10 Best Quotes From The Original Hellraiser Movie

10 Best Quotes From The Original Hellraiser Movie

Warning: This article contains graphic images and descriptions

An adaptation of his 1986 novella The Hellbound Heart, Hellraiser was horror author Clive Barker’s directorial debut, and it remains to this day one of his most recognized efforts. Though he was never mentioned by name in the original movie, Pinhead became a horror icon who brushed shoulders with the likes of Freddie Kreuger and Jason Vorhees, and the legion of Cenobites went down as some of cinema’s scariest baddies.

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Having sprung from the imagination of a famed writer, Hellraiser is an exceptionally well-written movie, particularly for the genre. Nearly every scene contains a memorable quote, and few could forget the film’s poignant and terrifying final act.

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It’s Yours. It Always Was.

“What Is Your Pleasure, Sir?” – Puzzle Box Merchant

In the film’s opening sequence, viewers see Frank Cotton purchase the puzzle box from a mysterious merchant. It’s unclear if the trader knew exactly what he was peddling, but the scene’s sinister underpinnings suggest that he was, at least, somewhat aware of the box’s terrible powers.

Concluding with an impactful full circle ending, Hellraiser’s final scene again sees the merchant peddling a puzzle box. Now offering the sinister line “what is your pleasure, sir?” his malicious intent now comes across much more clearly given what audiences now know about his wares.

I Thought I’d Gone To The Limits

“The Cenobites Gave Me An Experience Beyond Limits. Pain And Pleasure, Indivisible.” – Frank Cotton

In pursuit of the furthest reaches of hedonism, Frank Cotton sought out a mysterious puzzle box rumored to grant those who solve it their ultimate desires. However, what he finds is an experience far beyond the limits of the human body, and he suffers unimaginable tortures at the hands of the Cenobites, who see pain and pleasure as one and the same.

Able to partially reincarnate thanks to his brother’s blood, Frank returns and explains to Julia what had happened to him. His pursuit of pleasures unknown had cost him dearly, and he’d presumably have to spend eternity under the thumb of the Cenobites.

You Opened It. We Came.

“Explorers In The Further Regions Of Experience. Demons To Some. Angels To Others.” – Pinhead

After Kirsty escapes Frank, she exhausts herself and awakens in a hospital room, with little memory of what had just transpired. She unwittingly solves the puzzle box and summons the Cenobites, who hint at their true purpose and nature.

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Pleading with Pinhead—who is simply credited as the Lead Cenobite in this film—Kirsty inquires as to who they are, and Pinhead responds with this vague statement. It’s one of the most iconic scenes in the first Hellraiser film, and it cemented Barker’s sadomasochistic creatures from beyond as unforgettable horror movie staples.

No, Don’t Do That!

“Go To Hell!” – Kirsty Cotton

After accidentally summoning the Cenobites, Kirsty makes a deal, agreeing to take them to Frank Cotton in exchange for her life. Pinhead reluctantly agrees, but, while Frank is ultimately recaptured, the Cenobites aren’t satisfied and return for Kristy. Fortunately, she uses her wits to solve the puzzle box once again, which grants her the ability to return the Cenobites to their dimension.

When she figures this out, Pinhead offers a booming retort, and Kristy responds with this fearsome line. It may not be quite as memorable as some of Hellraiser’s more prominent quotes, but the force the actor Ashley Laurence put behind it allowed it to stand out.

You Know Me And Blood

“Every Drop Of Blood You Spill Puts More Flesh On My Bones.” – Frank Cotton

A skinless Frank speaking with Julia in the original Hellraiser movie.

Frank is able to slip away from the Cenobites after Larry accidentally bleeds on the floor, but it isn’t enough to return him fully. He returns as a ghastly skeleton covered in oozing strips of flesh, and he confines himself to the attic, desperate for more blood.

Eventually, Julia finds him and agrees to engage in a killing spree in order to restore her ex-lover. With each kill, Frank becomes more human-like, eventually reaching a state at which he could more or less feign being normal with the help of his brother’s skin.

Taste Our Pleasures

“No Tears, Please. It’s A Waste Of Good Suffering.” – Pinhead

A Hellraiser movie poster featuring Pinhead.

After Kristy solves the puzzle box during the film’s third act, the Cenobites arrive, demanding that she come with them to their world. Desperate and with no apparent way out, she pleads with Pinhead while on the verge of tears. The head Cenobite, far beyond human empathy, simply responds with “no tears, please. It’s a waste of good suffering.”

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The line highlights the sadomasochistic desire of the Cenobites and underlines the fact that, to them, suffering is a perverse sort of joy, which is a concept integral to the Hellraiser franchise.

It’s Uncle Frank

“Come To Daddy.” – Frank Cotton

Arguably one of the eeriest lines in the movie, Frank Cotton repeatedly utters this phrase when he’s chasing after Christie in a desperate attempt to complete his transformation. Fortunately, Kristy is able to evade him and bring his escape to the attention of the Cenobites.

The line “come to daddy” highlights the sickening sexual sentiments explored by the Hellraiser franchise. To the Cenobites, there is nothing too disgusting or perverse, and Frank’s vaguely sexual and overtly threatening remarks reflect his complete depravity.

You’re Coming With Us

“We Have Such Sights To Show You.” – Pinhead

Kristy may have been able to use Frank as a brief distraction, but Pinhead was never going to let her off the hook. After tearing her uncle apart in an utterly gruesome fashion, the Cenobites descend on Kristy, determined to introduce to her a new world of hellish delights.

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Looming over Kristy, Pinhead, in his characteristically commanding voice, muses that he and the other Cenobites “have such sights to show” her. However, things don’t go according to plan for Pinhead, as Kristy solves the puzzle box once again and wields the power to send her tormentors back from whence they came.

We Want The Man Who Did This

“Jesus Wept.” – Frank Cotton

Once the Cenobites finally catch up with Frank, who happened to be wearing his brother’s skin, they restrain him with chains and he’s reduced to a gory mess. However, before they destroy him completely, he licks his teeth in a horrific display before looking at Kristy and stating “Jesus wept.”

According to Leviathan: The Story Of Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II, Frank was originally simply supposed to say “f*** you,” but actor Andrew Robinson convinced Clive Barker to change the line to something much more poignant. The quote is likely meant to convey that, given all that he is experienced and endured, Frank believed his suffering to have gone beyond that of Jesus.

Nobody Escapes Us

“We’ll Tear Your Soul Apart.” – Pinhead

Pinhead delivering an iconic line in the 1987 horror movie Hellraiser.

Likely the most memorable line uttered by Pinhead throughout the entirety of the Hellraiser film franchise, he threatens Kristy with soul-rending torture should she seek to betray the Cenobites as they search for Frank Cotton. Ultimately, it was less of a threat and more of a promise, as Pinhead never planned on letting Kristy escape in the first place.

“We’ll tear your soul apart” is remembered today as one of the best horror movie one-liners of all time. Very few of cinema’s greatest monsters are as articulate as Pinhead, and his domineering voice and presence help to make the line even more unforgettable.

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