User reviews

It's hard to believe that a documentary can have a run time of minutes under 8hrs, one single documentary!

Now when they did the Friday 13th documentary (Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th (2013)) it covered 12 different films and was around 6hrs long. This is 8hrs and covers 2 films, 2!

Nobody can dispute that the documentary is thorough and is arguably a must watch for fans of the first two Hellraiser movies but 8hrs is far far too long.

As you can imagine the documentary goes over old ground several times, it's interviews are decent but the number of people interviewed is far less than you'd imagine especially the absence of Ashley Laurence (Not as if she was the lead or anything)

I liked Hellraiser and considered the second film a watchable affair but this was seven shades of overkill and damaged my enjoyment. This really should have been edited down to 2hrs, 3 at the most.

The Good:

Very thorough

Some decent interviews

The Bad:

Too few people interviewed

How can you do this without the lead? Seriously?

Far too long

Bit repititious

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

I have far too much time on my hands

This film is mistitled. It's the story about all the people who made Hellraiser and Hellbound. You already know it's much too long. I finally gave up after 2 1/2 of the 4 plus hour version. It's basically asking 40 different people the same question, filming their response, and then clipping it all together.

There are some odd moments. Doug talks at length about Clare's audition for the part, how he read with several actors but when she finished her read, he knew she had the part. Then it cuts to Clare saying, "I don't know what Doug is talking about; I never auditioned for the role." And there is ZERO comment from the interviewers! Every interview is in its own silo with no commentary or corrections or clarifications asked for.

It's one of the strangest films since there seems to be no editing whatsoever; every play Clive wrote is discussed (who cares? Isn't this about Hellraiser?), the back, back, backstory of the special effects teams are told when we really don't care about their personal lives or experience.

Worst of all, it's boring. I kept waiting for some insights but other than everyone calling Clive a genus and saying how challenging their roles were, there's very little digging here. If this was chopped back to a 90 min documentary with some editing and chapter breaks and titling to give it some structure, it would help tremendously. But there isn't, so it just plods along and goes on and on and on....

"Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II" is a feature length documentary uncovering the history and the making of Clive Barker's "Hellraiser" and "Hellbound: Hellraiser II" films.

First of all, the opening credits are a bit drawn out and I wish that wasn't the case. But the rest of the film makes up for that. In fact, the Arrow Video release is very extensive, and (as I understand it) was expanded to the point that it had to be turned into two documentaries. (The first half is 90 minutes and I assume the second half is similar.) Where this documentary excels is where it goes into great detail about the makeup and special effects, because this is what really makes "Hellraiser" stand out. Also, the coverage of the Coil music is awesome, because I don't know how many people know their work or knew they had anything to do with the film. (The Arrow set goes into much more detail on the Coil-Barker connection.)

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.

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.

I don't like to criticize independent labor-of-love productions, but this is just not a good documentary -- unless you're interested in hearing a lot of people talk about what a genius they think Clive Barker is.

I've no doubt Barker is a major creative talent, and Hellraiser is a great horror movie, but it provides next to nothing about the making of the movie, the creation of the story, how it came to life, etc. I mean, apart from "This is a monumental film, Clive is a genius."

There's also almost no actual footage from the film, only occasional glimpses. Mostly it's one middle-aged (the movie is several decades old, after all) person after another talking about how much of a genius Barker is and how amazing it is that they were able to know him.

The film-makers start to delve into how Hellraiser fit in with the other horror movies of the era but it's all so superficial and shallow, and really it seems like the argument for why Hellraiser was so different from the other movies at the time is because it was just *so* different from the other movies at the time. The whole thing feels like a circular argument, which always leads back "I mean... a genius! The man is a genius!"

And even then, they don't even go into *why* he's a genius. People keep talking about how brilliant his paintings are, but then the movie barely shows them. People talk about amazing his books are, and yet I came out of the film not knowing the title of a single one of his books. The whole thing is just so superficial and frivolous.

And of course, Barker himself isn't in it. And also, if you're going to recycle that same, tired Stephen King "I've seen the future of horror" quote, then maybe you should actually interview Stephen King and find out why he said it, what made him think that, how was Barker different from the 'past' of horror, etc. But, nope. Almost all of the talking heads are people who haven't done much apart from Hellraiser.

There's a very good documentary to be made about Hellraiser, but this isn't it. Again, I get no pleasure from criticizing this movie, but this is the perspective of one person who watched it.

Post-script -- Wait, one of the other reviews here calls this a 7 hour documentary. Either he is mistaken or I saw only part of it or I'm confused or.... something. Anyway, what I saw dealt only with Hellraiser and Clive Barker, for what it's worth.

Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser - this documentary, narrated by Oliver Smith, focuses on the production history of Hellraiser & hellbound, its cult status, and some of the key themes/sub-themes in the films. Included in it are interviews with special effects designer Bob Keen, image animator Geoff Portass, Ashley Laurence (archival footage), Doug Bradley (Pinhead), director of photography Robin Vidgeon, producer Christopher Figg, and director Clive Barker (archival footage) , amongst others.  A great assortment of interview material. Highly recommended for fanatics.

I saw this documentary online.

Now, I don't know how long this whole doc actually lasts for, but the video I watched lasted for 4 and a half hours. And it only covered the first film.

Four hours focusing on ONE film. Whose stupid idea was that?

The Nightmare on Elm Street documentary "Never Sleep Again" was 4 hours long. But that doc worked because they covered all 8 films.

Most documentaries about the making of films should last for either an hour or two. But 4 hours is just unacceptable.

Who'd want to sit through all that?

This is why we have a little thing called EDITING for the love of Frank! (yeah, that was a pun!)

The 30 minute documentary on the "Hellraiser" DVD was good because it was short and simple.

Here, we have a 10 minute focus on Clive Barker and "what a real genius" he is. We have another 10 minute focus on how great Andrew Robinson is, another 10 minutes explaining how great Claire Higgins is, another 10 on how great Ashley Laurence is and another 10 explaining how great Doug Bradley.......

UGH!!! I DON'T CARE! I HATE ASSKISSING!

And the pacing of this doc is so slow and there's barely any behind the scenes footage, so it is mostly people talking, which makes it even more mind numbingly boring.

However, there are some interesting things I have learned from this doc:

.Doug Bradley was really nervous when he said the line "We want the man who did this" because it was his first day.

. Clive Barker called the goop "Elephant cum".

. Condoms were used for the latex in the special effects make up. Technicians got strange looks from the shop keepers when buying boxes of condoms.

. Clive Barker is obsessed with skinless bodies. He is scared of them and can write them so well. He probably gets off on them.

. For Skinless Frank, Clive Barker and Bob Keen went see an autopsy. The body was being skinned alive and Bob vomited. Clive was disappointed because he thought it look like bacon strips put on him.

. Tony Randel directed some scenes in the first film, such as the reshoot of the Cenobites in the hospital and the shot of Frank's heart pumping under the floorboards. I think he also directed the resurrection of Frank.

. And the actress playing the female Cenobite (who was Clive Barker's cousin, by the way) hated being in the make up so much, she turned down Hellraiser 2.

But as for the rest of the doc, yawn!

And to think I was going to order this from the net. And be bored out of my mind? I don't think so.

I'm beginning why Clive Barker and Ashley Laurence didn't take part in this doc. They knew it was gonna suck!

The South Bank special on Clive Barker and Ashley Laurence's interview on the Blu-ray are better than this!

This is without a doubt THE best documentary on Hellraiser and it's first sequel, Hellbound:Hellraiser II. An extremely thorough and exhaustive collection of interviews with pretty much everybody involved in the creation of these two masterpieces on Horror cinema, the only real exceptions being Clive Barker himself (I believe due to illness) and Ashley Lawrence, who portrayed Kirtsy Cotton in the films, but due to the sheer amount of information and anecdotes from the large number of talking heads on offer here, their absence is barely noticeable. Spread out over 3 DVD's, with the first two dedicated to Hellraiser and Hellbound respectively, and the third disc being crammed with extra features, which include mini documentaries on Clive Barker, Channard, The Cenobites, the unused music of Coil and much more.

Fans of other excellent documentaries of this type, such as More Brains!:A Return to the Living Dead (from the same writer), Crystal Lake Memories:The Complete History of Friday the 13th and Never Sleep Again:The Elm Street Legacy will certainly enjoy this, I'm sure.

Highly recommended for fans of the Hellraiser franchise

I stumbled upon the 2015 documentary "Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II" here in 2021. And having been an avid horror fan since my childhood and having seen all of the "Hellraiser" movies, of course I had to sit down to watch this 2015 documentary from director Kevin McDonagh.

While "Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II" was watchable, it was not really a fulfilling documentary, as it didn't really offer all that much insight into the two movies. Sure, there were bits and pieces, but once the documentary ended, I felt somewhat cheated, as it didn't delve as deep into the world of the Cenobites and the macabre world of "Hellraiser" that Clive Barker conjured up.

"Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II" is certainly something for the fans of the franchise, in particular the first two movies. Which, hand on heart, were undoubtedly the two most enjoyable and entetaining of movies in the entire franchise.

There are some good interviews here with some of the cast from the movies as well as with production crew that worked on the movies. And they do offer some nice pieces of information that might not have been otherwise publicly known about the two movies.

I am rating "Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II" a bland five out of ten stars, as it wasn't really as informative or fulfilling as I had hoped it would be. Watchable, for sure, but not an outstanding documentary.

This documentary is independently financed and allows the interview subjects to be more candid in their recollections explored with staggering depth that never gets tiresome, one of the greatest joys is that the interviews allow us to see where the cast and crew are now, and also sharing that the project often surpasses its own subject in terms of pure inventiveness.Even for the casual fan, this is one hell of an educational film., There's a lot to love about Leviathan, and virtually nothing to hate. It's not only an expertly crafted film about a beloved horror franchise, it's also a film about the legacy of Clive Barker, Image Animation, and ultimately, a film about the horror genre as a whole. Frankly, you won't find a horror documentary better than this one." The documentary also features 8 bonus feature mini docs on Clive Barker, the Music, the sequels, Hellraiser III and much more.

I am just a viewer of this genre of horror, as a kid I was introduced to hellraiser and the clive barker world by my mother, read his books and then eventually his films, this documentary was fascinating to watch from the joe public view, I was very interested in the special effects moments in the hellbound film how it all came together, the interviews of the cast and crew who knew clive from childhood was sweet to listen too, I would of liked to of seen clive himself but I guess I was being greedy, even better that this was independently funded for us die hard fans too makes it more personnel. Well done to all involved I am glad I have my copy to add to the ever growing collection of all things horror.

This is unquestionably one of the Best Documentaries about A Classic Horror Series.With its bravura camera-work, fetishistic Cenobite drawings designs, nerve-jangling soundtrack by Lito Velasco .Leviathan is a worthy tribute to Clive Barker's flesh-ripping original films.My idea of heaven is having to sit through this soon to be iconic documentary. It really doesn't get any better than this.A landmark horror film documentary. It really pierces through Clive Barker's deliciously warped imagination of the Hellraiser franchise that had some of the most memorable screen monsters and vision of hell.Leviathan is well made, well researched,well interviewed, and generally handled with skillful perfection.

What can I say I 🖤 this, anyone that is a Hellraiser fan you are going to love this, I love how it shows you how they made Hellraiser 1,2 and 3 and what everyone's roll in making it, I'm not going to give any of it away but trust me this is a must buy for your collection it's well worth having.

Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II And although the film undoubtedly does demand breaks along the way - four hours is just too long of a sit for any movie.

Its Perfect for a lazy Sunday in front of the TV, Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser is a fascinatingly detailed insight into arguably one of the most iconic horror series.

A chronological study of its subject, leviathan charts not only the success of the movies but also the origins and rise of production company New World. The quality of films varies wildly throughout the series. You already know that, but it is fascinating to hear the stories behind the production of the first two classics. The motivation to continue to visit and revisit, alongside the pitfalls of chasing the early success.

My first foray into the Hellraiser series was 1988's Hellbound: Hellraiser II. A fairly strong offering within the bigger scheme of the series, the first sequel hits the heights of its predecessor and is as good , if not better than the first.

With a slightly daunting running time, Leviathan succeeds in remaining entirely engaging throughout which is in no small part due to the quality of contributor. Ranging from self-depreciating honesty to steely resolve, it is clear that it was not always plain sailing for those involved in the production of the Hellraiser series.

Narrated by Oliver Smith, Leviathan is absolutely bursting with behind the scene pleasures; photos, footage, storyboards, and stories. Clearly a labour of love, the pacing is excellent, the time dedicated to each film perfect and the sheer volume of information means it is impossible not to learn something about the production.

Don't let the duration scare you. The chronological structure allows you to watch in chunks if you so decide. Just make sure you take pleasure in it Solve The pattern Turn the Key Open The Box… In the end Leviathan is an interesting, sporadically fascinating documentary that should leave Hellraiser enthusiasts more than satisfied.

It's the best companion piece to the Hellraiser series you could possibly ask for. Buy it at whatever price they're asking for! There's just so much involvement here that it can be almost exhaustive.I recommend chunking this up- not because it's boring, but because it can be so much information that it's best swallowed in smaller pieces. I know that if you're anything like me, that's a fool's request and you'll binge-watch the whole thing and that's fine.. but know that everything about Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II is examined in such great detail. Remember when practical effects were king, before this CGI stuff? Oh yeah, it's here,it covers it all, everything. There's really nothing more I can say about this documentary. It's just exhaustive, pulls no punches, and offers tons of new material and insight. This review can be summed up fairly quickly- do you like the Hellraiser films? Buy this now.

Documentary: 'Leviathan – The Story of Hellraiser'. This is an excellent, thorough documentary about Hellraiser that reflects on the pictures' production, its difference from the 'slasher' movies that proliferated during the 1980s, and its lasting legacy. Narrated by Oliver Smith, it features input in terms of both newly-recorded interviews and archival interviews from Doug Bradley, Clare Higgins, Simon Bamford (who played Butterball), Ashley Laurence, Geoff Portass, Oliver Parker (one of the removal men in the film), Bob Keen, Peter Atkins (the writer of the second film), Robin Vidgeon (the director of photography on Hellraiser), producer Christopher Figg, Kenneth Cranham, Andy Robinson, camera operator David Worley, Barbie Wilde (the female Cenobite from Hellbound) and Nicholas Vince (the Chatterer). 'Comprehensive' is the first word that springs to mind. There are some great anecdotes, such as Bob Keen recounting his visit to an autopsy with Clive Barker in preparation for the creation of 'skinless' Frank; Keen was repulsed to the point of vomiting, whilst Barker found the experience disappointing and considered the corpse to look simply like someone on whom strips of bacon had been placed.

I didn't think there could be anything else that could top Never Sleep Again the Nightmare on elm street documentary. That's until I sat down and watched the very extensive and exhaustive documentary, Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II.First off, from a production standpoint everything is first class. The interviews with the various actors and effects people are edited together very nicely. They don't feel slapped together that's for sure. And for such a long documentary, I never once got bored.Everything that you've ever wanted to know about the first two films it's all here. I Highly recommend this if you love Hellraiser , film-making , and the horror genre

BUY IT NOW! http://www.leviathan- hellraiser.co.uk/leviathan-DVD/

An epic documentary charting the making of the 'Hellraiser' series from the 1987 original through to Hellbound Hellraiser II , 'Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound Hellraiser II ' is essential for any collector. I can't imagine any fan of the franchise coming away disappointed. I'm not one of those people by any stretch of the imagination (although I've seen them all more than once and I do have a morbid fascination with horror sequels) and I really enjoyed it.

At nine hours in length it's about as exhaustive as you could ask for, featuring interviews with just about every key creative figure from each film, a list too long to bother typing out (notable absences include Ashley lawrence and Clive Barker but there's so much information here they aren't really missed, they use archival footage of them both). Along the way there's production art, storyboards, behind the scenes photos and deleted scenes, snippets of scripts, and candid interviews that reveal the struggles involved in bringing the films to life.

To my mind, the first film is a Masterpiece , the second one is terrific, and the third and fourth are interestin films. What struck me about this movie was that no matter how the final product turned out, everyone involved went in with the best of intentions and put their all into each film. The interviews are at their best when the writer Pete Atkins and director Tony Randall talk about their struggles to realise their vision, and especially when they're honest about what went wrong.

The most engaging section for me by far was the part that details 'Hellbound Hellraiser II 'The deleted Dr pinhead scene and the reconstruction of chatterer It's a great idea that comments on the state of the series at the time and sounds a lot more interesting than what made it to the screen.

Despite its length the movie is never boring, although once we get into the home stretch I did start to flag a bit (I watched it in one sitting, which may have been a mistake). , but on the level of a making-of-the-movie doc this is clearly a labour of love, it's pretty impressive stuff.

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.

Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound Hellraiser II is a love letter to the Hellraiser horror franchise.The exhaustive documentary covers primarily the first two films in the franchise , but there are extra features on Hell on Earth and its sequels.

Leviathan is an ambitious documentary that succeeds in detailing happenings and personalities off camera, beginning with the early history of Clive Barker, the Dog Company , and New World.

Two of the key players do not appear except in archival footage. The most notable omission is Clive Barker.

Leviathan is a fascinating documentary, steeped in the rich tradition of an iconic horror franchise and some of Britain's most memorable characters. The behind-the-scenes material is mixed with the right amount of insider gossip and smart editing, critical to documentaries of this nature. Featuring an appearance by most of the actors important to the series, it weaves a compelling spell for hours and is a cut above most documentaries.

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/

The sheer amount of time, effort, work and detail that went into this documentary is astounding.

I first went in expecting to watch a extensive but still only a 'good' documentary.

But I was very, very wrong! This documentary goes into such detail about every aspect of the first two Hellraiser movies that the mind boggles.

Everyone in every department involved gets their time to shine from the directors on down.

This is something that I now compare every other documentary to, the passion that the documentary team had for the movies and for their work putting this together has to be commended most of all.

I don't think I will see another documentary for a movie franchise I love (or for any other movie for that matter) that can change my mind on this being the best one out there.

I believe it would only be topped by another documentary by the same team that made the masterpiece that is Leviathan: The Story of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II.