What To Watch On Shudder: Cube And More

Here is this week’s what to watch on Shudder, which features Cube, The Hills Have Eyes, and short The Banishing…

What to Watch on Shudder: Cube

Vincenzo Natali’s 1997 film Cube is quite the thriller. The film is about a group of strangers who wake up in a cubed structure, each of which are unsure how or why they are there. The film features enough mystery, tension, and gore to please most viewers. Reportedly inspired by an episode of The Twilight Zone, Natali’s film is inventive and occasionally wince-inducing. There are aspects of Cube itself which could be considered an inspiration on later horror movies, including Saw. Cube is a great feature debut from director Natali, who went on to make Splice and direct episodes of Westworld and Hannibal.

What to Watch on Shudder: The Hills Have Eyes

The late, great Wes Craven’s sophomore picture The Hills Have Eyes still packs a punch forty years later. The 1977 film is about a family who are targeted by savages after being stranded in the Nevada desert. The film has the requisite tension and striking scenes that we have come to expect from Craven. The Hills Have Eyes features performances by Dee Wallace and Michael Berryman, in an early, but memorable role. The film was remade in 2006, but it is this original that has become a cult classic.

What to Watch on Shudder: The Banishing

Director Erlingur Thoroddsen’s twelve-minute short The Banishing is a great watch. The film is about a teenager who tries to protect her younger sister from the spirit that haunts her. Thoroddsen’s film delivers a haunting atmosphere that rachets up fear. This is aided by a memorable score. The story is well executed, and the ending is a great way to bow out. It is easy to see why The Banishing won awards.

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Film Review: Splice

Splice is a bit of a strange film. There’s a feeling that the eery concept could work, but ultimately the film fails to live up to expectation.

Two ambitious scientists working at a genetics lab decide to try to combine animal and human DNA to create a new species. The couple, however, underestimate its cognitive abilities and rapid growth rate…

A modern update of the classic Frankenstein tale, the film offers the prerequisite warning on the dangers of messing with nature. Other than this, however, it offers little else. Splice lacks the trepidation expected of a science fiction-horror such as this. Whilst film begins in quite an interesting manner, the final scenes are a let down. The ending is hackneyed, reminiscent of numerous other films of this nature. Splice offers little originality or adaptation in this regard.

Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley are well cast in their respective roles. Nonetheless, neither of the two protagonists is particularly likeable, which makes it difficult to care about their fate. There is less of the tragic Victor Frankenstein about the scientists; this archetype has been replaced by conceited upstarts experimenting just to see if they can push the boundaries.

The main plus point of the film comes in the form of Dren, the hybrid created by the scientists. Director Vincenzo Natali has combined CGI and other effects with a real actress (Delphine Chanéac) to produce a highly realistic creature. The effects are seamless, particularly in her movement and interaction with the other characters.

Nonetheless, great effects are not enough to save Splice; it adds little to the genre. For a top-notch sci-fi horror film, your best bet is the far superior The Fly (either version).