PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Splinter, directed by Toby Wilkins (The Grudge 3 2009) in 2008, is a film that, if you were to ask a good number of horror fans about it, they may not recall so quickly. Don’t let that fool you though. Splinter carries itself from its bitter and no-nonsense introduction in a way that pulls no punches. You will be pulled into this creature-driven body horror roller-coaster by every aspect of the production. This is why it’s one of my favorite horror movies.
Splinter opens with the introduction of the most important character – our villain, the parasite – and, despite it being quite interesting, it’s made all the more frightening by its unexplained origins. Soon after, we’re introduced to our protagonists in the form of a young couple (Jill Wagner: Handcrafted America 2017, Paulo Costanzo: Road Trip 2000) at the close of their camping trip. What gives this young couple an interesting and all too uncommon uniqueness is the dynamic that is immediately established in the female protagonist taking the reigns as a dominant and more concise member of the romantic partnership (hat tip to the writer for not adhering to norms of stereotyping characters).
In a common and always welcome trope that allows for character development, our protagonists are on a road trip home when an unexpected hazard in the form of a hitchhiking couple (Rachel Kerbs: Heist 2015, Shea Whigham: Fargo 2017) carjacking them. Soon after the altercation, the already tense situation hits a major speed bump, literally, by means of a blown tire caused by striking an animal crossing their path. As the group splits up to investigate the injured animal and change the tire respectively, we begin to truly realize how emotionally unraveled the captors are in the heightened anxiety brought on by the traumatic experience. In the midst of all the hostility and confusion, an act of human carelessness brings our villain back into the story to stay.
What ensues in the aftermath of the initial infection is a whirlwind of wonderful character acting coupled with beautiful practical and digital effects. I obviously won’t spoil this great movie for all of you because, for those of you who haven’t seen or heard of it yet, it really will surprise you with the quality of performance, direction, and execution.
The practical effects are stunningly convincing thanks to the accompaniment of some potential stomach-turning sound effects. As the limbs begin to get lopped off and the blood is being torn from every living thing in the parasite’s path you truly feel it. From the bone cracking sounds of the parasite taking hold of its host to the blood gushing splatter of a bifurcated torso this movie leaves you wanting for nothing in regards to gore and finds plenty of ways to serve it up. While providing all of the gore that one could want you may worry that other aspects of the practical effects would suffer in quality, but rest assured because the creature design is creepy and does nothing to pander to the fan of campy monsters.
When the monster makes its true appearance in the third act (having only being seen as a parasite within an individual human or animal host up to this point) it is terrifying and creatively refreshing as it places a new twist on the idea of the composite monster.
Splinter is intense in a way that does not hold your hand and will make you think twice about investigating the cause of that flat tire on your way home at night.
