"Splice" pleases sci-fi fans, weirds out normal people.

(Photos credit: Warner Bros. Entertainment)

The idea of genetic engineering has been a subject that scientists have been struggling with for quite some time. Some see the benefits of such research. Others see it as man's God complex. Splice is a movie that deals with the moral and emotional complications of advancements in science that include splicing human DNA with that of other animals to create beneficial proteins that can cure many of man's devastating diseases.

Adrien Brody (Clive Nicoli) and Sarah Polley (Elsa Kast) play two ambitious scientists who find themselves in a moral and legal quandary when they bend and then break the rules to blaze ahead with their genetic research by mixing animal DNA with human DNA. Their goal is to find a protein that is key to fighting many diseases. But by breaking the rules, they find that they have created a hybrid being with unexpected behaviors.

Directed by Vincenzo Natali, Splice is a movie that dives head first into the moral complications of scientific advancement. It immediately brings to mind the potential benefits of stem cell research in our real world, but introduces extreme risks by introducing genetic splicing and species creation. It in no way condemns stem cell research, but instead explores the moral dilemma that would occur if and when we advance to the point of creating a new species.

The created being, known as Dren (Nerd spelled backwards), is masterfully played by Delphine Chanéac. Chanéac convincingly mixes Dren's child-like innocence and her primal instinct for violence. She is a conflicted being who struggles to understand her uniqueness and balance her primal instincts (from her animal DNA) with her human emotions. She also successfully brings a sexuality to a character that is only partially human, to the point of seducing other characters and complicating the situation even further. There is much more to her complex character than I will explore here in this review (to avoid spoilers). But I will say that you will find yourself conflicted about her character. In a way, she is the victim. But on the flip side of the coin, she is also a threat. What is the best way to handle such a being? A being that is partially human.

As the main characters in the film, Clive and Elsa find themselves struggling as scientists who have become too emotionally attached to their research. And also morally conflicted due to their choice to violate the canons of research and science. Morality shifts between the two characters as Dren advances as a sentient being. And Clive and Elsa find it difficult to distance themselves from their half-human creation. Adrien Brody carries most scenes, but Polley comes off a bit too "unscientific" to be convincing as a scientist. And that leads to most scenes being dominated by Brody and Chanéac.

But all in all, the movie comes off as something more than the trailer suggests. It is more than an horror film. But yet still fits that classification. But it is misleading to call it just a horror film. It is more sic-fi than horror. Dren is portrayed in such a way to always suggest violent tendencies. But what is compelling is how the audience finds itself struggling to call her a villain. She is a misunderstood being who is struggling to follow her own man-created genetic makeup, and yet is also striving to fit in as a human offspring. This is the message of the film and the conflict that Clive and Elsa struggle to solve.

Sci-fi fans will eat this film up. It provides plenty of fuel for thought as to what could happen in future scientific research. And it definitely emphasizes the moral dilemma that scientists (and others) could find themselves in if such advancements eventually happened. But what really keeps your wheels turning after seeing this film is...

How would society judge a being such as Dren? Human? Just another animal? An advanced species? Do you refer to her as "it" or "she"?

The climax mostly answers the question for the sake of the plot. But it's not an answer that is set in stone. And it leaves much to consider. But one thing is for sure -- There is a price to pay when the rules are broken.

This one gets 3.5 kernels. But those who aren't sci-fi fans might not agree. If you can't handle the erie feeling in most of the scenes, then you might opt for another film. But for sci-fi fans, it's definitely a compelling film.

3.5 Kernels

Update on Monday, June 7, 2010 at 11:13PM by Lance Gilbert

Props go to Warner Bros. for producing a website that detects the iPad and provides an iPad compatible version of the site (non-Flash). Considering the popularity of the iPad, it makes sense for all movie sites to do the same. Nice move, Warner Bros.