In a prologue of sorts, Frank Cotton gets his hands on what can only be called a Hellcube. He "solves" the box like a Rubik's Cube and hooks on chains emerge which tear him to pieces. We then meet the rest of the cast as Larry (Frank's brother), Julia (Larry's wife and Frank's former lover) and their daughter Kristy move into the same house where Frank died. Through some blood magic, Frank is resurrected as a skinless man. He needs fresh blood to rejuvenate and Julia agrees to help him by bringing in random men as victims. Along the way, Kristy gets sucked into the drama and the Cenobites are unleashed (travelers from another dimension who sought out the ultimate carnal pleasure only to find release in Sadomasochism). Kristy must try to thwart her uncle's murderous ways and put the Cenobites back where they belong.
Pinhead, the guy they base all the publicity around for the Hellraiser movies, is one of the Cenobites. He plays a relatively small role in this movie but I guess something about him captured the imagination of horror fans. Clive Barker directed this himself and the whole thing has a weird air of dirty 80s sleaze hanging over it. The skinned man effects are all practical and made me wince every time he was on screen. The Cenobites would later take over the show but here they are more plot devices than characters. Still, it is a plenty creepy movie about the mingling of pleasure and pain.
The content alone makes this a "not for everyone" movie but if you can handle gore, it has a lot going for it as a horror movie. It gets under my skin when I watch but I have never been tempted to go further into the franchise.
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