The Hellraiser Films and Their Legacy by Paul Kane Page B
Authors: Paul Kane
Tags: General Fiction
Ads: Link
voyeurism, and of mirrors. Kirsty is the first to watch her through a crack in the door and is startled when Kyle comes up behind her. Yet one can sense there is no malice there, more a sadness or the recognition of a kindred spirit, as we will see when we talk about their relationship in greater detail. More sinister—as is to be expected—is Channard’s observation of Tiffany through a two-way mirror while she solves the Lament Configuration. Watching safely behind a wall, he and Julia expose the girl to the dangers of the Cenobites and Hell. There is even a close-up of Tiffany’s eyes as she finally slots the pieces into place, indicating that she will soon see what both Kirsty and Julia have seen before her. Fortunately, the demons make the distinction that it is not Tiffany who has summoned them. “Wait,” says Pinhead. “No. It is not hands that call us. It is desire.” He might just as well have said “eyes,” for Tiffany has no wish to see these sights. Unlike Channard.
Having already been subjected to voyeuristic attentions, Tiffany then finds herself in the carnival from Hell, complete with hall of mirrors. Here a sightless clown juggles with his own eyes, the balls plopping down into his bloody hands, the holes in his head weeping red tears. Not only is Tiffany unwilling to see the horrors of Hell, but there is also something that she doesn’t want to see from her own past: a black-gloved hand over her mother’s mouth and the last word Tiffany ever spoke, screaming for her mother. The mirrors throw back a reflection of a baby stitching up its own mouth, before the clown appears again and mirrors shatter. The mirrors can see who she really is, what has happened to her, and why she remains the way she is. It is something she must come to terms with before she’ll be allowed to leave.
Leviathan is Lord of the labyrinthall seeing, all knowing (courtesy Eric Gross).
Channard, meanwhile, is shown his own reflection by Leviathan rather than by a mirror. The black light emanating from Julia’s god has the power to delve deep into his very core, dragging out incidents he would rather keep hidden, such as the fact it was he who attacked Tiffany’s mother. Leviathan is, therefore, an all-seeing, all-knowing deity, but it also coerces Channard to look within himself and face the reality of who, or what, he is. Leviathan strips away the pretense and gives him what he wants, the ability to see beneath the flesh. Only by bringing this monster to the surface can it turn him into a true Cenobite.
As Atkins clarified in an interview: “I think the implication is more that you get something that relates to what you wanted or something that relates to what you were or are, so it is the fact that Channard has been the great puppeteer, the brain surgeon, that is relevant here.... So each person’s Cenobitization, let us assume, is personally relevant to whatever it was that drove them there in the first place.” 2 This must surely explain why certain tentacles sprouting from the palms of his hands have eyes on the end, how he is able to find Kirsty and Tiffany wherever they go. The great voyeur has been furnished with the ability to truly see for the first time in his life.
Family Reunions
It could be argued that the family connections in Hellbound are nowhere near as critical as they are in Hellraiser . There are other plotlines to follow, there is more in terms of special effects and sheer spectacle. Director Randel himself has spoken out about this, stating that the scenes with the Cottons slow up the pace of the movie considerably. 3 To him they are requirements to get out of the way as quickly as possible so he can proceed with the next action set piece. But one cannot ignore the threads left hanging from the initial film which were begging to be tied up. It is why we are given not one but two recaps from Hellraiser ; the first in a pre-credits montage and the second when Kirsty is relating the backstory
Having already been subjected to voyeuristic attentions, Tiffany then finds herself in the carnival from Hell, complete with hall of mirrors. Here a sightless clown juggles with his own eyes, the balls plopping down into his bloody hands, the holes in his head weeping red tears. Not only is Tiffany unwilling to see the horrors of Hell, but there is also something that she doesn’t want to see from her own past: a black-gloved hand over her mother’s mouth and the last word Tiffany ever spoke, screaming for her mother. The mirrors throw back a reflection of a baby stitching up its own mouth, before the clown appears again and mirrors shatter. The mirrors can see who she really is, what has happened to her, and why she remains the way she is. It is something she must come to terms with before she’ll be allowed to leave.
Leviathan is Lord of the labyrinthall seeing, all knowing (courtesy Eric Gross).
Channard, meanwhile, is shown his own reflection by Leviathan rather than by a mirror. The black light emanating from Julia’s god has the power to delve deep into his very core, dragging out incidents he would rather keep hidden, such as the fact it was he who attacked Tiffany’s mother. Leviathan is, therefore, an all-seeing, all-knowing deity, but it also coerces Channard to look within himself and face the reality of who, or what, he is. Leviathan strips away the pretense and gives him what he wants, the ability to see beneath the flesh. Only by bringing this monster to the surface can it turn him into a true Cenobite.
As Atkins clarified in an interview: “I think the implication is more that you get something that relates to what you wanted or something that relates to what you were or are, so it is the fact that Channard has been the great puppeteer, the brain surgeon, that is relevant here.... So each person’s Cenobitization, let us assume, is personally relevant to whatever it was that drove them there in the first place.” 2 This must surely explain why certain tentacles sprouting from the palms of his hands have eyes on the end, how he is able to find Kirsty and Tiffany wherever they go. The great voyeur has been furnished with the ability to truly see for the first time in his life.
Family Reunions
It could be argued that the family connections in Hellbound are nowhere near as critical as they are in Hellraiser . There are other plotlines to follow, there is more in terms of special effects and sheer spectacle. Director Randel himself has spoken out about this, stating that the scenes with the Cottons slow up the pace of the movie considerably. 3 To him they are requirements to get out of the way as quickly as possible so he can proceed with the next action set piece. But one cannot ignore the threads left hanging from the initial film which were begging to be tied up. It is why we are given not one but two recaps from Hellraiser ; the first in a pre-credits montage and the second when Kirsty is relating the backstory
Similar Books
