dacksonflux You can tell it was low budget, but only with the creature. It is a creature flick (my only spoiler).You cannot generally tell it's low budget by the acting (with one exception, which is thankfully brief) or direction.The story is so simple, and easy to follow which alone, nearly makes you uneasy. There are some fantastic moments of pure suspense. You fall in love with every character, even the creature. Yes, even the creature was given character, which I loved intensely.I did not get bored. My butt didn't hurt. It's not too long, nor is it too short. The pacing is spot on. It's not meant to be a work of art, so you don't get a whole lot of character development. What you do get are eerily familiar, and realistic characters that don't see a need for talking too much about themselves (because most, real people don't).I'd like to see the actors and director again. Could've been edited slightly better though.

cmovies-99674 PROS: The best part of this movie was the action. SPLINTER was packed full of terrifying scenes. From beginning to end you were on the edge of your seat. This was followed by impeccable acting from everyone. Even the characters that didn't get a lot of screen time still played their role fully. The actors really developed their characters, from the relationships built to the personal will to survive. Thats what really pushed the movie forward,was the vibe of the movie. With such a low budget the film made up for it in different ways. You really got to know every detail of the setting, the characters, and the antagonist which really helped propel this film. Another great part of the movie was how well you were engaged in every second of the film. Even the ending was able to pull you in. It was sad and relieving at the same time. CONS: The small flaw of the movie was the major plot hole. This isn't a spoiler because it shows it in the trailer, but the police officer dies, and nothing happens from their. Without this the movie couldn't continue, but with this the film revealed a large plot hole.www.chorror.com

boondocksaint20 I had been wanting to see this movie for years after reading so many glowing reviews about it. I am a huge fan of innovative horror films, often low budget B-Movies, that utilize the best from their budget and story while turning out an entertaining flick (i.e. Evil Dead).This movie had everything going for it. An interesting 'alien' creature with no origin (which often makes the best protagonist), an isolated setting, and Shea Whigham stealing every scene he is in. The creature design looks good, when you can actually get a good look at it. And this is the reason why the movie fails. Not by lack of trying, but by editing (and maybe, by budget).Shaky cam/quick cuts kill almost any movie, especially action or horror movies, as the viewer can never quite tell what is going on. It is very evident that the budget was very low, however, the creature effects, though convincing when the camera actually hangs on it for more than a second, apparently were not convincing enough to allow the viewer to get more than a glimpse at a time. This truly kills the tension of the film as the quick cuts of the creature are then continued with even more quick cuts of our main characters' scenes of struggling for survival. What results is a mess...the mind starts wondering what the last quick cut of the monster was, but then is too busy processing the characters' movements with the same quick editing...monster lunges, characters react, same quick editing, etc, etc. The first comparison that comes to mind is Aliens vs. Predator 2, Requiem, where all scenes of the 'monsters' were so barely lit (obviously due to budget constraints), that you literally could not see what was going on. From what I saw from this movie, the effects looked good enough to linger each scene and let it effect the viewer.So, I love the setup, thought the characters were well acted and love the monster. However, the editing kills any enjoyment from this movie. That's my $0.02.

mcguin71 The basic storyline may not be so much different from so many other horror films but it at least carries it through with more success than most.The beginning is a little difficult to stomach as it relies on 'young couple in the semi-wilderness', with an annoying 'Beauty and the Geek' twist (which I must admit is still better than 'high school teens'). Add in a slightly deranged on the run criminal and his slightly dim, rather too easily led girlfriend and its seems to be set for the yawn inducing B-Movie cliché cupboard.However, despite Splinter succumbing to a certain amount of clichés, and let's admit that its so difficult not to, it does not prevent it from raising itself above the average The cast is small but efficiently used, and better yet you even want to do more than simply leave them to their fate. This is despite some irritating points, mostly centred around the early scenes of the Geek & From characters. Still they can at least deliver a line and act a scene like they care about more than just the pay cheque which is a far cry from many films of the genre and budget.The location is also minimal being a little bit of anonymous countryside and roads together with an equally out the way American gas station, neither of which stand out as being first choice with regards locations for most films. Here though, once the film moves on past the intro and to the station, it again does well with the confined stage used to good effect in inducing a suitable sense of imprisonmentThe film relies heavily on good old fashioned visual effects helped somewhat by the overuse of shaky cameras and quick cuts. This may be a compromise but the two combine well and so offset most of the negatives of such camera work (most not all, it really needs more steady shots in non- action scenes).Its a short movie too that helps keep things trotting along at a fair pace, and although perhaps a little predictable it at least doesn't do things strictly by the numbers of the pages of 'horror book of movie makers'..... Unoriginal at times, probably more across the whole than individual scenes, but on the whole fairly enjoyable and certainly either a few minutes of your time.7/10...mostly marked down for the clichéd characters and over use of shaky-cam.