The movie is built around a neat, involving post-cloning riff on the man-playing-God themes of the various interpretations of Frankenstein. Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley are ambitious young scientists at their self-named “N.E.R.D.” facility, where they decide to disregard the wishes of their boss and continue gene-splicing experiments with human DNA, with the ultimate aim of curing various devastating illnesses. The end result of their latest dabbling is a rapidly growing hybrid of animal and human, to which Polley warms to in a maternal fashion while Brody is tortured over the moral dilemma and even calls for the evolving “Dren” (as she is named) to be destroyed.

   Polley, always good, is terrific here as one of two complex, often unsympathetic protagonists ; in a bold choice for a mainstream, Oscar-winning actor, (yep, even bolder than his thigh-slapping dual role in GIALLO) Brody is just as good. The one performer you may remember the most, however, is the astonishing Delphine Chaneac in a silent portrayal of the unique Dren - a remarkably sexy, haunting and feral presence that effortlessly (and believably) flits between being erotic, child-like and predatory. Her acting combines with subtle CG and the make-up work of Howard Berger and Greg Nicotero to make this hairless, amphibious, multi-jointed, winged, tailed creation truly memorable.

   SPLICE is the best production to date from the erratic Dark Castle and it bravely ventures into dark, boundary-crossing areas for a studio-made horror. One sex scene between a momentarily weak Brody and the seductive Dren (a rare example of inter-species intercourse in the mainstream) is suitably uncomfortable, as is an unsettling rape scene that follows Dren’s change of sex and sets up a telegraphed but potent punch line.

   SPLICE is directed with restraint but is thought-provoking, intense when it wants to be, tightly paced and has a rich, wholly effective score by Cyrille Aufort. Largely a three-hander (there’s only half a dozen speaking parts in the whole film) it’s a rare gem in the 2010 genre calendar.