Just had to comment on this as it strikes me as rather worrying. Director Pascal Laugier (who recently did the well received fantastic Martyrs (review up soon)) spoke to Sci Fi Wire about the upcoming Hellraiser remake (which I'm really excited about seeing as it's one of my favourite horror series' if not my one and only favourite), which he said will be a reboot of the franchise and will retain the "transgressive material" of the original.
"The idea behind Hellraiser is not to do a remake — it's to do what they call a reboot — that is to say, a new version," said Laugier. "So what I am proposing to Dimension, the studio behind Hellraiser, is some elements coming from the first film mixed with brand-new stuff."
He added: "My main problem, honestly, with the Hellraiser reboot is that Hellraiser is very transgressive material. It deals with S&M and gay issues, and I really want to be faithful to the book and Clive Barker's world. I don't want to betray him. So if I have the feeling that I am being asked by Hollywood to soften the franchise, I will leave in a blink."
Now, hold on a second: GAY ISSUES!? Hellraiser has NOTHING TO DO with gay issues, as far as I am aware nothing at all, it's more religious than anything remotely resembling homosexual subjects! Oh, so the Cenobites dress in leather and love S and M, that makes them deal with gay issues? HOW?! Man, this guy has no clue....he's got to speak to Barker and get him involved or he's going to go in the wrong direction.
There's nothing homosexual about Hellraiser, though, whatsoever, not even innuendos. It's about pain and pleasure, S and M fetishes, going beyond limits, beings from alternate universes, religious subtext, fantasy, horror, etc- but there is nothing gay about it, not in the original novel or the film series. Hellraiser is just so much more than meets the eye, yes it's about sex and lust, desire, pain and pleasure but beyond that is is revolutionary in it's ideas, almost mind-blowing; it destroys typical conventions, it explores dimensions, alternate universes, breaking down barriers, going beyond established Judea-christian religious subtexts and limits, it's psychological in it's aspects as it is scientific- it's epic fantasy and horror fused together to create a universe we've never really seen before. It's not just about gore and sex, though it is part of it and relevant it's also completely beyond that.
Unless I'm wrong I totally do not see anything homosexual about the characters; Cenobites or humans, or story for that matter. Barker himself described the Cenobites sporting a sort of "neo-punk" fashion, though they are meant to be beings of a high order; "theologians of the Order of the Gash". There's nothing gay about it, in fact in the novel they are described as sexually ambiguous, conforming to neither gender. Saying Hellraiser deals with "gay issues" just shows that they have no idea or grasp of what the actual concept is about. Yes it is unusual and I guess "queer" in it's sense of difference but "gay issues" is a rather narrow term to use, I think.
People I think have the wrong idea about it if they see gay stuff in it as that is not the premise, and certainly not an issue.
Anyway, regarding the movie I think this "remake/reboot" should be set in London, England, and have 55 Ludovico Street situated there as it is in the original novella. I think it would be brilliant to have it set in as it would also give it that unique gothic horror feel, being among the sights and sounds of London town- it's just too generic to have it set in the US like every other Hollywood movie these days, that's what made the first two films stand out because it looked so visibly different from the other flicks which were set in America.
My thoughts:
-Set it in London, England- like the original movie and the novel.
-get British actors, with the exception of one or two, but Frank has to be British, as does Pinhead, and preferably Julia.
-no dubbing out English voices this time!
-show more of London town, especially when Julia is out picking up victims in bars.
I think it would work really well, even though it's not a British production, I think the setting and background of London is just so much tighter and Gothic for the material than the US. I hope this new re-imagining/reboot goes back to the roots, the later sequels were missing this element.
And regarding my dream cast for the movie:
My picks:
Kirsty Cotton---Emily Blunt (one of my favourite actresses right now though I can also see Kiera Knightly doing an excellent job)
Julia---Famke Jansen
Frank Cotton---Andy Serkis, Dominic West or Jason Isaacs (all fantastic actors who would play the part well though I can't seem to decide who)
Rory/Larry---Richard Armitage (pictured)
Pinhead/Lead Cenobite---Tom Hardy (a popular fan favourite, pictured)
Well, I'm inclined to think that Hellraiser is a little more than "horror". It's every much a character drama too, a lethal 3 way liaison between two men, a film about lust, betrayal, obsession, desire, the epitome of high Gothic horror/romance, as if something written by Edgar Allan Poe etc...something which Famke can easily get her teeth into and in all honestly something I think is suited to her, made for her even; I can't think of a better person who has such a powerful screen presence, especially when the character itself is turns from a normal loving woman who has an affair and then becomes a cold-blooded icy murderer. Julia is supposed to be a beautiful woman with a hidden secret whose transformation is slow and drawn out, the audience is both on her side and against her, which I also think is a very interesting dynamic. There's just too much in the character and film for her to work with, I think she would be phenomenal.
It is just so much more than a typical horror film, it definitely stands above your normal run-of-the-mill genre stuff and so it needs better than average actors to pull it off, and I think these guys are simply perfect for the roles.
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