Hellraiser: Hellseeker (2002)

Directed by: Rick Bota | 86 minutes | horror, thriller | Actors: Dean Winters, Ashley Laurence, Doug Bradley, Rachel Hayward, Sarah-Jane Redmond, Jody Thompson, Kaaren de Zilva, William S. Taylor, Michael Rogers, Trevor White, Ken Camroux, Dale Wilson, Gus Lynch, Kyle Cassie, Alec Willows, Brenda McDonald, Basia Antos, John B. Destry, Sarah Hayward, Mike J. Regan, Nancy J. Lilley, Scott Swanson

Poor Kirsty Cotten. After the traumatic events of ‘Hellraiser’ (1987) and ‘Hellraiser II: Hellbound’ (1988), while she has managed to build a normal life wonderfully, it doesn’t seem like she will spend her old days in a retirement home or sheltered housing may wear out. Now married to Trevor, the shocking experiences still cast a shadow on the young woman’s life. During a car ride we see her fooling around and kissing her husband, but then things go wrong: Trevor loses control of the wheel, drives off a bridge into the water and Kirsty drowns. Her panicked husband, who managed to free himself, is unable to open the car door to save the life of his beloved.

Trevor (Dean Winters) wakes up in the hospital. He has terrible headaches, but the hallucinations that torment him are much worse. For example, he dreams that he is undergoing brain surgery, in which the surgeon pushes a sharp needle into his brain. When he wakes up from this nightmare, Police Inspector Lange (William S. Taylor) wants to talk to him. Kirsty turns out to be missing. Could she have freed herself from the car after all? ‘Hellraiser: Hellseeker’ is a strange movie. For the first hour, you’ll be annoyed by Trevor’s illogical behavior and those of those around him. His direct colleagues and acquaintances react very unnaturally when you consider that the best man lost his wife (probably) just a month ago in a dramatic car accident. His lady boss seduces him at the snack machine, with Trevor slightly muttering (which you can get excited about again), but she’s not the only one who comes to the syrup like a fly. The attractive Tawny can’t keep her hands off her newly widowed neighbor either. In addition, Dean Winters is unable to show any emotion. The actor knows only one facial expression, even when he undergoes horrific torture (after all, it wouldn’t be a ‘Hellraiser’ movie if the cenobites weren’t behind his hallucinations), he only opens his mouth slightly to let out a faint cry. Although you keep seeing him watch home movies to keep her memory alive, his grief is nowhere evident.

But as the film progresses, the pieces of the puzzle begin to fall into place and you’ll see Trevor and the minor characters’ actions in a different light. From a storytelling point of view, this sixth ‘Hellraiser’ is not so bad. In contrast to the third, fourth and especially fifth part, the film stays fairly close to the original, which is a plus anyway. However, fans of Pinhead and his followers will have to make do with minimal screen time from this cult figure, he only shows up sparsely. It is nice that Ashley Laurence returns after ten years. ‘Hellraiser: Hellseeker’ is hardly scary or gross, and the reference to ‘Basic Instinct’ destroys the power of the scene with the acupuncturist. Except for a few nice visual finds (the scene with Gwen, Trevor’s boss in Trevor’s apartment, the reflection in Pinhead’s water), ‘Hellraiser: Hellseeker’ is a mediocre production. The acting is bad, but the story still has something to offer. Yet this part in the ‘Hellraiser’ franchise doesn’t even come close to the strong original.