Hellraiser - Plot

Plot

Somewhere in Morocco, Frank Cotton (Sean Chapman) buys an antique puzzle box from a dealer. Back in the attic of his house in London, Frank solves the puzzle box, prompting hooked chains to emerge from it and tear deep into his flesh. Black robed, horribly mutilated humanoids appear and attack Frank with hooked chains, tearing him into pieces. Their leader Pinhead (Doug Bradley), picks up the box and twists it back into its original state, taking Frank's dissected physical remnants back to their realm with them and restoring the room to normal.

Sometime later, Frank's brother Larry (Andrew Robinson) arrives at the house along with his second wife, Julia (Clare Higgins), who previously had an affair with Frank. The pair know Frank as an avowed hedonist and petty criminal, and, presuming that he is in jail in some exotic location, decide to move in. Larry's teenage daughter, Kirsty Cotton (Ashley Laurence), chooses not to live with her stepmother and moves into her own place. While moving into the house, Larry cuts his hand on a nail, and drips blood on the attic floor. The blood somehow reaches Frank in his prison in the humanoids' realm, partially restoring his body and allowing him to escape to the attic.

That night, Julia finds Frank (now portrayed by Oliver Smith) in the attic; still obsessed with him after their affair, she agrees to harvest blood for him so that he can fully restore his body and they can run away together. The next day, Julia begins picking up men in bars and bringing them back to the house, where she murders them with a hammer; Frank then consumes their blood and internal organs, progressively regenerating his own body. Once he has regained enough strength, Frank explains to Julia that he had exhausted all sensory experiences and sought out the puzzle box on the promise that it would open a portal to a realm of new carnal pleasures. Instead, it opened up a portal to the realm of the "Cenobites," who have since taken Frank as their prisoner and subjected him to extreme, sadomasochistic torture.

Meanwhile, Kirsty spies Julia bringing men to the house and, believing her to be having an affair, follows her to the attic one afternoon, where she interrupts a murder. Frank attacks her, but panics when Kirsty grabs the puzzle box. Kirsty throws the box out the window, creating enough of a distraction for her to escape. Outside the house, she retrieves the puzzle box and runs away, but collapses from exhaustion shortly thereafter. After being taken to the hospital, Kirsty solves the puzzle box, summoning the Cenobites. Their leader explains that while the Cenobites have been perceived as angels and demons, they are simply "explorers" of carnal experience, practicing a form of sadomasochism so extreme that it transcends the boundary between pain and pleasure. Although they initially attempt to force Kirsty to return with them to their realm, the Leader becomes indignant at the suggestion one of their "subjects" has escaped, and agrees to consider freeing Kirsty in exchange for taking them to Frank.

Kirsty returns home, where Larry tells her that he has confronted and killed Frank. Julia shows her a flayed corpse in the attic, and shortly after the Cenobites show up. Kirsty attempts to escape with Larry, but his language and mannerisms ultimately lead Kirsty to realize that Frank (now portrayed by Andrew Robinson) has in fact killed her father, and is wearing his skin. Frank pursues Kirsty through the house with a knife, inadvertently killing Julia in the process. He eventually corners Kirsty in the attic, where he brags about having killed his brother. The admission summons up the Cenobites, who ensnare him with chains and tear him to pieces. They then attempt to renege on their deal with Kirsty and take her back to their realm. Kirsty's boyfriend, Steve, arrives and looks for Kirsty. Kirsty defeats the Cenobites by reversing the motions needed to open the puzzle box, sending them back to their realm. Kirsty and Steve leave the house together.

Afterwards, Kirsty tries to burn the box in a garbage dump. A vagrant enters the flames and retrieves the box before transforming into a winged creature and flying away. The box ends back in the hands of the merchant who sold it to Frank, asking another prospective customer, "What's your pleasure, sir?".