Welcome back to Movie Recaps. Today i will show you a sci-fi horror film called
Splice. Spoilers ahead! Watch out and take care. Two scientists, Clive Nicoli and Elsa Kast,
are experts in the field of genetic engineering that work for a company called Newstead.
The company conducts various experiments that focus on splicing DNA of different
animals in order to produce new life forms that would be used for medicinal use.
After many failed attempts, Clive and Elsa finally manage to succeed in their mission. The
duo watches their creations in awe and decides to name the two grotesque creatures Fred and Ginger.
The two organisms were meant to be used to produce medicinal proteins for livestock. Upon seeing the
amazing results and possible opportunities their experiment holds, Clive and Elsa predict that they
can use the same splicing technique they used for Fred on humans. The two scientists predict
that if applied correctly, the technique could be the miracle cure for numerous currently incurable
diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Their idea didn’t get the green light
from their employers, Joan Chorot and William Barlow, who strictly forbade the young scientists
to conduct human experimentation, as that could potentially lead to bad publicity for the company.
Clive and Elsa decide to undergo their experiments in secret. After a few unsuccessful attempts,
the two manage to create a successful human slash animal splice. Excited by their scientific break
trough, Elsa decides to take the genetic material to the birthing room in order to start the
development of their creation. Clive is opposed to the idea, but Elsa is keen on continuing
the experiment since it could potentially be a solution to many human diseases. She convinces
Clive by telling him not to worry as they’re going to destroy the creature before it reaches full
term, so nobody will ever know. Clive starts the machine and the conception sequence is started.
Later, Clive is talking to one of his colleagues. The young man
asks what are he and Elsa working on, but Clive manages to dodge the question. Meanwhile,
Elsa can be seen examining the incubator. When the heartbeat of the creature suddenly falls quiet,
she instantly becomes worried, but is quickly relieved as the heartbeat appears again.
After finishing work, Elsa and Clive are lounging in their apartment, talking about moving to
a bigger apartment. The conversation continues and the two get to the topic about having kids,
which makes Elsa visibly nervous. Their conversation is interrupted by an alarm on
Clive’s phone. They rush to the lab immediately. Turns out that the fetus is ready to come out,
despite being months away from its planned birth. Clive’s and Elsa’s attempts to fix
the machine and stop the creature from being born are unsuccessful, and Elsa injures her hand in the
process. The creature is born, and before it can escape and do any more damage, Clive manages to
trap it under a plastic container. He goes to help Elsa, who is convulsing and losing consciousness
due to her wound, which is likely infected by the creature’s poison. Clive injects her with
some medicine, and she goes back to normal. Elsa and Clive return to their apartment.
The birth deeply shakes both Clive and Elsa, with Clive expressing that they should destroy
their creation. Elsa tells Clive that there’s still a lot they can learn from this situation,
but Clive is set on destroying the creature. Soon, the both of them head to the lab to kill
the creature, only to find what appears to be a dead body in the incubator.
Upon further examination, Elsa notices that while there is a bunch of dead tissue in the incubator,
the entire body of the creature is missing. Almost immediately, she hears small,
fast footsteps coming towards her. She is met with a small, chicken-like creature that imprints on
her. Elsa and Clive manage to knock the creature out and begin to study it, only to find out that
it can excrete venom, even though there was no predatory gene in its DNA. As the creature's life
continues, it’s revealed that the creature is aging rapidly due to its defective DNA.
Later that night, Clive meets with Barlow who informs him that if they can’t sell the medicinal
proteins from Ginger and Fred, Newstead is going to be in big trouble, and Clive and Elsa would
be to blame. A month passes and the creature has grown to be very large. Based on the way it acts,
it can be concluded that it possesses a human toddler level of intelligence. Elsa forms a
bond with the creature, treating it more like a child than a science experiment, much to Clive's
worry. She goes as far as letting the creature out of its containment area and taking the cover
off its stinger. After the creature spells NERD out of toys after it sees the company’s
name on Elsa’s shirt, Elsa decided to name the creature Dren, which is NERD spelled backwards.
Elsa’s treatment of Dren leads to an argument between Elsa and Clive. Apparently,
their experiment is in trouble of getting uncovered, since their lab is set to be renovated,
which opens a possibility for someone to see their forbidden experiment. That’s when Gavin, Clive’s
brother in the lab and fellow college, sneaks into the room to eaves trope on their conversation, but
unexpectedly runs into Dren. Terrified, he quickly flees the scene. In order to keep Dren a secret,
Clive and Elsa decide to sneak Dren out in a card box and hide her in a storage area, away from
prying eyes. To their dismay, Dren has a really high fever, which greatly worries Elsa. Elsa
and Clive quickly put Dren in a cold water bath in order to soothe her fever. When Clive holds
Dren underwater, it is revealed that the creature developed dubious lungs. That night, Elsa takes
care of Dren, giving it a Barbie doll which she had to hide from her mother when she was a child.
As time went on, Dren has grown to be significantly larger, with a more human, womanly
appearance. As Elsa and Clive fool around and end up having intercourse on the couch, Dren can be
seen secretly watching them from the next room. The next day, Clive and Elsa present their
original hybrid creations, Fred and Ginger, to the public. Unfortunately, the presentation
goes horribly wrong, as the two creatures turn extremely violent and fight each other to death.
After examining the situation, Clive and Elsa found out that Ginger transformed into a male.
The reason as to why she did so remained unknown. Elsa and Clive decide to move Dren
into an old farmhouse Elsa’s mother once owned. When they get to the farm, Dren runs off to find
some food. After setting up Dren’s room in the barn, Elsa and Clive proceed to the farmhouse.
Upon opening the door, they’re met with a filthy room with a bed, a single chair and a bucket,
which indicates that Elsa lived in an abusive environment when she was younger.
Meanwhile, Dren is not satisfied with her life on the farm. With her creators gone from work
all the time and only a cat to keep her company, Dren becomes rebellious, which Clive takes well,
in contrast to Elsa, who is deeply disturbed by it. In order to keep Dren at bay, Elsa decides to
stay at home and keep Dren company. To make Dren happy, Elsa showers her in make-up and jewelry,
which Elsa’s mother strictly forbade when Elsa was a child. When Elsa checks the makeup table,
she finds numerous drawings of Clive, but not a single one of her. Dren grows nervous at Elsa’s
find and runs away to her cat, which Elsa takes away, telling Dren she can't get everything she
wants, which is a part of growing up. When Clive arrives home he finds Dren sad, and tries to cheer
her up by turning on some music and dancing with her. While dancing, Clive felt forbidden feelings
towards Dren and soon comes to the realization that Elsa used parts of her DNA whilst they
were creating Dren. He goes to confront Elsa, the two clash and Clive leaves. After Clive is gone,
Elsa decides to give Dren back the cat she previously took away, but Dren kills it, causing
Elsa to slap Dren across the face. Dren pounced at Elsa so she could steal the barn keys to escape,
but is knocked out and strapped to an operating table. Elsa begins to take off Dren’s jewelry and
clothes, and due to her violent behavior, removes her stinger. When Clive arrives,
Elsa takes the stinger back to the lab to find the proteins and synthesize them for her work.
The next day, Clive goes to the farm to find Elsa but is met by Dren, who tries to seduce him.
Clive initially declines, but ultimately succumbs to Dren’s advances and the two have intercourse.
During the act, it can be seen that Dren has regenerated her previously amputated stinger.
To Clive’s horror, Elsa walks in on them and runs away in disgust. Clive runs to her, and
both of them enter their car and drive to their old apartment, where they have an argument about
Elsa’s views on Dren. It is revealed that Elsa wanted to create a child, instead of traditionally
having a child because she desperately wanted to have control over the said child, a need that
probably stems from her abusive childhood. When they finished their argument, the two come back
to the farmhouse, only to find Dren dead in her bed. They bury Dren’s body and burn her clothes.
Whilst moving Dren’s things, Elsa finds Dren’s drawings of herself. That’s where Gavin and Barlow
arrive, having found out about Elsa’s and Clive’s secret. Before they can engage in conversation,
Dren suddenly appears, now looking more masculine, indicating that Dren too, like Ginger, transformed
into the opposite gender. Dren becomes aggressive, killing Barlow and Gavin, and pouncing on Clive.
Elsa manages to run away into the woods but doesn't get very far, as Dren catches up with
her quickly. Dren pounces on Elsa and presses her to the ground and forces intercourse with her,
but is stopped by Clive, who impales Dren with a branch from behind. Dren attacks Clive,
which leads to Elsa bashing a rock on Dren’s head, killing the creature once and for all.
In the aftermath of all this, Elsa is still a Newstead employee and has been granted permission
to continue her research into proteins that were present in Dren’s body. When she stands up,
she is visibly pregnant, which hints at the possibility that she is carrying Dren’s child.