Commentary on Hellraiser III.

TO THINK OUTSIDE OF THE BOX.

Review of  HELLRAISER III by Mr Nizin Lopez.

HELLRAISER III (1992).

Clive Barker’s Hellraiser III might not be a deep-dramatic film like “La Sconosciuta” or “Katyn” yet it is definitely worth a review. First and foremost, we must define Mr Barker for what he is: a visionary. He is a medium, a spiritualist, an open window to forbidden realities. This movie was produced by Lawrence Mortorff & it was directed by Anthony Hickox.
Hellraiser III is a thought-provoking film, it speaks of inter-dimensional realities & it dares to explore the darkness within the human psyche. It is fascinating to see all the serious Occult studies behind this work of art. The movie is filled with hidden codes that are not so visible to everyone. As far as the plot goes, a powerful dark entity is released from its shell by blood offerings. This entity makes a temporary appearance in the physical plane yet he & his troops are forced to return to their dimension. Basically, these tormenting entities are vanished from our world yet their essence remains in a certain location magnetized by their vibe. Since these dark beings are non-human intelligences that feed off human emotions, they could be considered symbolically speaking inter-dimensional extraterrestrials.
This majestic movie is really about the power of the human psyche & about how parallel worlds can affect us. It presents the mind as a tool for time travelling. Hellraiser III is a voyage into forbidden aspects of our humanity. The cast goes as follows:

•          J.P. Monroe (actor Kevin Bernhardt): He is a successful club owner who preys on vulnerable & inexperienced females, he nourishes from their fresh-innocent energy. He releases Pinhead from his shell by giving him human blood. The club functions as a Temple that feeds on “non-elevated vibes” & his sex chamber operates as a “Holy of Holies”. In that sense Monroe acts as a pagan priest. Mr Monroe is moved by ambition yet he also has a spiritual side, he admires creativity. He likes paintings & sculptures. He is in a sense an anatomist, an artist who is subconsciously interested in the female body. He is also dark & merciless, he murdered his own parents in order to inherit their wealth (that is how he got to own “the Boiler room”). The figure of J.P. Monroe has a resemblance with the Menendez brothers who murdered their own parents in the 80’s for the sake of material gain.
•          Terri (actress Paula Marshall): She is an attractive young female who comes from a dysfunctional background. She is a survivor; she had been homeless since she was 15 years old. Terri has a low self esteem & looks for reassurance in paternal figures that cannot give her what she really needs: love & emotional support (exactly the opposite of what her father gave her). Though there is goodness in Terri, ultimately she is swallowed up by the negativity in her karmic path.
•          Joanne Summerskill (actress Terri Farrell): Joey is a benevolent yet strong-hearted woman who believes in goodness & in morals. She is the successful daughter of a Viet Nam veteran that she never got to meet. She is haunted by visions of a memory she never had. Joey is a symbol of light, she represents the ultimate triumph of good over evil.
•          Captain Elliott Spencer (actor Doug Bradley): Mr Spencer is the luminous side of Pinhead. He is a military figure entrapped in a dimension of memories. He is a world traveler & an explorer of what he calls “forbidden pleasures”. Mr Spencer represents the brilliant man who just goes “too far” in life.
•          Pinhead (actor Doug Bradley): He is the dark side of Captain Spencer. He is completely un-emotional & cold, he is un-human, he is an inquisitional manifestation of the “un-light”. He can read people’s minds like the Biblical Jesus. Those who vibrate at his frequency are eventually caught within his spell.

Like I said at the beginning of this review, there’s lots of research & study behind this movie. For example, the I-pod looking box that functions as an inter-dimensional portal is somewhat similar to the Kaaba found in Mecca (the box was discovered by Terri in a place called “pyramid gallery”. There are plenty of references to ancient Egypt in Hellraiser II). Easterners make a massive spiral movement around the Kaaba & a similar pattern is seen in the film. It is also interesting that the cube has 8 corners and that the TV reporter Joey Summerskill works for channel 8 (a number 8 appears in the wrist of Dr Channard in Hellraiser II). The Joey who is unaware of her psychic abilities communicates with the ghost of Spencer through an electronic device called TV, meaning that they interact with each other through “a box”. The old radio that she uses to interact with Spencer is also “a box”. The spinning sculpture that restrains Pinhead is a rectangular shape, therefore it is also a box. The symbol of the cube is extremely important because it represents “matter”, meaning the material world where people tear each other’s flesh for the sake of money & social status.
The individuals behind this film were definitely aware of how vibrations work. The movie shows how certain behavior attracts dark energies. Dysfunctional families, promiscuity, alcohol, cigarettes, clubs, guns, homelessness, etc; all those things are potential open doors. In other words, certain vibratory frequencies open portals to specific energies. For example, the fellow who sold the sculpture to J.P. Monroe had a homeless look, he sort of looked like a John the Baptist in a desert. It is interesting to see that the first time that Pinhead opens his eyes is when the manipulating Monroe reaches climax. Keep in mind that Monroe was “using” the girl & that he had no feelings for her whatsoever. Intimacy can be a great thing yet deviated fleshy energy can be used as a portal to invoke gloomy energies.
Though this is just a wild speculation, it is interesting that the cold blooded Pinhead wears a long leather coat (J.P. Monroe does as well) like the militaristic elite who conducted rituals in Wewelsburg. His so called experiments on the flesh & his methods of psychological torture might remind us of all those dark scientists & doctors who went way too far not so long ago (like I said, this is just a speculation).
It is intriguing to see that the first guy to perish in the movie (he took the box from the sculpture) is associated with the number 213. 213 was the apartment number of a very pathological figure in Milwaukee (a very repulsive murderer).
Finally, at the end of the movie Joey drops the box in the fresh cement of a construction site. Incredibly enough, that site becomes something like a commercial center (commerce: trade). This center depicts visuals related to the decoration of the box. This means that energy never dies, it simply changes form. Some specific locations are magnetized with certain sparks. For example, Ground Zero in New York is magnetized with the spark of approximately 3000 souls. They might build a majestic building there yet those souls will haunt that location until each one of them reaches its path. It is a strange coincidence that this film was released on “September 11th” of 1992 and that it depicts blood-thirsty demons walking around New York. I actually made some eccentric observations:

•          The film was released on 9/11/1992, “9” years before the attacks. 1992, 92, 9 + 2 = 9 + 1 + 1 = 911 = September 11th.
•          The words of Pinhead: “there is a secret song at THE CENTER OF THE WORLD…I’m here to turn up the volume…” (center of the world = World Trade Center).
•          J.P. Monroe shoots three bullets at the rectangular sculpture that contained Pinhead. 3 bullets = approximately 3000 victims.
•          J.P. Monroe offers two sacrifices, first the blond girl & then he tries to sacrifice Terri. Two females = two towers.
•          The Twin Towers actually appear in this film though this does not prove anything.


Like I said, these are just strange things perceived by a creative mind, nothing more. This does not prove anything. Hellraiser III is above all a work of art that made me think. This film reaffirmed what I already knew deep inside: Goodness is for the most part unappreciated, sometimes it is even perceived as a weakness & people try to take advantage of you. Most of the good deeds I have done in my life have been unperceived, sometimes I have even been rewarded with betrayal. Pain on the other hand is a true messiah, it purifies like an oven. After all, isn’t Truth what sets you free?  Hellraiser III is definitely a thought-provoking film, a work of art designed for serious students of the Occult who can see beyond “the veil” mentioned by Blavatsky.