Splice

So, we have Sarah Polley, David Hewlett, and directed by Vincenzo Natali. Hells yeah I’m going to see it.

For the unfamiliar, Sarah Polley is the actress who’s been in everything from The Adventures of Baron Munchausen to Exotica to The Sweet Hereafter to Last Night to eXistenZ to Dawn of the Dead to directing the incredible Away From Her. This woman fills me up with such patriotic joy that I think Chompy McBeaverton is about to cry.   

David Hewlett is best known for his role as Rodney McKay on Stargate Atlantis (and SG-1).

Vincenzo Natali is best known for the incredible horror thriller Cube.

All of those were enough to inspire me to go see this film while it was in theatres. Due to the fact that this is a Canadian film, we all know it will only be in theatres for a short time.

Clive (Adrian Brody) and Elsa (Polley) are scientists, brilliant scientists. They work for a medical researcher creating animal hybrids to find enzymes and shit to cure stuff. Cool? They made this pair of star-crossed lovers who look more like blobs than anything else. They then ask themselves, what if they include human DNA? Secretly they do it.

Splice is a horror film. It’s a monster movie. It’s science fiction. It’s a story about parenthood. It’s a story about mental illness.

The film asks one of the most obvious questions of horror. Who’s the monster? While that might not be the greatest part of the film, it’s at least interesting.

Much like most Canadian films, it has a penchant for weird sex1, which serves the film well.

Like Chloe which I saw the day before, both films take place in Toronto. Unlike Chloe, which is obvious of its love for Toronto, Splice’s setting is only revealed in an offhand mention of the Distillery District.

1. No snowshoes. [↩]