At first the picture of a loving mother-consciously reacting against what was evidently an unhappy childhood with her own mom-Elsa reacts badly when her progeny starts rebelling. It is when Dren reaches this stage that her relationships with her “parents” begin to change. Digital Pictures, makeup FX by Gregory Nicotero and Howard Berger and, as she matures into “adolescence,” a terrific wordless performance by stunning model/singer Delphine Chaneac. The comfortable, lived-in and ultimately strained chemistry between the two is matched by their completely convincing interplay with the ever-evolving Dren, brought to life via seamless CGI by C.O.R.E. release by Dark Castle Entertainment and Warner Bros.) Brody and Polley, both in top form, have a number of fine, subtle moments between them-in particular, following a pivotal setpiece I’ll refer to only as the bath scene. (No doubt it helped that Splice was produced independently-by Guillermo del Toro, among others-and subsequently picked up for wide U.S. Mostly, though, it’s played straight, and with more depth than one often finds in studio-released techno-horror flicks. is also the acronym of Clive and Elsa’s company, an example of the sneaky humor peppered through Natali, Antoinette Terry Bryant and Doug Taylor’s screenplay. But Elsa-whose interest in such an offspring, we quickly discern, is more maternal than medicinal-makes the combo in secret, and by the time Clive realizes what she’s done, the evidence is literally staring him in the face.Įlsa’s “monster” is eventually named Dren that’s “nerd” spelled backwards, and N.E.R.D. Instead of a bolt of lightning, gene-splicing is the tool the couple use to create life-they’ve specialized in whipping up hybrid animals for medical purposes-but the big pharma firm that backs their experiments balks at their request for permission to add human material to their DNA cocktail. Elsa is definitely interested in creating a child with Clive-only she winds up conceiving it in the lab, not the bedroom. Played by Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley, they live and work together and generally interact with the familiarity of a married couple, even though there are no rings or other physical evidence that they’re actually hitched. Director/co-writer Vincenzo Natali aims for something more ambitious here, a variation on the Frankenstein theme-he has even named his scientist protagonists Clive and Elsa.
Splice monster movie#
Some of the promotional materials for Splice have been selling it as a sex-monster romp in the Species vein, and that does the movie a disservice. Editor's Note: This was originally published for FANGORIA on June 2, 2010, and we're proud to share it as part of The Gingold Files.
0 kommentar(er)
