Splinter DVD: Review By Shelley

THE CAST:

There are four main characters in this film and each one is familiar but not in name. Shea Whigham, Paulo Castanzo, Jill Wagner and Rachel Kerbs were well cast and give convincing, believable performances. The only thing which bothered me was Seth (Costanzo) and Polly (Wagner) were not necessarily believable as a couple. They were just too different in both personality and looks.

DIRECTION, CINEMATOGRAPHY AND SPECIAL EFFECTS:

Unlike many low budget films of this type, production values were very good. The photography reflects the budget but it is nothing that is not overcome by the great special effects. We have blood, gore, dismemberment, intestines and so much more. All were done splendidly considering the low budget.

Toby Wilkins did a first-rate job directing this film considering most of his professional experience is in the visual effects field. I believe this is why the effects were done so well in Splinter. He also directed The Grudge 3, but I cannot give an opinion on his work for that film since I have never seen it, however his short films have received a lot of recognition. I believe we will see a lot more of Wilkins in the future.

THE GOOD:

One of the main things I liked about Splinter was the fact just the right amount of time was spent on character development. Instead of half the film being spent following the main characters around doing boring things, it only allows about ten to fifteen minutes on the character’s lives before things really start to happen. It had a sufficiently creepy atmosphere with comfortable pacing which keeps your attention throughout the film.

THE BAD:

The main problem with this independent film is the same as most, lack of budget. But it clearly makes the most out of every dollar. One thing that was never explained in the film is where the creature came from. I would have liked to have had just a little history on the creature itself or at least what it was a result of.

THE STORY (may contain spoilers):

Seth and Polly are celebrating their anniversary by going camping to enjoy the evening under the stars. Having some problems with their equipment, they decide to go to a hotel instead. On the way to finding one they stop to help a woman walking along a desolate road. Unfortunately she is not alone and the man she is with is an escaped convict on the run. They are kidnapped and forced to drive the fugitives when they run over something causing a flat tire. Once on their way again they realize the radiator was damaged forcing them to pull over at the first gas station they come to. Once there they find the attendant but he is begging to be killed because some sort of parasite has invaded his body. They become trapped inside the gas station by this parasitic monster and must figure out how to escape without becoming infected.

SPECIAL FEATURES: Standard DVD

The Splinter creature

Creature concept art gallery

The Wizard

Building the gas station

Shooting digitally

Oklahoma weather

How to make a Splinter pumpkin

HDNet: a look at Splinter

Commentary with director and cast

Commentary with director and crew

REPLAY VALUE:

Above average replay value for Splinter, maybe not one you can watch hundreds of times, but definitely quite a few.

BOTTOM LINE:

This DVD was released April 14, 2008 and I have been looking for it ever since. Today was the first time I have seen it for sale so I jumped on the chance to purchase it. I paid $20 for it but think it was worth it and it will make a fine addition to my horror collection.

It is a shame this film did not get more attention in the theaters because it is an above average horror film. It was not the best horror film I have ever seen, but I did not expect it to be. It is a well rounded film that gets going very quickly. I would recommend it to any fan of this genre and think this creature feature would make a great addition to anyone’s horror movie collection.

Thanks for reading.