Vincenzo Natalimainly for directing the 1997 cinematic nightmareCube, a film that answers the question “What if youwoke up in a deadly, inescapable architectural nightmare?” Recently, Natali’s “Graveyard Rats,” his nightmare-inducing contribution toGuillermo del Toro’sCabinet of Curiositiesused gorgeous practical effects to remind us why we find rats so uniquely disturbing. Creature feature fans also likely know Natali’s exceptional 2009 monster movieSplice, boasting one of the moststunningly original big-screen creatures in years. The film stars Academy Award winnerAdrien Brodyand nomineeSarah Polleyas a pair of coupled scientists, Clive and Elsa, who create a genetically spliced new organism, Dren (Delphine Chanéac), who grows into a unique humanoid hybrid with disastrous consequences (it’s a horror film, after all).
Produced by monster maestroGuillermo del Toro, it’s unsurprising that the masterful film has exceptional creature design and performances while being a smart, layeredFrankenstein-esque tale aboutthe ethics of scientific creation. Vincenzo Natali’s work also shares commonalities with fellow Canadian auteurDavid Cronenberg, whosebody of work isfilled with glorious monstrositieslike the children ofThe Brood,The Fly’s Brundlefly, and the eerie beings ofNaked Lunch. Dren could sit alongside the best of his body horror with her uncanny valley humanoid looks alongside an ever-changing monstrosity. The real reasonSpliceshould have the attention of any Cronenberg fan, however, is that it shares both body horror elements and his oft-pervading, brilliantly uncomfortable psychosexual themes. Spoilers follow aplenty, so anyone who hasn’t seenSpliceyet should go and watch it before digging in further.
What Is ‘Splice’ About?
InSplice, Clive and Elsa are introduced as scientists responsible for the creation of a pair of genetically engineered creatures, Fred and Ginger. The creatures somewhat resemble large tongues and produce rare proteins that could be used to cure various diseases. Clive and Elsa are pushed to move forward on extracting the protein, but the situation secretly prompts them to try an experimental test —the creation of thehuman-animal hybrid, Dren. In her initial form, Dren is a white, bipedal, tailed creature whose legs first bend like human’s, before taking a second bend where human ankles would be. Dren’s head is smooth, with two wide-set eyes and no visible ears, nose, or hair.The creature evolves quickly, growing a long, venomous prehensile tail. Herskin and features become increasingly human(save for her legs), and eventually, she reveals both the ability to breathe underwater and a set of wings that can retract into her body.It’s a shocking amalgamation of parts: anodd but human face, growing sex drive, and complex emotional reality, but alongside a dangerous array of inhuman elements.
‘Splice’s Themes Are Similar to Those in Cronenberg’s ‘The Fly’ and ‘The Brood’
Hybrid creatures are David Cronenberg’s forte. Perhaps his most famous creation is Dr. Seth Brundle (Jeff Goldblum), whose own scientific experiment gone awry results in a gradual transformation into aprogressively monstrous fly-man. We see every single stage in the transformation cycle as Brundlefly becomes less human and more powerful, just like we do for Dren. AsSpliceproceeds, audiences discover thatElsa inserted her own DNA into Dren(unbeknownst to Clive), making Elsa Dren’s actual biological mother, in a sense. Elsa, who had an abusive mother, grows a complex maternal instinct toward Dren: alternately loving and sternly overprotective, before becoming uneasy about Dren’s increasing obsession with Clive. This similarly echoes some of Cronenberg’s penchant for films with rogue scientific practicescreating monstrous children of all-too-close mothers, like how “psychoplasmics” inThe Broodcauses Nola Carveth (Samantha Eggar), herself a victim of abusive parents,to manifest the films’ murderous “children.“Rogue science and motherhood don’t mix, especially with preexisting troubled backgrounds.
That Time David Cronenberg Remade ‘The Fly’ as an Opera (Yes, Really)
Sing me a tune, Brundlefly!
Like Cronenberg’s Movies, ‘Splice’ Is Full of Psychosexual Themes
Beyond hybrid monstrosities and weird relationships between mothers and their creature children,Spliceshould also be on the radar of every Cronenberg fanfor its showcase of another key element in Cronenberg’s work:brilliantlyuncomfortable psychosexual themes. As the genetic hybrid Dren grows less monstrous and more humanoid (while retaining animalistic instincts), her sexual urges grow. To be perfectly clear, while adult Dren gains intelligence and comes to look proximate to humans in many ways, she clearly isn’t. WhenBrody’s Clive gives in to his odd attraction to Dren and has sex with her, Dren’s own behavior becomes increasingly erratic, dangerous, and possessive. It’san extremely disturbing scenefor a number of reasons: Dren’s a hybrid creature to whom Clive is a sort-of paternal figure, she’s his wife’s biological daughter in essence. And it’s also, you know, extraordinarily sus.
Perverse sexuality abounds in Cronenberg’s oeuvre. In his debutShivers, an apartment complex becomes overrun by sexually transmitted parasites that are passed on through violent sex. InVideodrome, Max Renn (James Woods) loses his girlfriend (Deborah Harry) to a secretive channel that marries sex with all-too-convincing violence.Crash(the great 1996 one, not the disappointing 2004 Best Picture winner) followsa community of folks who are disturbingly aroused by car crashes. In all these cases, uncontrolled sexual urges lead to positively inhuman, dangerous experiences, just like they do inSplice.And when Dren falls seemingly ill before transforming into a male, he maliciously rapes Elsa and kills Clive before Elsa kills Dren. Worse still,Elsa becomespregnant with Dren’s monstrous progeny, echoing the finale ofThe Fly. All the major Cronenbergian themes and elements are there inSplice, from runaway science’s body horror to monstrous perversity to terrifying mothers, with a hauntingly disturbing finale to match. It’s an engaging, unforgettable cinematic work, and one any Cronenberg fan can’t afford to miss.
Spliceis streaming on Max.
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