From Jonathan Klotz
| Published
Science fiction and horror have intersected since the first science fiction story. Frankensteinamazed readers with the amoral scientist and his attempts to create life. Over two centuries later, scientists going too far with experiments remains a common example of science fiction, including a 2009 box office bomb that most critics felt pushed the boundaries a little too far. Splicea little story about two scientists breeding a human-animal hybrid is full of discussions about scientific ethics before, as always, all hell breaks loose.
Scientists play God
Scientists Clive and Elsa, played by Oscar winners Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley, managed to create two amorphous creatures named Fred and Ethel as proof that their genetic research was on the right track. Quietly, without informing their bosses, the two manage to create Dren, named after the young creature who saw their T-shirts that said “NERD” and spelled it backwards. It’s a sweet moment and young Dren is a highlight of it Splicebut if the experiments always went well, no one would be interested in them Science fiction Film.
Splice takes place mainly on an abandoned farm, where Clive and Elsa can protect Dren from prying eyes and also save some money, as you can see that most of the effort has gone into the animal-human hybrid. Dren ages quickly and becomes a “teenager,” played by French ballerina Delphine Chaneac, who brilliantly expresses Dren’s emotions without saying a single word.
Compared to more classic versions of body horror from the many works of David Cronenberg to the newer one substance, Splice isn’t quite as disturbing, not in the classic “gross” way you’d expect. Instead, the film turns Dren into a strange hybrid who is attractive and clearly capable of emotion with her large, anime-style eyes. So the horror comes when one realizes that this obviously unnatural being, intelligent and capable of higher levels of thought, is the product of an illegal experiment.
A slow burn that catches fire
The film’s main draw is its characters discussing the ethics of scientific research, what counts as intelligent life, and where Dren fits into the world now that she’s here. This part of Splice is well made and is captivating and thoughtful thanks to the constant dialogue and debate scenes. This makes the wild last-minute sequence in the third act all the scarier when it arrives, completely changing the tone of the film to one of pure horror.
Even with the twist ending, Splice became a hit with critics and even earned praise from Roger Ebert, but was largely ignored at the box office. On a budget of $30 million, the film grossed $28 million, and although the marketing budget was very small, it couldn’t even make up for the production budget, relying on DVD and Blu-Ray releases to make up for it to make a small profit for the film. A dialogue-heavy science drama that veers into body horror isn’t an easy sell, and while the film has attracted a small following, it’s not yet at the level of a cult classic, and, 15 years after its release, it already is has not been reached for a long time.
You can experience it Splice and judge it for yourself to max. Be warned though, there are some moments and images from the film that will be burned into your brain as soon as you see them and no matter what you do, they will be hard to forget. Don’t let the first 15 minutes fool you. It gets the R rating by going from 0 to 100 in 5 seconds once the final act begins.
