A Hellraiser WTF moment.

[yendi]

As noted by songwind, According to the director of the unnecessary remake of Hellraiser, Clive's original movie was about "S&M and gay issues."

Okay, I see where he gets the S&M, of course, as the idea that pain is the only way for those who are jaded to feel anything is a theme that crops up throughout the series. And, you know, there are giant flying chains throughout.

But gay issues? Did Kirsty have a crush on Julia that I missed? Was there a Frank/Larry moment that I overlooked? I'm generally pretty good at catching subtext, and even reading beyond the text (I'm generally on board, for example, with Clover's reading of Witchboard as a heteronormative morality tale), but I just don't see it here.

And yes, I know there's the whole "Frank kills and becomes Larry" plotline, but it's played with Frank as an external force, not like the themes in the Jesse/Ron relationship in Nightmare on Elm Street 2.

Comments

[handful-ofdust.livejournal.com]

It's possible to argue that since Barker wasn't publicly out at the time, he might have deliberately couched Hellraiser in heterosexual "terms" because he certainly knew he wouldn't be allowed to do it as an all-dude-o-rama. And proceeding from that premise, I could also argue that het-ing up Hellraiser might have made the difference between Barker becoming slightly mainstream vs. Barker becoming the "new" Derek Jarman. Still, it's all moot unless Barker confirms or denies.

[zevhonith.livejournal.com]

I don't think he's talking about the original movie; I think he's talking about the original *story*, the Hellbound Heart.

[songwind.livejournal.com]

There were no homosexuals in that, either. I just read it last month.

There are certainly aspects and themes that apply to homosexuals, but I think they are universal rather than homo-centric.

[zevhonith.livejournal.com]

Well, yeah, I know there are no homosexuals in it, but that's not what he said. I think it's pretty easy to read S&M and gay issues into the story.

[songwind.livejournal.com]

Well, as I said in my post that Yendi mentioned, I think S&M is obvious but am still waiting for anyone to explain the homosexual part.

[felisdemens.livejournal.com]

"Reboot"; current jargon for "fuck-up".

[wednesday]

Not necessarily. Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon's failure a few years back? Was delicious!

(Besides, everyone except me also seems to dig contemporary BSG, and look, yonder Hugo nomination la la la.)

(I totally just implicitly compared those two shows, didn't I? More caffeine.)

[ellyssian.livejournal.com]

"According to the director of the unnecessary remake of Hellraiser" (emphasis mine)

There ought to be a word that can be used for those two; "unnecessary" has to account for something like 99.9% of the remakes out there.

[nishar.livejournal.com]

I think it's because Clive wants some one dressed in leather to beat then sodomize him for hours on end. :P

[amokk]

Because all teh gays do the S&M thing. And Barker is gay, thus everything he writes is obvsly gay.