Splinter (2008): Reviewed by BRYAN SCHUESSLER
There is nothing more aggravating then watching a stellar and solid film, such as SPLINTER, and knowing that it never got the chance to play in theaters nationwide. They screwed over the makers of Midnight Meat Train by giving it a very limited movie theater run and offering it for free on cable’s FEARnet on-demand. Now they are doing it to Splinter. I am very irate over this. With all the remakes Hollywood is regurgitating over and over until they are a pile of stinking crap with name-brand actors and actresses and glossy, overly-produced films with no originality or passion in them. It is indeed a sad state of affairs.
SPLINTER will be one of my favorite horror films this year. It is a film that did not hold back on the gore, the suspense, the cinematography, and the no-nonsense dialogue and rapidly paced film. There is no “fluff” in this film whatsoever. Director Toby Wilkins directed a gem. I truly was blown away by this film. The film stars Paulo Costanzo (might recognize him from the comedy ROAD TRIP) as Seth Belzer, a nerdy guy that is close to getting his degree in biology and analyzes everything in a very scientific manner. He is on a “romantic” outing to camp out in the woods and gaze at stars overhead with his girlfriend, Polly Watt (played by the stunning Jill Wagner) when they run into trouble from the get-go. They can’t put their tent up and decide to find a motel and run into Shea Whigam (Dennis Farell) and Lacy Belisle (Rachel Kerbs) roadside. They are taken hostage, investigate something they ran over that gave them a flat tire and drive to a nearby gas station when their suv overheats. SPLINTER is essentially about a parasite that transforms its victims, still alive, into hosts. The transformation scenes in SPLINTER are awesome! The scenes involving the creature on screen reminded me of John Carpenter’s The Thing-the way that the human body transforms into something new and terrifying. The creature effects are top-notch. The crunching noises of bones snapping into place as the creatures morph the human body into new shapes is terrific. The way the creature is filmed when it chases a person is fast-paced and full of quick edits and creates remarkable tension for the viewer. This film went far beyond my expectations in the gore department and one of the best, if not the best horror film I have seen this year. It is just such a shame that after this plays on cable pay-per-view, it will go directly to dvd. Its Midnight Meat Train treatment all over again. I highly recommend this film for gore, creativity, and very tense moments.
Quantum Creation FX is responsible for the phenomenal creature effects and might hat goes off to them. They succeeded in making one of the most unique creatures I have ever seen. I really hated getting a splinter before this film, but now a splinter has a whole new meaning to me. Go out and rend this, better yet, buy it as soon as it comes out on dvd. Magnolia Pictures put this film out on Magnet Releasing, their department for the edgier productions. I have said time and time again that Magnolia Pictures, and now Magnet Releasing is putting out some serious films with a new look and new ideas. They did not let me down at all with SPLINTER.
