Hellbound: Hellraiser 2

Story

Definitely not one for the weak of stomach, Hellbound takes up where the first Hellraiser left off, piling on the gore to near camp levels. Luckily, the 1988 sequel retains enough of British horror-meister Clive Barker's macabre wit--like the original, it's based on a Barker story--to save it from the schlock-heap. Hospitalized following her last misadventure, Kirsty (Ashley Laurence) implores authorities to destroy a bloody bed at the carnage scene, but the enigmatic Dr. Channard (Kenneth Cranham) brings an addled patient there and unleashes a dread Cenobite instead. As if that's not bad enough, Kirsty's getting distress calls from her father, who begs her to rescue him from hell. When she journey through hell's dark labyrinths with a mute puzzle solver, however, Kirsty only finds the evil Pinhead (Doug Bradley) and other bizarro creatures, plus her nasty former stepmother and lascivious Uncle Frank. Much maniacal laughter and skin shedding later, the newfound compadres unlock the puzzle box again to safety. Hellbound isn't genius, but it does have flair, which goes a long way toward offsetting Laurence's leaden acting and occasionally over the top gore. --Diane Garrett

DVD Features

• Color
• HiFi Sound
• Widescreen

Cast

Ashley Laurence	Kirsty Cotton
Imogen Boorman	Tiffany
Kenneth Cranham	Dr. Philp Channard / Channard Cenobite
William Hope	Kyle MacRae
Doug Bradley	Pinhead / Captain Elliot Spencer
Clare Higgins	Julia Cotton
Deborah Joel	Skinless Julia
Angus MacInnes	Homicide Detective Ronson (as Angus McInnes)
Oliver Smith	Mr. Browning / Skinless Frank
Sean Chapman	Uncle Frank Cotton (also archive footage)
Barbie Wilde	Female Cenobite
Simon Bamford	Butterball Cenobite (also archive footage)
Nicholas Vince	Chatterer Cenobite / Chatter II Cenobite
Bradley Lavelle	Officer Kucich
James Tillitt	Officer Cortez
Edwin Craig	Wheelchair Patient
Ron Travis	Workman 1
Oliver Parker	Workman 2
Catherine Chevalier	Tiffany's Mother
Andrew Robinson	Larry Cotton (archive footage)
Robert Hines	Steve (archive footage)
Michael Cassidy	3rd Victim (archive footage)
Anthony Allen	1st Victim (archive footage)
Grace Kirby	Female Cenobite (archive footage)