Splinter By Author’s Name

Brutal, gory, well-paced and well-acted, this practical effects-driven monster movie was an absolute pleasure!

Hoping to enjoy a romantic anniversary camping trip together, Polly (Jill Wagner; Blade: The Series, Teen Wolf) and her biologist boyfriend Seth (Paulo Costanzo; The Expanse) are carjacked by on-the-run criminals Dennis (Shea Whigham; Death Note) and Lacey (Rachel Kerbs). In transit a roadkill event causes a flat tire, and a curious splinter sets an interesting tone as they find themselves stranded at a remote gas station.

If you’re gonna’ make a not-so-big budget one-set horror movie, a remote gas station strikes me as a good frugal choice. But how nice is it that gas stations are a classic harbinger check point in so many films? From Wrong Turn (2003) and Tucker and Dale versus Evil (2010) to The Cabin in the Woods (2012), the gas station is usually where victims have the opportunity to heed the harbinger’s warning and avoid the evils ahead. Yet here, it is upon arrival that they are doomed… because the harbinger was already a victim!

Our monster is a botanical parasite that metastasizes in the blood stream to induce twitchy zombiism. The first victim is the gas station attendant (Charles Baker; The Neon Demon), who thrashes and contorts his mangled limbs, a marionetted host to the splinter monster.

Early encounters with the monster are deliciously macabre as a freshly flattened roadkill slug-crawls towards an intended victim. We see the infectious splinters probe about like the prongs of a sea urchin. It’s REALLY cool. Infected zombie-like animated bodies flailing undexterous limbs, and disembodied hands twitch like something out of Bride of Re-Animator (1989). Everything looks great and, given the premise, the delivery is shockingly credible.

Despite the often choppy editing—most likely to disguise any flaws in the practical monster suit—this remained goretastically effective, engaging and exciting. These special effects are nothing to scoff at… actually, I was quite impressed. The blood work is excellent—and the blood splattering is kinda’ chunky! The animated bodies are disturbing, the stop-motion severed hands are a joy, and the brutal limb breaks will catch you off-guard.

When we see the “final monster” it’s only for a second at a time; we see it often, but only in these glimpses. It’s a macabre amalgam of randomly attached bodies/parts similar to the new The Thing (2011), the end of Terrified (2017),the final queen roach monster in The Nest (1988) or Zygote (2017).

When films put all their eggs in the monster basket, we tend not to expect much overall. Perhaps a few obscure creature sightings and a gory death scene in the first hour, followed by a hopefully redeeming monster-rich finale—all surrounded by weak writing and acting. Director Toby Wilkins (The Grudge 3) delivers a very respectable film. His characters are well-written and performed affably yet credibly. I don’t think I have a single negative criticism of this film! I just… loved it!

I enjoyed this. My copy worked in my player, and I had a fun night with a good dose of body horror.

Ich fang gleich mal an. Die Story ist nicht das, was man für einem Normalen Film hält. Aber auf jedenfall, ist das Horrorpur. Wie eklig ist es den bitte, wenn sich Körperteile zusammen tun? Daher doch ein muss für jeden Horrorfan, oder etwa nicht?

Ich finde schon, ich habe diesen Film in meiner Sammlung und freue mich in zu besitzen. Er ist nicht nur Blutig, sondern auch total Spannend, ich habe richtig mitgefiebert das, dass Monster alle bekommt. Hä… ne Scherz, man Fiebert mit und denkt sich immer wieder Schneller, renn da lang, fass das nicht an, mach dies, oder das. Aber die hören ja nicht, auf uns.

Die Idee finde ich sehr gut, Tankstellen sind ja meist in Horrorfilmen zu sehen, aber nie hat sich ein Horror so auf eine Tankstelle versteift, einfach genialer Grusel. Muss man haben, oder zumindest gesehen haben.

5 Sterne von mir. *****

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