Hellraiser: Judgment (2018)

Movie Info

So…do we have some souls to torture or not?

A serial killer named the Preceptor is stalking the streets and using the Ten Commandments as his modus operandi.  Detective brothers Sean Carter (Damon Carney) and David Carter (Randy Wayne) have been assigned Christine Egerton (Alexandra Harris) to assist them.  As the killer reaches the end of his spree, the killer must be caught…and the head Cenobite (Paul T. Taylor) and the Auditor of the Stygian Inquisition (Gary J. Tunnicliffe) are waiting to pick up the pieces.

Written and directed by Gary J. Turncliffe, Hellraiser:  Judgment is a demonic crime thriller.  The film follows Hellraiser:  Revelations in 2011 and recasts Paul T. Taylor as Pinhead (replacing Stephan Smith Collins).  The tenth film in the Hellraiser franchise was made by Dimension Films in an effort to hold on to the rights of the rights.

Yep…pretty much the same reaction to most Hellraiser movies

Hellraiser films (after the first two) are a bit of a potluck.  They generally aren’t good, but sometimes they have a decent plot (because they are often adapted scripts with the Cenobites inserted).  Hellraiser:  Judgment was meant to be a Hellraiser film and shows some promise.

The movie is largely a serial killer movie with minimal involvement with the Cenobites.  This probably makes sense in the long run, but if you go expecting a lot of Pinhead, you might be disappointed.  In regards to the serial killer storyline, the story isn’t entirely predictable and doesn’t necessarily go where you expect it to go…and that is a plus.

Though his role is minimal, I think Paul T. Taylor is a nice substitute for Doug Bradley as Pinhead.  He is similar in appearance, and he embodies that odd cockiness that Pinhead seems to embody.  Mike J. Regan reprises his role as the Chatterer and director Gary J. Turncliffe effectively plays the paperwork man the Auditor. Nightmare on Elm Street horror vet Heather Langenkamp has a small role, but the primary roles played by Damon Carney, Randy Wayne, and Alexandra Harris are rather bland.

You can’t really get a facelift in Heaven

The movie does continue the Hellraiser tradition of the “gross-out”.  The movie is loaded with gore especially within the opening sequence where a man is “judged”.  It is nasty and gross, and it is just what you’d expect from a Hellraiser movie.  Hellraiser did a lot to up the “torture porn” aspect of horror, and now it has to try to top it.

Hellraiser:  Judgment is a so-so entry in the Hellraiser series, but it also does some new stuff…which isn’t entirely expected in a thirty year old series.  The movie starts to introduce the idea of Heaven (to counter the Hell of the Cenobites), and it also sets up a potential sequel.  I actually would be interested to see where the story goes from here…something that I haven’t thought about a Hellraiser film in a while.

Related Links:

Hellraiser (1987)

Hellbound:  Hellraiser II (1988)

Hellraiser III:  Hell on Earth (1992)

Hellraiser:  Bloodline (1996)

Hellraiser:  Inferno (2000)

Hellraiser:  Hellseeker (2002)

Hellraiser:  Deader (2005)

Hellraiser:  Hellworld (2005)

Hellraiser:  Revelations (2011)