Splice is a highly memorable and truly terrifying movie, and it pairs perfectly with a classic of the horror genre. Released in 2010 to solid reviews (but an ultimately lackluster box office), Splice fused sci-fi and horror to explore questions about life and humanity in an age where science could transform people into something new. It’s far from the only movie to use those genres to explore inquisitive reflections on the nature of life and death, speaking to the universal power of those themes as Splice even takes inspiration from real life. In fact, those shared qualities actually give an inherent connection to some of the horror genre’s most iconic concepts.

In particular, Dark Castle Entertainment film has a lot in common with one of the original Universal Monster Movies, which remain an iconic piece of the pop-culutre lexicon almost a century after they debuted on the big-screen. Both films share central themes about the power of science and the caution people should use around it, using that as the impetus for a creative and frightening monster movie. Both stories highlight the tragedy inherent to science’s twisted creations, while casting blame on their creators. In many ways, Splice is a modern descendant to the classic horror film that it pairs perfectly with for a creature-feature double-feature.

Splice Can Be Viewed As A Modern Reimagining of Frankenstein

What Happens When Man Plays God

Vincenzo Natali’s Splice works as a modern-day take on Frankenstein. Starring Adrien Brody, Sarah Polley, and Delphine Chanéac, Splice focuses on Clive Nicoli and Elsa Kast, scientists trying to splice animal and human DNA. The result is Splice’s creature Dren, a hybrid that rapidly ages and develops frightening new attributes in short-order. Their central motivation seems to be a similar form of ambition that can be seen in Frankenstein. Based on Mary Shelley’s revolutionary novel of the same name, the 1931 film starring Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, and Boris Karloff similarly focuses on man’s hubris as he works to bring a makeshift man to life.

Both films explore the power and danger of untamed science, especially in the hands of those with a dangerous lack of restraint. Both films are critical of the scientists willing to break moral codes in the name of discovery. The DNA of Frankenstein‘s central themes can be found in countless subsequent stories, but Splice directly explores many of the same direct concepts as Frankenstein. Although Splice is able to utilize the looser censorship of the 21st century to tell a more provocative film, Frankenstein similarly approaches heavy questions about science and philosophy with a tragic creature and unexpected deaths.

Dren & Frankenstein’s Monster Turn Violent After Mistreatment And Neglect

Human Flaws Create Human-Made Monsters

In both Frankenstein and Splice, Frankenstein’s Monster and Dren are initially portrayed as innocent, but end up lashing out at the world, leaving a trail of bodies in their wake. Both ultimately turn against their creators, although Henry Frankenstein survives his final encounter while Clive is killed by Dren. Meanwhile, Elsa is impregnated. Both creatures end up developing their grim worldviews in part to the neglect of their creators, who end up diverting their attention to others. In both films, the scientist is initially pleased with their makeshift child, as both Dren and the Monster are portrayed with a childish personality.

Both the Monster and Dren are ultimately treated as monsters by their respective “parents,” constrained against their will. This ends up pushing the creatures to commit violent acts of rebellion, leading to the wide-spread bloodshed of their respective third acts. Splice particularly plays on this element, as the initially maternal relationship Elsa has with Dren becomes increasingly twisted and violent largely as a result of Elsa’s growing distrust and abuse towards Dren. While there is some question whether it was in their nature to lash out so brutally, Splice and Frankenstein both underscore their respective rampages to be the result of the failures of their creators.

The Lead Characters Of Splice & Frankenstein Are Blinded By Ambition

Splice & Frankenstein Are Both About The Hubris Of Man

There’s a case to be made that the true villains of Frankenstein and Splice aren’t the monsters themselves. Although they commit horrifying acts of brutality across the film, both the Monster and Dren are acting on natural instinct. Their lack of full reason and logic leads them to act on a more animalistic or childish perspective. It’s not an excuse for their actions, but rather an explanation. It is instead their creators that the respective films deem responsible for the bloodshed. The scientists in Frankenstein and Splice suffer from delusions of grandeur, and their resulting poor decisions turns their creations into monsters.

Henry is driven by ambition to prove his brilliance, lashing out when his sanity is called into question and openly comparing himself to God. This leads him to willfully ignore the genuine moral questions raised by his experiments and leads to the creature of the Monster. Clive and Elsa are initially focused on smaller creatures, dubbed Fred and Ginger, for the sake of harvesting the resulting unique proteins. When they broach the idea of human/animal hybrids, they are told directly by their employers to refrain from using human subjects. Their decision to chart ahead anyway leads to a great deal of pain and suffering.

The Scientists In Splice & Frankenstein Are Meddling In Creation

Frankenstein’s Monster & Dren Both Ask The Same Fundamental Question

Frankenstein and Splice are both ultimately about one of the great lingering questions of life, and if there is a way for humanity to truly improve itself. While Frankenstein reflects on the possibility of overcoming death and Splice is concerned with mutating humans to more adaptable to the world around them, both movies build off the same sense of hubris that drives their respective scientists. Neither film is necessarily subtle with this central theme, either. Henry Frankenstein is portrayed as a brilliant man driven to the brink by his obsessions, leading to the creation of a creature that kills several people.

A reoccurring question in Splice highlights Clive and Elsa’s willingness to forgo restraint and reason: “What’s the worst that could happen?.” That “worst” ends up being the death of Clive and others, as well as Dren’s assault on Elsa that leaves her pregnant. In both films, meddling in the building blocks of life only leads to ruin, with Frankenstein only finding solace in Henry learning his lesson and committing himself to his wife. Splice is a modern tragic take on the same themes, showcasing the same dangers of untamed ambition and reckless science that Frankenstein highlighted almost a century ago.