Splinter review

Hey horror fans, are you tired of vampires, zombies and werewolves? If so, then “Splinter" is the perfect creature feature for you. So what exactly is the creature? Well the title of the movie says it all because it’s nothing more then a collection of grotesque splinters (of course) that get under your skin both literally and figuratively.

The film features a comically mismatched couple: Seth is a nerdy biologist and Polly is a drop dead gorgeous woman with model quality looks that don’t quite belong in a splatter movie. While on a failed camping trip, they are taken hostage by an escaped convict named Dennis and his meth addict girlfriend Lacey. The conflicting couples wind up in a remote gas station where the mysterious splinter creature has already claimed a gas station attendant as its first victim.

The creature gets a hold of its next victim. Which of the four main characters is something that I can not tell you. The splinter creature injects its victims with tiny razor sharp spines that enter through the skin and get inside of the muscles. Then it manipulates the human body to do the creatures will, no matter if the human host is alive or dead.

The creature is brought to life with good old fashioned special effects work. That means animatronics, prosthetics, make up effects and actors in plastic suits. You never doubt what is on the screen is actually there, in front of camera being filmed and the actors don’t have to play off of tennis balls on sticks.

The splinter creature is a fresh sight but it is not entirely original. Its design and system of parasitic attacks are clearly inspired by the creature from John Carpenters highly acclaimed film “The Thing”. If you recall, the creature in that film bean its reign of terror by taking control of an animal, feeding on blood, and manipulating human bodies. The splinter creature does the same. And very few splatter films in film history can claim to be even half as disgusting as “The Thing”.

The surviving characters are trapped inside of the gas station while the monster tries to find its way in. A gas station is a great setting for a monster movie. Much like the mall from “Dawn of the Dead”, it makes a great barricade and there is enough food, water, alcohol and cigarettes to survive for quite a while, but sooner or later the creature will have to get inside, and humans have to get out, so it only makes the situation more intense.

There are clichés to be had here but they still work. There’s the psychotic red necks on the run from the law; the scientist who has the task of figuring the monster out; the one unlucky cop who has the misfortune of showing up at the worst possible moment; and of course you have the character who gets infected and keeps it a secret until the most dramatic moment.



With a runtime of 82 minutes, “Splinter” is extremely efficient which there is nothing wrong with, but what keeps “Splinter” from greatness is the missing climax in the third act. Yes, the film does end but not in a satisfying way. There is little exposition other then a criminals revelation about his past. We never learn much about what the creature is or where it came from. This is a good thing because the mystery in horror films is all but dead. Here, there is no half assed scientific explanation unless you yourself want to make one up. Either way, you and writer/director Toby Wilkins are using more imagination than most horror directors are.