As a big fan of Vincenzo Natali I really could not wait for this movie to come out. Natali has made a series of somewhat low budget but cerebral and brilliant movies that have always managed to surprise me, especially from an aesthetic point of view. Natali has a passion for shapes and patterns, and it shows. In a lot of his movies, a city is a repetitive grid of simple shapes, like a monolithic machine. His representation of a mental prison in Cube is marked by patterns and the repetition of form. In the movie Nothing, he made a pass at shapelessness and absence.
Unfortunately, Splice, a collaboration with Guillermo del Toro loses some of that aesthetic quality, which is replaced with a more traditional Hollywood style. There is a distinct biological, David Cronenberg inspiration and theme throughout the film, and it often becomes disturbing.
The movie deals with somewhat sensitive (and potentially offensive) themes that haven't really been addressed in a lot of movies, such as inter-species intercourse, rape and breeding. It deals with the subject of hermaphroditic human life and gender identity. It is definitely bound to offend audiences used to every day Hollywood blockbusters.
The movie, unfortunately, while being an intellectual and stimulating experience about half way through, it takes a turn for the worse towards the end. This change doesn't completely ruin the movie, as it redeems itself in it's conclusion, but don't expect to leave the theater undisturbed. It doesn't have a happy ending.
It gets a 7 from me. I would rate Natali's other movies a full 10, but this one could have been better.
Unfortunately, Splice, a collaboration with Guillermo del Toro loses some of that aesthetic quality, which is replaced with a more traditional Hollywood style. There is a distinct biological, David Cronenberg inspiration and theme throughout the film, and it often becomes disturbing.
The movie deals with somewhat sensitive (and potentially offensive) themes that haven't really been addressed in a lot of movies, such as inter-species intercourse, rape and breeding. It deals with the subject of hermaphroditic human life and gender identity. It is definitely bound to offend audiences used to every day Hollywood blockbusters.
The movie, unfortunately, while being an intellectual and stimulating experience about half way through, it takes a turn for the worse towards the end. This change doesn't completely ruin the movie, as it redeems itself in it's conclusion, but don't expect to leave the theater undisturbed. It doesn't have a happy ending.
It gets a 7 from me. I would rate Natali's other movies a full 10, but this one could have been better.