I must say - it's strange, but immensely satisfying and reassuring to indulge in a 2010 theatrical horror/sci-fi release bearing a title and premise not priorly established by a specific past film. "Splice" is a surreal experience, just in terms of the idea that it appears to be a fairly under-the-radar effort that managed to sneak onto the big screen and, expectedly, make very little money (though "Trick r' Treat" was never even given a chance to bomb at the box office) ...
Admittedly, it's a difficult movie to assess and I'm not entirely sure what my thoughts on "Splice" really boil down to. I liked it, but wasn't completely blown away... Two young bio-chemists defiantly decide to take their animal gene splicing experiment to the next level by incorporating human DNA into the mix. A small creature is quickly born and unrestrainedly tears around the lab. The scientists initial plan to destroy it eventually evolves into a nurturing family-like unit as the creature begins growing rather rapidly and develops more humanistic features. As time passes and they continue to raise it secretly in their sealed off storage room, other people around the lab begin to grow curious and frazzled couple are forced to relocate to the woman's (Sarah Polly) childhood home in the country... Things only become more strained and increasingly dangerous as the creature's intelligence advances and it's behavior becomes far more excessive and unruly...
"Splice" has a ubiquitous "Frankestein" thing going for the first half and towards the later half, shifts into more of a "Species" type of vibe with some sexually charged, human-on-mutant romance. Truthfully, I couldn't wait to see Adrian "The Nose" Brody get his rocks off with that bald, cleft-headed, seductive abomination. You KNOW it's going to happen! And anyone who says they WOULDN'T have sex with that thing is a liar! You can see it coming a mile away, but when it does it'll have you shaking your head in confusion and oddly uncomfortable for some reason...
The bottom line: disgruntled horror fans and remake-bashers alike should definitely check out "Splice", though it is definitely not what you would consider a straight-up "horror" film. It's not a bloodbath or particularly 'creepy' most of the time and some of the CGI effects look a little hokey (namely the when the creature is first "born"). Still, it's a worthwhile flick!
I must say - it's strange, but immensely satisfying and reassuring to indulge in a 2010 theatrical horror/sci-fi release bearing a title and premise not priorly established by a specific past film. "Splice" is a surreal experience, just in terms of the idea that it appears to be a fairly under-the-radar effort that managed to sneak onto the big screen and, expectedly, make very little money (though "Trick r' Treat" was never even given a chance to bomb at the box office) ...
