Hellbound: Hellraiser II Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

Hellbound: Hellraiser II Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 31, 2017

Note: This version of this film is available as part of Hellraiser: The Scarlet Box.

There have been any number of iconic and often gruesome creatures who have haunted the annals of horror films. Most folks would probably put Jack Pierce’s astonishing work on the Frankenstein monster at the top of this list, but there are a number of other horrifying entities that retain their angst producing abilities to this day. Lon Chaney’s amazing disfigurement as The Phantom of the Opera probably continues to populate various nightmares (and it’s interesting to note that subsequent remakes of the film seemed to realize they couldn’t top Chaney’s own makeup approach, meaning “later” Phantoms rarely had the same viscerally disquieting appearance). The original version of The Mummy certainly had at least a few unsettling looks at the bandaged phenomenon, and as patently silly as the transformation scenes typically were (due to old style optical dissolves), Lon Chaney, Jr.’s The Wolf Man probably earns a permanent place in this admittedly odd category. Ironically, Universal’s “other” big horror character, Dracula, relied on more subliminal creepiness rather than a ghastly appearance to create his version of night sweats. More modern horror films have introduced a number of variously unkempt creatures to scare the pants off audience members, but there’s probably no more frightening entity than Pinhead (one whose suave manner was reportedly based at least in part on Count Dracula), an individual from another dimension whose cranium has a rather unorthodox array of “piercings”, and who has given the Hellraiser franchise an instantly recognizable glyph of the horrors the series offers its viewers. Many of the Hellraiser films have already had various Blu-ray release, but Arrow has now assembled the first three films in a really beautifully packaged new set that also provides a wealth of new supplementary material.

Instead of rehasing the plot dynamics of this film, I'll instead refer you to Brian Orndorf's Hellbound: Hellraiser II Blu-ray review of the Image Entertainment release.

Hellbound: Hellraiser II Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Hellbound: Hellraiser II is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's deluxe Hellraiser: The Scarlet Box package includes a hardback book with the following information on the transfers in this set:

Hellraiser, Hellbound: Hellraiser II and Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth have been exclusively restored in 2K resolution for this release by Arrow Films. All three films are presented in their original 1.85:1 aspect ratios. Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II are presented with their original 2.0 stereo and 5.1 mixes. Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth is presented with its original stereo 2.0 mix. The original 35mm Interpositive elements for Hellraiser were scanned in 2K resolution at Point.360 Film Labs, Los Angeles. The original 35mm Interpositive elements for Hellbound; Hellraiser II and Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth were scanned in 2K resolution at Fotokem Film and Video, Los Angeles.

The original 2.0 and 5.1 stereo mixes for Hellraiser were transferred and mixed from the original magnetic reels at Deluxe Media/Audio Services. The original 2.0 and 5.1 stereo mixes for Hellbound: Hellraiser II and the 2.0 stereo mix for Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth were transferred and mixed from the original magnetic reels at Post Haste Sound, Inc., Los Angeles.

The 2K scans delivered by Lakeshore Entertainment were fully graded on a Baselight grading system at Deluxe Restoration, London. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris and light scratched were removed through a combination of digital restoration tools. Overall image stability was also improved when necessary.

The 2.0 and 5.1 stereo mixes delivered by Lakeshore Entertainment were conformed at Deluxe Restoration, London. There were occasions during the films when audio synch with picture will appear loose because of instances of ADR/Overdubbing, but these are in keeping with the original theatrical presentation.

The new restorations of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II have been approved by Director of Photography Robin Vidgeon, BSC.

As with my comments in the Hellraiser Blu-ray review, I highly recommend those interested to open a new tab with screenshots from Brian's review of the Image release of this film so that they can do a side by side comparison. Hellbound: Hellraiser II shows some of the same wobble during the opening credits that was on display during Hellraiser, but as with the first film, things calm down after the opening sequence. Interestingly, the interstitial elements culled from the first film don't have any instability problems. While overall grain is at least a bit finer in this presentation than in the first film, also as with the first film there are moments where it spikes noticeably, not necessarily relegated to darker or dimly lit moments (watch at circa 4:04 for just one example). In fact, when the film has its first operating room sequence, where the backgrounds are swathed in black, there's a relative lack of grain when compared to earlier, brighter moments. Kind of unusually, there's no huge uptick in grain in the optical and SFX laden last hour or so of the film. Overall, despite these variances, compression is generally excellent and grain resolves naturally, and it certainly looks more natural than the Image release, which now has a kind of soft and smeary appearance by comparison that may suggest filtering which this release commendably doesn't offer. Detail levels are excellent, especially with regard to some of the more gruesome SFX like the "skinless" moments, where sinew is almost tactile and the reds are very impressive.

Hellbound: Hellraiser II Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Hellbound: Hellraiser II features LPCM 2.0 and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mixes, and like the first film, the surround track nicely opens up the soundfield in terms of both score (Christopher Young retreads some of his work on the first film while offering new cues) and effects. The long "fantasy" sequence that takes up the bulk of the film's second half has some nice effects which are placed smartly in discrete channels. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly and there are no issues with damage.

Hellbound: Hellraiser II Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Leviathan: The Story of Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1080p; 2:00:46) manages to even up the ante from the first part of this documentary included as a supplement on Hellraiser. There's a lot of information imparted about things like the production design, makeup effects, and the transitions several carried over cast and crew from the first film had to make with first time director Tony Randel.


• Being Frank: Sean Chapman on Hellbound (1080p; 11:35) continues with more of what looks like the same interview session that's part of the supplementary material on Hellraiser. Chapman expresses some dismay with the film's art direction and similar elements.


• Lost in the Labyrinth (1080i; 17:03) is a fun vintage featurette with some good interviews with several cast and crew members.


• Under the Skin: Doug Bradley on Hellbound (1080i; 10:53) follows suit with the Chapman footage by offering more of what looks like the same interview session which is excerpted as a supplement on Hellraiser, with Bradley talking about things like moving on from a Barker directed effort on this sequel.


• On Set Interviews

  Clive Barker (1080i; 3:18)

  Cast and Crew (1080i; 4:45)

• Commentaries

  Audio Commentary with Tony Randel and Peter Atkins

  Audio Commentary with Tony Randel, Ashley Laurence and Peter Atkins

• Surgeon Scene (1080p; 4:49) presents a sequence that was long thought to be lost, but which even here is missing some SFX shots.


• Behind the Scenes Footage (1080i; 1:51)


• Trailers

  Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 1:52)

  Red Band Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 1:33)

• TV Spots

  TV Spot 1 (1080p; 00:33)

  TV Spot 2 (1080p; 00:33)

• Galleries

  Storyboards (1080p)

  Alternate Ending Storyboards (1080p)

  Stills & Promo Material (1080p)

Hellbound: Hellraiser II Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This is the rare sophomore effort in a franchise that manages to retain a lot of the original's force and creativity, even if large swaths of Hellbound: Hellraiser II are patently crazy. The gruesome special effects of this second entry in the franchise have made it a favorite of horror fans, and those fans should be delighted (if that's the right word) with the technical presentation of the gore in this new release, one which also features a great assortment of supplementary material. Highly recommended.