Horror Curios

[bendk]

I finally got around to reading Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker last year. I enjoyed it. But if you've seen the movie, you're good. Clive wrote the script and directed the movie, so it pretty much follows the novella scene for scene. It did have one bit that reminded me of TL's "Vastarien". I can't remember the exact line but it was something that described the Lament Configuration or Lemarchand's Box as being similar to Ligotti's tome.

 

[Souphead]

This was a present from my dear wife. 'His' name is Cranky the Clown and I can only assume the lava is supposed to represent his brains floating around.

​

Souphead.

 

[Steve Dekorte]

I finally got around to reading Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker last year. I enjoyed it. But if you've seen the movie, you're good. Clive wrote the script and directed the movie, so it pretty much follows the novella scene for scene. It did have one bit that reminded me of TL's "Vastarien". I can't remember the exact line but it was something that described the Lament Configuration or Lemarchand's Box as being similar to Ligotti's tome.

I feel the movie didn't quite convey the metaphor of the book: the box as the mind and the cenobites as anxieties surrounding our desires that create suffering (a Buddhist horror story). For example, there's a scene during the final chase in the book where Kristy sees a Cenobite in a wedding dress which doesn't make much sense without this interpretation. The second movie touches on this in deeper ways e.g. "It is not hands that summon us. It is desire."

This metaphor could have been rich ground for more movies or books, but the other movies where (from the bits I've seen of them) slasher films and Revelations (the book) seemed to me to be about the author's relationship with this work (Clive as Lucifer) and the public.

 

[bendk]

I finally got around to reading Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker last year. I enjoyed it. But if you've seen the movie, you're good. Clive wrote the script and directed the movie, so it pretty much follows the novella scene for scene. It did have one bit that reminded me of TL's "Vastarien". I can't remember the exact line but it was something that described the Lament Configuration or Lemarchand's Box as being similar to Ligotti's tome.

I feel the movie didn't quite convey the metaphor of the book: the box as the mind and the cenobites as anxieties surrounding our desires that create suffering (a Buddhist horror story). For example, there's a scene during the final chase in the book where Kristy sees a Cenobite in a wedding dress which doesn't make much sense without this interpretation. The second movie touches on this in deeper ways e.g. "It is not hands that summon us. It is desire."

This metaphor could have been rich ground for more movies or books, but the other movies where (from the bits I've seen of them) slasher films and Revelations (the book) seemed to me to be about the author's relationship with this work (Clive as Lucifer) and the public.

I thought Barker delineated the 'desire' aspect pretty clearly. Interesting take on the Cenobites. It makes me want to look up some old interviews by Clive on the movie/novel. Anyway, Funko makes a ton of figures. I saw a Pinhead. Didn't look for the other Cenobites. I only have one Funko statue- the Devil from Cuphead.

 

[bendk]

Carved wood skeleton rocking chair made in Russia in the 19th century.

 

[fogus]

Yves Tourigny, the author of the card game Arkham Noir: The King in Yellow printed a very limited run of this game and made it available via Etsy a couple of years ago. If you're into tabletop games then the game is set in the Cthulhu Mythos and the artwork is lovely. It's supposedly a cooperative game but I've only ever played it solo.

 

[bendk]

 

[Zaharoff]

Frivolity in Weimar era Germany.