When I was fourteen, I had a poster for the movie Prophecy. I’ve never seen the film. I think it was released in 1979. I came into possession of the poster because it was about to be thrown away. An employee at the Hawthorne Theater in Vernon Hills, Illinois, gave it to me. That, and posters for Murder on the Orient Express, Breaking Away, Murder by Death, Silent Movie (I think) and Spielberg’s 1941, folded in a box of used posters. I still have them, somewhere. But what I remember most about this poster for Prophecy – and I’m sure I can find the image online if tried, but I’ll stick with my memory – is the image of a newly born, or about to be born, mutant child. Claws and all. The kind of creepiness that sticks with you for years.

Which leads me to Splice. Vincenzo Natali, the director, came up with the film’s premise ten years ago, shortly after completing Cube – his calling card to SF fans. It’s kind of inspired by Frankenstein. (Note the names of Sarah Polley and Adrien Brody’s characters.) And what’s creepier than Frankenstein? A baby Frankenstein. A child, or half-child/half-something-or-other. Her name is Dren.

John and I spoke with Mr. Natali a couple weeks ago, while he was in Boston promoting Splice. We did the interview in the morning, the day after he participated in an informative, post-screening Q&A at Lowe’s Boston Common – which was moderated by our friend, fellow film critic Ed Symkus. (I want to say, Ed did a terrific job. Having a film critic introduce and moderate in-theater Q&As is really the way to go. The process makes the filmmaker, or actor, much more accessible to the audience.)

Now if you’re game, and you want to hear three guys in a hotel room talkin’ ‘bout movies, click on the link below. It’s all things Splice and more.

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