31 days of Halloween: Splinter

Splinter is 2008 horror film directed by Toby Wilkins.


I was introduced to it by my good friend Jonathan just a few weeks ago, for which I was completely unaware of its existence prior. After looking into it, I saw found out that it had a limited release in theaters and was pretty much promptly released for home consumption. Not sure what to expect from a small horror film that I had never heard of, I went in without any preconceptions beyond the front cover (which really didn't color my judgment either way). Well, it's pretty creepy and surprisingly good!

The film stars Shea Whigham as Dennis Farell, Paulo Costanzo (Royal Pains!) as Seth Belzer, Jill Wagner as Polly Watt, and Rachel Kerbs as Lacey Belisle.

The film is mostly contained in one single location, lending it to a pretty claustrophobic atmosphere. It may appear similar to The Thing, but it's entirely superficial. There are certainly homages to it ("There's a thing out there" is a line spoken in the film), as well as other horror films, but that's about it.

Splinter is a wonderful monster film and certainly an overlooked horror gem that could use some additional recognition.