This film is not for everyone and I completely understand those who will not like it because this is not an analytical film filled with easter eggs of messages pertaining to social importance, apart from maybe its apocalyptic theme. Rather it is kind of "fast food" cinema. However these are the kind of films that can be very fun to watch. It also holds some nostalgic content for me because I saw it as an impressionable teenager. At that time I was into action, sci-fi, horror and comedy films. This film attempts to blend them together and does a good enough job, especially if you are the kind of person who can just sit back with your popcorn and enjoy the movie, than you are capable of enjoying this film.Yes it has a bunch of components which were prevalent in this type of genre at the time. One-liners, a buddy cop relationship, action and a bit of comedy, and of course BIG F***ING GUNS. I'm not embarrassed to say I enjoyed it. Rutger Hauer provides a good performance as the unstable yet admirable lead character who functions on "anxiety, coffee and chocolate". Yet another cliché as he is unwillingly partnered with Dick Durkin, from the moment you hear his name you know that he is there to provide some comedic relief as the pair track down "The Scorpio Killer" who Rutger's character Harley Stone seems to have a unique connection with. He and Durkin work together to bring down the killer who turns out to be much more than they imagined. The film has some memorable and stand out actors in the supporting cast such as Kim Cattrall, Pete Postlethwaite and Alun Armstrong. The latter providing one of my most favorite moments in the film when he snaps and exclaims "What do I do? Put out an APB on the devil? answers to the name of Lucifer?" The way he delivers it is quite priceless. The antagonist also provides a very real threat level and kept somewhat obscure as to the motives and patterns involved, until quite late in the film which helps to keep you engaged. All in all a quite predictable but enjoyable film.

Good God Almighty. The things Rutger Hauer does to make a buck. In this Blade Runner-ish dystopian thriller, he plays a cop with lovely hair on the trail of a bloodthirsty serial killer that may nor may not be human. Hauer has a new partner, a prissy but game sort who provides the comic relief, and a loyal girlfriend, played by the fetching Kim Cattral. She has an R-rated shower sequence, guys! The film makes little sense, and it gets boring rather quickly. "We need bigger guns" is spoken, a line we have often heard before. If you find yourself awake at 3 a.m. and can't get back to sleep, you might want to catch this. The gore isn't quite as bad as you might think, and the action scenes are basically Hauer and his partner shooting their guns willy nilly.

Split Second is directed by Tony Maylam and Ian Sharp and written by Gary Scott Thompson. It stars Rutger Hauer, Kim Cattrall and Neil Duncan. It was filmed in London, England, predominantly at the Hartley Jam Factory in Southwark, with Clive Tickner the cinematographer.London, 2008. "After forty days and nights of torrential rain, the city is largely submerged below water, a result of the devastating effects of continued global warming. The warnings ignored for decades have now resulted in undreamed-of levels of pollution where day has become almost endless night..." and something is stalking the watery city and tearing hearts out of its victims…..Plot follows a familiar course, and in truth there's no surprises here. A psychic link between Stone and the killer is sadly never fully formed, which is a shame because it had the potential to make the film more interesting, but to off set that a touch is some nice babble involving astrological and satanic matters which are thrown up during the search/investigation. In its favour as well, is that Maylam and his team sensibly keep the perpetrator hidden for most of the film, instead choosing the odd flashing glimpse of a clawed hand, or a murky torso running across the frame, while the idea to only show the bloody aftermath of a kill hits home harder than if we actually viewed it.The look is spot on for an apocalyptic sci-fi piece, all greys, silvers and low lights, while the cheap production design works well in context of the tone of the picture. There's even some Schwarzenegger like cheese dialogue, the likes of which the big Austrian would have got paid millions to speak at around the same time Split Second was released. The killer, once revealed, will disappoint many, mainly because it looks overly familiar, but it does impact for the finale set at a flooded tube station. While the music (co-scored by three different people) is ideal as it sounds very tinny, in fact it's very 1980's like.Judging by the critical reaction to it you have to think some folk were taking it a bit too seriously. Never fully convincing as a lead man, Hauer pitches this just right, with tongue in cheek, a grizzled personage and a swagger to match the glint in is eyes. He's playing a burned out cop character called Harley Stone, his partner, who of course is the polar opposite, is named Dick Durkin! Take this seriously? Never! Cattrall is merely here to be a love interest, to scream and show some flesh for the discerning hound dog, while her haircut, some black dyed German Helmet effort, is totally unflattering. Duncan dose a fine job as the nerdy copper, working the comedy off of Hauer very well, while fleeting support comes from great British actors Alun Armstrong and Pete Postlethwaite. In cameos we get song man Ian Dury and Michael J. Pollard.Leave the brain at the door and you have a good chance of enjoying this low-budget British sci-fier. 7/10

Well, 8 stars comes with an "*" attached. It was exactly the right movie to watch the first time I saw it. I was looking for a somewhat witty, kind of suspenseful, action thriller. And that's exactly what "Split Second" is. Since then I've seen it a couple more times. And it was deliberate. I was in the mood for that type of movie, and so I watched it again. It's not "10-star" brilliant. It does a few things right, does not take too many chances, and gives some witty lines to some OK actors. In the end it's success is that it had nothing in it that annoyed me or put me to sleep. It may not have been great or superb, but it was never bad for one second. I thought about giving it a 6 or so for that, but the extra for the 8star rating came from the fact that this movie is just so fun. So if you're looking for a somewhat clever, suspenseful, action packed movie, you are in for exactly what you want