Sharp Monster Movie; Splinter Review

When watching a movie you know nothing about it's always a good idea to keep an open mind until the credits roll at the end. This is best exemplified in the case of "Splinter" a horror movie i went from hating to thoroughly enjoying when it was all over.

The film finds Seth and Polly, a couple celebrating their one year anniversary, kidnapped and taken hostage by Dennis and Lacey, two convicts on the run. They stop by a gas station that appears to be abandoned. They soon find that there is a not so friendly creature looking to make them a meal.

I don't want to get into too much about the monster because there actually are some unexpected twists revealed throughout the film. There seem to be elements taken from John Carpenter's "The Thing" regarding the monster, but like i said they do a good job crafting a creature, and i wouldn't want to give anything away.

The movie is well paced, there weren't any parts where i wished i could skip ahead. The tension is constant, the creature is a pretty malevolent force throughout. Unlike some horror movies where it's vague about what becomes of the victims, it is made painfully clear what befalls the monster's prey. The movie rarely relies on CGI which i always appreciate in a horror movie, and there is even a scene i think is more intense than most scenes in the "Saw" movies.

Of course, this is not a top tier film, and it does have it's flaws. The acting is decent, the only actor i didn't like was the girl convict, she was just annoying. Once and awhile there will be a plot point where you go "really?" but there are a lot of horror movies out there like that.

The first part of the film is tough to get through, at first none of the characters are that likeable, but that changes pretty quickly. Just wait until the creature shows up then it gets pretty good.

I really liked this movie, it was something unexpected. A dark creature feature type movie I haven't seen in awhile. It's a rent at the least, if you do like movies like "The Thing", "The Fly", or maybe even "Tremors" this could be a film for you. 4 outta 5!