Hellraiser 5: Inferno

Thorne: "I don't understand!"
Pinhead: "Ahh, the eternal refrain of humanity...feeling ignorance, begging for mercy."

release year: 2000
genre: horror
viewing setting: home DVD 4/7/23

synopsis: A corrupt police detective finds the evil box and watches his life fall apart.

impressions: This one was narrower in scope than past entries in the series - it dealt with one man, and how he got what was coming to him for living a bad life. Notable elements: some voiceover narration, a slow erotic scene with music, nonhuman Cenobites, the opening of the box being tied to apparent hallucinations, the viewer not being sure what's real vs imagined. All in all, it was more like a police drama with a supernatural element than any of the past movies.

acting: Craig Sheffer is the morally rotten cop, who gradually begins to see the error of his ways...and that it's too late. Nicholas Turturro is his beleagured partner. Doug Bradley is back as the leader of the Cenobites, who for some reason is only focused on a single mortal this time.

final word: Smaller-scope tale involving the Cenobites but focused on one man.

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