Splinter could be considered part of those clichéd and predictable horror movies and thankfully, the movie has some originality in its story plus a few healthy scares along the way. The story revolves around Seth (Paulo Costanzo) and his girlfriend Polly (Jill Wagner) who once again abide the first rule of horror movies and decide to spend a quiet weekend away to celebrate their one year anniversary.

Of course, things don't go as planned and they are abducted by Dennis (Shea Wingham), a wanted criminal and his girlfriend Lacey (Rachel Kerbs). But wait, fate has other plans for this group and while they are driving, they hit some kind of creature which forces them to seek assistance.

Eventually, the strangeness of the movie begins to grow as they soon realise that they are now being stalked by a "splinter" type creature and from their the terror and suspense begins to build.

Director Toby Wilkins really lends his talents to this movie as we see a good old fashioned horror movie made "retro" and thankfully we do not get to see the creature until the climatic conclusion but the tidbits along the way are more than enough to frighten you.

Although the characters in the movie are stereotypical of this genre, the actors play their characters well and really draw you into this plot that will have you praying that you never breakdown somewhere in the middle of nowhere.

On Blu-ray the video quality is exceptional with some great detail and an interesting colour palette that suits this secluded area that the movie is based in. The soundtrack of splinter sounds brilliant on a surround sound setup that really makes the use of 5.1. With crisp dialogue, perfect level sounds and music, the movie is almost a cinematic treat.

For a horror movie, this has a plethora of quite interesting special features, especially the audio-quality and how they created the Splinter. The concept art is quite creepy and it's amazing how it transcended from art to special effects.

Special Features:

Audio Commentaries with Cast and Crew
The Wizard Special FX Featurette
Splinter Pumpkin
Construction - The Creation of the Gas Station
Weather - Lots of It!
Shooting Digitally
Make-up and Creature Tests
HDNet - A Look at Splinter
Conceptual Art Gallery - The Creature

Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, Splinter is a fun horror movie that contains an entertaining and fun plot, although clichéd at times, however this is what the genre is all about. It's great to see the director take something old and attempt to modernise it and thankfully, quite successfully. Definitely one to watch on a dark, cold and lonely night.