I try not to review Sci fi channel movies of the week, but sci fi (SyFy now) is the first place I saw this one, and boy was I surprised. Now normally sci fi has their little picture of a scenic hometown, and then the "monster" usually a comupter generated snake or something, starts crawling around and eating things, and so on. Sure, they are enjoyable enough, but certainly not what I would call a horror film. I don't know who wrote this one, or if it was indeed an actual scifi channel movie of the week, but since I haven't seen it everywhere else, I am assuming it was. Why is that so hard to believe, you ask? Let's just say this one stands out from the usual.
So it was with mild shock that I began watching Splinter one afternoon, much like this afternoon when I saw it for the second time. Unlike most sci fi films, this one doesn't start slow. There's no explanation of the where the bad things come from. Practically the entire movie is set at a gas station in the middle of a deserted road, and it's ten times better because of the restricted setting.
It's just your typical gas station, attended by your typical acne-faced teen hick. It's a quiet day in the sticks, apparently, because the attendant, who I am affectionately calling Deadmeat, sets up a lounge chair next to the gas pumps, sits down, and begins munching on a bag of chips. A sound in the brush behind him attracts his attention. Deadmeat yells into the brush that he has nothing, hiding the bag of chips in his hand. Yea, right, Deadmeat, like the raccoons can't smell those chips. So Deadmeat heads into the brush to find out what was making the noise, and finds a poor hungry little raccoon. A raccoon that rushes him, growling menacingly. A raccoon that is covered in spikes. A raccoon that launches itself at him...
Well, I didn't call him Deadmeat because he's the only survivor, you know.
So headed towards this gas station, now unattended, I might add, are two sets of people. One is a couple that is, shall we say, on the lam. A pair of backwoodsy type, hick-ish outlaws. Another is a strong-limbed, lithe, outdoorsy-woman, accompanied by a nerdy little man. Apparently they are celebrating their anniversary by camping, but can't get the tent up, so they decide on a hotel. However, they are flagged down by the backwoods outlaws, and forced into a hostage situation. Forced to drive at gunpoint, they hit something on the way, and while changing the flat tire it caused, the male outlaw, who I will now refer to as Pokey, gets a splinter in his finger. A splinter from the tire that ran over the... raccoon. A rather spiky-looking raccoon. Pokey notices that the tire itself, the one that hit the racoon, has spikes sticking out of it. Splinters of something, if you will. Splinters... that are... growing... :-o
Well, that's all I am giving away on that one. An otherwise excellent movie that had the misfortune of being owned by SciFi channel. I love the fact that the people who make it there have to rely on whatever they'd find inside a typical gas station/convenience store, and I love that there's absolutely no information of what caused the, shall we shall, vicious little splinters. I don't know who wrote or produced this one, but they did somethign right here. lol
No nudity in this one, but I would have loved to see the outdoorsy chick in the buff. She seems to have a preference for geeks, so I think I might have a chance! :-D
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