Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Split Second Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 23, 2020

Split Second is one of those films that just seems to have been cursed from the get go. From its earliest stages, when it was a project of screenwriter Gary Scott Thompson evidently called Pentagram, the film encountered one obstacle after another, a situation that continued throughout production and post-production. Hoped for stars like Harrison Ford never materialized, the script was tweaked, re-tweaked, and re-re- tweaked, an actress named Robin Eaton who got the celebrated “introducing” credit in the film had her scenes completely excised from the American version of the film (though her credit remains), and even the redoubtable Wendy Carlos had her original score rejected. The result is therefore perhaps understandably a bit of a mishmash, as even commentators (and fans of the film) Mike Leeder and Arne Venema get into in a supplement included on this Blu-ray disc. That doesn’t mean that Split Second is one of those “so bad it’s good films”, and in fact it has a rather oppressively claustrophobic and even paranoiac ambience that is quite unsettling at times, but for those looking for a special effects infused, science fiction tinged, “whodunit”, chances are some at least may find the film a bit of a disappointment.

Perhaps surprisingly, Split Second has evidently had no prior release on Blu-ray in Region A. However, UK distributors 101 Films put out a high definition release several years ago, and for those wanting a plot summary, I refer you to Svet Atanasov's Split Second Blu-ray review of that release. Svet also offered another Split Second Blu-ray review of a later limited edition. Svet's reviews are also a good resource for screenshot comparisons. There's no comparison between the sole supplement on the first release and the bounteous supply of extras on this release (which in fact includes the supplement on the 101 Films Blu-ray and repeats all of the supplements from the Limited Edition). The rest of this review will discuss the technical merits of this release, as well as detailing all the supplements it includes. As I am often prone to repeat in a kind of "critic's mantra", different reviewers can mean different opinions, and I'm evidently not quite the fan of this film that Svet was, and my score for the film reflects that difference.

Split Second Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Split Second is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of the MVD Rewind Collection, an imprint of MVD Visual, with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. The back cover of this release states that this was "newly scanned, restored and color graded in 4K from the 35mm internegative". Svet gave only middling marks for the UK release, but that said, I might not have been even as generous as Svet was with regard to that release, and so my "mere" 3.5 here might be suggestive of more of an improvement than might initially be thought if simply looking at the scores divorced from our actual comments. That said, there are what I'm assuming are source limitations that even a "new, improved" scan hasn't been able to completely overcome. This does have a noticeably darker and generally cooler look than the UK release. Blues tend to predominate here more strongly, and the darker look along with a prevalence of really dimly lit scenes can mean the grain looks a bit different here as well. It can actually seem less noticeable in some dark scenes, while it is fairly chunky and yellow tinged in others (I've tried to offer examples of both in the screenshots, as well as offering reasonable facsimiles of some of the screenshots Svet took, so that those interested can do their own side by side comparison in full resolution, which is what I'd suggest). Despite the darker overall look here, I was consistently impressed with shadow detail, at least for the most part. There's surprisingly little crush given the overall dimness of so many of the interior (and sewer) scenes. I wouldn't say that overall clarity in this version is hugely different than the UK release, but even it is arguably improved, with some upticks in fine detail in close-ups in particular. Despite whatever restoration gauntlet this was put through, there are still fairly regular signs of admittedly usually minor damage, including quite a few white flecks and even a scratch or two.

Split Second Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Split Second features a problem free LPCM 2.0 track which more than capably supports the film's dialogue, effects and score. As with the visual element, it's obvious that there wasn't a huge budget for sound design, but there are some good effects in some of the underground scenes in particular, and the score sounds full bodied throughout (I would have loved to have heard Wendy Carlos' complete score). Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. While there are optional English subtitles, this has the same anomaly I've noticed in some other MVD releasess where the subtitles don't always sync up perfectly with the actual dialogue.

Split Second Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary by action film historian Mike Leeder and filmmaker Arne Venema


• Great Big Bloody Guns! (1080p; 27:25) is a new interview with producer Laura Gregory and actor Alastair (Neil) Duncan.


• Call Me Mr. Snips! (1080p; 22:21) is a new interview with composer Stephen W. Parsons.


• Stay in Line! (1080p; 23:02) is a new interview with line producer Laurie Borg.


• More Blood! (1080p; 32:03) is a new interview with creature effects designer Cliff Wallace.


• Shoot Everything! (1080p; 18:57) is a new interview with cinematographer Clive Tickner.


• Original 1992 Making Of (480p; 6:26) is an archival piece with short interviews with the principal cast and crew.


• Original 1992 Behind the Scenes (480p; 3:41) is another brief archival piece with some short interviews.


• Split Second Extended Japanese Cut (480i; 1:36:09) features burnt in Japanese subtitles.


• Deleted Scenes from the Japanese Cut (1080p; 4:41) is the above mentioned sole supplement that is included on the UK release linked to above. These also include burnt in Japanese subtitles.


• 7 Promotional TV Clips (480p; 12:13)


• U.S. VHS Home Video Promo (480i; 2:36)


• Trailers includes Split Second (480p; 2:15) along with trailers for other releases from the MVD Rewind Colleciton.

Additionally the release offers a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by The Dude Designs, as well as a collectible (folded) mini-poster.

Split Second Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As Svet noted in his review of the UK release, Split Second might reasonably be thought of as having combined elements from Blade Runner and Predator, without having had the benefit of the immense budgets of either of those films. The film also has some perhaps unintentionally funny subtext (it's nice that the monster killer can leave notes for everyone). Expectations therefore need to set appropriately for appreciating the film, and indeed I'd even add for appreciating the technical merits of this release. Video is improved from the UK release in my estimation (some may not prefer its darkness and coolness), and audio is fine. The supplemental package continues MVD's tradition of well produced and bountiful bonus features. Recommended.