Hellraiser is one of my favorite ’80s horror movies. It’s a dark, gory, and imaginative journey into the depths of human depravity. For the uninitiated, here’s a quick recap of the film’s storyline.

Frank Cotton (Sean Chapman), an amoral hedonist, buys a mysterious puzzle box. After returning home, the box transports him to a hellish realm where he is at the mercy of sadistic beings called the Cenobites.

Later, his brother Larry (Andrew Robinson) moves into Frank’s old house with his wife, Julia (Clare Higgins). Larry has a close relationship with his adult daughter Kirsty (Ashley Laurence), who dislikes Julia.

Frank is accidentally revived by a drop of blood. He convinces Julia, who is secretly obsessed with him, to lure men to the house so he can consume their remains and become fully human again.

Meanwhile, the Cenobites are hot on Frank’s trail. After Kirsty accidentally uses the puzzle box, she agrees to lead the Cenobites to her evil uncle in exchange for her life.

Hellraiser marks the first film appearance of Pinhead (Doug Bradley), although he not referred to by that name in either the original novel or the first film. He is simply described as the “Lead Cenobite”.

I finally got around to reading the novella that inspired this movie. Hellbound Heart is elegantly written by Clive Barker. He includes copious doses of dark humor. Let’s take a look at how the two versions compare.

They Mostly Tell The Same Story

Hellraiser is a largely faithful adaption of the novella. It follows the same general storyline and has a similar conclusion. Even much of the dialogue is the same, including memorable lines like “Come to daddy!” and “No tears, please. It’s a waste of good suffering.”

This is no surprise, since the film was directed and written by Barker. How many people are talented enough to write a book and then create a film adaption of their own work?

Writing and filmmaking are fundamentally different arts. It’s rare for someone to be skilled at both. This is an impressive feat!

There Are Some Key Differences

Interestingly, Barker did make some changes to his source material. Some of the names are different. Larry Cotton is named Rory in the novella. The magic puzzle box is called the Lemarchand Configuration instead of the Lament Configuration.

The biggest surprise is how different Kirsty is in the book. She’s not Rory’s daughter. Instead, she’s a friend who harbors secret romantic feelings for him. Barker describes her as plain-looking and jealous of Julia’s beauty. That’s a major contrast from the movie, where Kirsty is very attractive.

I’m glad that Barker made Kristy the daughter in the movie. It strengthens her connection to Larry and adds more emotion to their relationship. Plus, it makes the notorious “Come to daddy!” line make more sense contextually.

Which Is Better?

The Hellbound Heart is a solid read, but I must admit that I prefer the film adaption. Maybe I would feel differently if I had read the book first. I usually dislike it when movie adaptions make major changes to their source material, but I think the adjustments Barker made are all for the better.

Barker has written book sequels to the original novella. I‘m planning to check those out sometime!