Hellraiser: Inferno

I got it the second time around. The noir atmosphere has something going on for it and the shift into a kind of horror detective story added to it. And the Cenobites here have probably the most sophisticated look of the entire franchise. Craig Sheffer, unknown to me, gives a focused performance, but it's a pity that we only get a fleeting glimpse of the handsome Pinhead. And perhaps thanks to the production of the experienced Weinstein brothers, this episode is the most cinematic in the last three sequels, direct-to-video perhaps not even deserved. (01.07.2008)

Hands down the best episode after the first. The Cenobites lead by Pinhead are not given much space, which I didn’t mind after the bullshit that were Hell on Earth and Bloodline. A great part of the film felt like something very far from the idea of Hellraiser, but by the end they provide a reasonable explanation (it may not follow on the ideas of previous episodes, but I still liked it), and I think a weak four-star rating is warranted. And if the film had a different name, and there was another monster instead of Pinhead, and the mechanism that unleashes everything was not a cube, those four stars would be damn strong. My ranking: H1, H5, H2, H7, H3, H4, H6, H8 (27.03.2008)

Step off the beaten path, or rather, jump straight into the unknown. Inferno, a horror of the gruesome genre, travels into the realm of paranoia, nightmares, and unpredictable mystery. A complete horror noir. (14.07.2005)

With the year 2000 and its fifth installment, the Hellraiser franchise entered the murky waters of video movies, and surprisingly, nothing better, it seems, could have befallen it. Inferno relied on a solo performance by Craig Sheffer, who was already excellent in A River Runs Through It but then had a few bad films. There’s a minimum of excellent Cenobites and Pinhead in well-measured doses, along with the emphasis on the script, and the change of genre into first a cool, and later a scary detective story has benefited the series greatly. Now I just can't get too excited and look the other sequels in the face. This not only made sense, but it looked good, and for the first time it had actors. Fascinating. And for the first time, I was really scared. This is the order in which I like the films overall: Hellraiser 8, Hellraiser 5, Hellraiser 4, Hellraiser 7, Hellraiser 2, Hellraiser 6, Hellraiser 1, Hellraiser 3, Hellraiser 9. (12.05.2023)

After years, this is a movie that can disturbingly affect me, and I am sure that it is possible to consider it calmly as one of the best parts of the whole series. Among other things, it is also because Pinhead appears basically at the end and takes the form of that whisperer who ultimately unravels everything. This simply succeeded in terms of screenwriting, directing, and acting. At first glance, it may not impress, but once you finish watching the film, its impact on you will be noticeable. (09.07.2015)