Vincenzo Natali's newest film "Splice" has an interesting concept: the idea of splicing the DNA of two species to create a hybrid. It's not an impossible notion. It does fall apart in a couple of places, but Natali's execution of the film makes it worthwhile. And its complex idea is fairly easy to understand. Also the film shows us the dangers of tampering with Mother Nature.
Genetic engineers Clive (Adrian Brody) and Elsa (Sarah Polley) specialize in gene splicing. Together they have successfully created a weird, blob-like creature that looks like a cross between a caterpillar and a slug.
One day Elsa decides to use human DNA in a hybrid that could change science and medicine forever. The result is Dren, a beautiful but odd-looking creature that has a tail with a deadly stinger on it. And it was interesting to see Dren as a small child, learning, exploring and evolving in her new world.
She grows in leaps and bounds. One minute she's this little rat thing scurrying around, then she gains the ability to breathe underwater and then learns how to spell words and identify objects. Her rapid growth was fascinating and reminded me of the evolution of prehistoric people in fast-forward.
But the trio soon run into trouble. The pharmaceutical company that is funding their projects decides to pull the plug on the hybrid-making, so Clive and Elsa have to raise Dren in secrecy. They keep her in a barn at Elsa's old house. At this point Dren has become much older and adult like, and eventually after being cooped up in the barn for too long she starts changing and takes a turn for the worst.
Dren gets out of control. She tries to escape a couple of times; she kills a cat in her rage and attempts to do worse. This is where the movie hits its stride and the real conflict reveals itself. Dren goes through not only physical changes but also psychological changes.
She's no longer the cute, innocent little creature that Elsa took care of and gave her old childhood doll; now she's become this aggressive, mature female, much like the change an actual animal goes through in their lifetime. Plus she's extremely intelligent, which makes her an even bigger threat.
Then, sadly, the movie loses stride and gets a little weird. Dren becomes attracted to Clive and seduces him. This scene made me uncomfortable, and it was pointless. I can only guess it was supposed to show just how much of a mature female Dren had become. Then Dren goes through even more changes and the film spirals into a cliché and predictable monster/ horror flick.
Still, Brody and Polley brought a lot of personality to the film. In a way, the film was also a character study of the two scientists as parents, and raising Dren was a test of their relationship.
Sci-fi fans will most likely enjoy "Splice" - horror fans, too. The movie is original and realistic despite the few bumps along the way.
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