first film in the Hellraiser series. Seven sequels followed with a remake of the first announced in 2007. Hellraiser was number 19 on the cable channel Bravo’s list of the 100 Scariest Movie Moments

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