Too much of everything

Sick Product of a Sick System

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

I read a lot of negative reviews about this hard-to-find fan documentary, which looks at both Hellraiser and its sequel at great length. In total, you're looking at about 7 hours of interviews with the people who made and starred in the films. The first part focuses on Hellraiser and a good hour of this film focuses on Clive Barker's beginnings as a playwrite. Yes, its true, pretty much everyone describes him as a genius, a phrase that seems to lose all meaning due to its overuse, but once you get past the introductions, you begin to hear stories of how certain scenes were created, and those interested in the special effects side of the movie will not be disappointed by the contributions from those responsible. The second part (Hellbound) is more to-the-point, without needing to set the scene. Pretty much every apsect of the film, its script, its effects, its casting and its controversial changes are explored in detail too.The film doesn't shy away from questions that have bugged fans for years - such as where exactly is hellraiser set, why didn't actors from the first film reprise their roles, why didn't Barker direct the sequel etc.I really can't understand what the fans are complaining about in their other reviews. There is a great deal of insight here if you're patient enough to watch the entire documentary. This is very much a fan film, made by fans for fans.Someone described this film as being a collection of unedited interviews - I'm not sure what they watched, but that is not the case here. The interview subjects seem to follow the chronological order of the film, rather than the production order, which was a nice touch.I was impressed by how many people involved with the film took part in this project and how young so many of them were at the time.This is the only in-depth look at the two movies you'll get and it didn't disappoint.

Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II (2015)*** (out of 4)This documentary from Kevin McDonagh is apparently out there in a couple different versions. Apparently one runs nearly eight hours long and the other, which is the one I watched, comes with the Scarlet Box from Arrow Video and runs around 210-minutes. Now I obviously can't comment on the "uncut" version but I must say that I'm not sure a film like HELLRAISER really needs four hours devoted to just it. Having watched the Arrow Video version, I can say that HELLBOUND: HELLRAISER II really didn't need a two hour documentary on it.I'm not going to list all of the people interviewed here because there are dozens and dozens on each movie. Actors, cinematographers, special effects artists, directors and others are all interviewed. Clive Barker is missing outside of some archival interviews but just about everyone else that you'd want to hear from are here and telling stories ranging from how they were hired to various production bits.Look, if you'e a die-hard fan of HELLRAISER and its sequels then I'm sure you're going to love this. I enjoyed the first two movies but I'm just not sure I needed this much of a documentary. Many of the stories just weren't interesting enough to where they were needed and after so many of them you've got an extra long documentary that just drags at spots. I thought this was certainly the case with the two hours devoted to HELLBOUND.Still, you have to respect the filmmakers for trying to deliver EVERYTHING to the fans of the film. Your level of being a "fan" will determine how much you enjoy this.

It's an exhausting but execellent documentary of extreme pleasures. Its a well made, in depth discussion of the first film, Hellbound , and also the series as a whole.This documentary has moments of surprising creativity and insight to all aspects of the film making process behind the films, It covers all details so intricately like the design of the Lament Configuration and the cenobites.Overall the package from Dead Mouse Productions is sumptuous and will take any horror fans days to get through.It satisfies the fan in me to such a degree that i can't think of anything more to say other just track.down this documemtary on DVD or blu ray.

Oliver Smith narrates this documentary about the 'Hellraiser' franchise.This is a thorough documentary giving you pretty much everything you'd ever want to know about the Hellraiser-series.I had a feeling the "Leviathan Hellraiser" documentary was going to be something special, but I had no idea just HOW special until i brought it. There's something here for even the hardest of hardcore Hellraiser fans (of which I am one), with lots of interesting stories and previously undisclosed revelations, never- before-seen photos and behind-the-scenes footage,A must own for any Cenobite and Clive Barker fan.Leviathan Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound Hellraiser II has raised the bar even higher for documentary retrospectives. BUY IT NOW! http://www.leviathan- hellraiser.co.uk/leviathan-DVD/