Hellraiser V: Inferno (2000) A B C D E One word comes to mind after viewing Hellraiser V: Inferno: Why ??? Craig Sheffer, whose career has been waning since 1993's A River Runs Through It, certainly won't revitalize his body of work with this entry to his resume. He plays a big-city cop named Joseph who is on the trail of a vicious serial killer. Joseph has a wife and child, a taste for cheap hookers, and also a talent for putting together puzzles such as the Lament Configuration puzzle box, which conveniently finds its way into his possession. So are there any allusions towards characters or event from previous Hellraiser outings? Nope. Scriptwriter Paul H. Boardman couldn't be arsed to provide any of that, and this is direct-to-video anyway (a surefire sign that a movie series has hit rock-bottom). The cover art does feature Pinhead (Doug Bradley), the celebrity Cenobite, and he's even in the movie....well, for two or three frames, anyway. As for the other Cenobites that torment Joseph during his descent into Hellraiser-land, they're laughable, rubbery-looking and unconvincing. The action is infrequent and boring when it's going on. The supporting cast is utterly forgettable (particularly the Cuba Gooding, Jr. wannabe who plays Joseph's partner). This picture suffers from just about every damned angle. What's decent about it? Hmmmm....the musical score is kind of nice. That's about it. Director Scott Derrickson, who will soon inflict Urban Legend II upon the world, does have a keen eye for detail. With a better script, he might have been able to turn in a better effort for a fifth trip down Cenobite Lane. He fails miserably here. Hellraiser V: Inferno is for the Pinhead completist only. As for most enthusiasts of horror films, Clive Barker and even the Hellraiser franchise itself, this one is destined to go over like a lead balloon.