MEET THE DIRECTOR AND PRODUCER
Steve Hoban, born 1964, is a Canadian film producer nominated for three Genie awards. Hoban co-founded his own film company, 49th Parallel and currently runs a new company: Copperheart Entertainment. Known best for his production of Splice, Coban worked alongside good friend Vicenzo Natali. Vicenzo, born 1969, is an American-Canadian film director and screenwriter who specializes in science fiction films. Natali entered the film scene at his first direction of Cube, a film that grossed $15 million and broke box office records for a Canadian film as well as receiving an award for Best Canadian First Feature. He continued to work on other films such as Cypher, Norhing, and Splice, and moving on to work on his own series dubbed Darknet, which aired in Canada sometime in 2013.
SYNOPSIS
The film opens with genetic engineers Clive and Elsa, who alongside a team work diligently on created veriform's dubbed Fred and Ginger. The team specializes in splicing animal DNA in hopes for advanced medical use, and begin so by mating Fred and Ginger. After the successful mate Clive and Elsa form an idea to create a human/animal hybrid that to not only revolutionize science but to open a gateway in medical science. Their idea is ultimately denied by their supervisors and they are instead ordered to extract protein for commercial drugs from Fred and Ginger. Elsa, refusing to accept the decision, convinces Clive to go ahead with the experiment with promises that it was temporary and would be terminated before full term, as she only wanted to see if they could do it. The duo are successful in creation a hybrid (Using Elsa's DNA) and Elsa carefully monitors it, convincing Clive to extend the hybrid's execution. However the creature proves to develop rapidly, much to their shock, and grows from it's captivity. Elsa, in attempt to stabilize the dying embryo, attempts to grab it in order to manually remove it from it's sack but is instead attacked by the unseen creature, resulting in vicious stings to her arm that forces her into a seizure. Clive stabs Elsa with an epipen to control the reaction to the venom. Upon returning to the lab the next day they find the still carcass of the hybrid's sack, leading them to believe it had died overnight. However, much to their horror and surprise, the creature proves to be alive as it had shed the carcass in order to escape it's imprisonment. Elsa immediately takes to the creature and convinces Clive to let it live, taking a motherly bond to the hybrid. The hybrid continues to mature at a rapid pace and quickly grown into a child-like form, at which point Elsa promptly names the hybrid Dren after the specimen had spelled out 'Nerd' using blocks, having associated Elsa's shirt (That said Nerd) to her. Having distanced themselves from the other scientists, Clive's brother Gavin stumbles upon Elsa and Clive arguing. He is quickly attacked by Dren, who relents her attack after Elsa command her to leave Gavin. Fearing for Dren's safety and her potential discovery by others Elsa moves the hybrid to the basement of the lab. However, due to an unfortunate fever that results in Dren's near death it's revealed that she is amphibian, shown when Clive forces her underwater and seemingly drowns her. Throughout their studies on Dren, Clive and Elsa push aside their work on Fred and Ginger. This proves fatal during a live presentation of their discovery where the specimen are introduced. Much to their horror Fred and Ginger attack one another and the scene ends in absolute bloodshed. It's discovered that Ginger had someone changed genders, thus explaining the violent attack the two specimen resorted two. After being belittled by their superiors Elsa, fearing for the discovery of the now mature Dren, takes Dren to the abandoned barn in where she (Elsa) had once grown up in. Almost immediately upon their arrival Dren beaks free and runs away, prompting for Elsa and Clive to chase her and discover that she had developed carnivorous tendencies after she was found eating a rabbit. Tensions grow high in the barn when Dren displays wild tendencies after she demands to be let out, having felt bored. There's a brief chaos when Dren breaks free from the barn by climbing through the ceiling and after nearly falling from the barn roof it's revealed that she has wings. Dren is eventually convinced down from the roof after Clive confesses to Dren that he and Elsa love and need her. Dren, happy at the confession, hugs the man while Elsa looks on. The relationship between Dren and Elsa begin to spiral out of control as Dren develops an infatuation with Clive and consistently ignores Elsa. A breaking point is reached when Elsa returns a cat to Dren after she had taken it away, having feared for the cat's safety. Elsa gifts the creature as a peace offering, hoping to restore Dren's favor to her. However Dren unexpectedly impales the cat with her stinger. Elsa, shocked by this, slaps Dren out of instinct. This action caused Dren to attack Elsa and nearly kill her, but spare her at the last second in order to take the key to the barn from her neck. Dren attempts to flee the barn but is subdued by Elsa, who proceedes to bind her to a table. Elsa determines, through log dates, that Dren is experiencing species identity confusion and resolves to help her by erasing any trace of human nature Dren has. She does this by forcefully ripping off the clothes from Dren's body, wiping the makeup she had put on her, and tearing away the locket Elsa had also gifted her. Elsa also removes Dren's stinger, much to Clive's chagrin. Elsa, using Dren's stinger, extracts the proteins they had originally been tasked to get. She leaves to the laboratory, leaving Clive and Dren alone. Clive attempts to console Dren, who in turn seduces him. Elsa arrives to the barn to catch the two having sex. She leaves in horror and Clive chases after her. The two argue about their purpose for having Dren, with Clive accusing Elsa of using her own DNA to create Dren because she (Elsa) had never wanted a 'normal child'. Elsa relays to Clive how Dren had attacked her and could have killed her and two two realize that they can no longer control Dren. Fearing for their safety and the safety of others the two resolve to kill Dren, however upon arriving at the barn they find an already deceased Dren. Elsa tearfully buries Dren just as Barlow (one of her superiors) and Gavin arrive, with Barlow having discovered that the protein Elsa had delivered to him contained human DNA. Barlow demands to see Dren and after Elsa tells him that the hybrid is dead, Dren suddenly reanimates and attacks and kills Barlow. Elsa, Clive, and Gavin attempt to flee but Dren quickly kills off Gavin. Clive, refusing to leave his obviously dead brother begins to fight with Elsa when he suddenly drops his flashlight in the lake. He moves to retrieve it and is instead pulled in by Dren, who spares him to focus on Elsa. Elsa flees from the hybrid only to be caught. Elsa, having realized that Dren had underwent a sex change and is now male, screams for Dren to tell her what he wants. Dren, in response, begins to rape her. Clive, having survive the lake, impales Dren. Dren in turn stabs Clive in the heart with his stinger before being killed by a sobbing Elsa. The movie comes to a climax as Elsa sits before Joan (her other superior) as Joan informs her that Dren's body contained many biochemical compounds that the company has already begun filing patents for. Elsa is revealed to be pregnant when Joan confirms her (Elsa's) desire to be monitored and let the creature within her grow rather than terminate it.
RELATION TO EVOLUTION AND GOD COMPLEXITY
Splice is a science fiction film depicting the absolution of modern science. Genetic researchers work tirelessly to create hybrid species unnatural to mankind, taking a sort of God complex as they decide what is created and what gets to live. They have their own desires to further modern science and in doing so create the first hybrid human, a creature never thought possible without the complexity of man and desire for complete control over their environment. Splice depicts arrogance in the creation of its hybrid as its caretakers suffer from their own narcissism, forgetting the extreme danger of their creation. Thus, holding another life in their own hands proves to be too fatal for the scientist as they lose their established control and dominance over both themselves and their God complexity. However, such travesties result in a leap in medical science and evolution as the ending scene depicts yet another hybrid and a desire to continue on with the experiments.