Krispr (2023) Review
Krispr (2023) Review
Tis the season for holiday horrors in Krispr – Petrie Willink (Oppenheimer) and Jeremiah JJ Roberts’ sci-fi thriller. Following its release in the US, Krispr arrives on UK digital on 18 May, courtesy of Miracle Media.
When Dr Elijah Roelof (Willink) brings his latest project, Krispr (Sof Puchley) – a lifelike clone designed to learn and assist – home for the holiday season, he sets off a chilling chain of events. Initially naive to the ways of the world, Krispr’s ability to soak up knowledge soon takes a dangerous turn when she makes some shocking discoveries about mankind’s darkest moments.
As Krispr’s intentions become more ominous, will Elijah realise that his technological marvel is becoming a monster before it’s too late, or will it be a Christmas to remember for all the wrong reasons?
At first glance, KRISPR appears poised to follow in the footsteps of recent AI-horror success stories, evoking immediate comparisons to M3GAN. However, any sense of momentum is quickly diluted by the film’s relentless fixation on Frankenstein, with Mary Shelley’s seminal text referenced so frequently that subtlety is all but abandoned. Ironically, much like Shelley’s tragic creation, KRISPR itself feels crudely stitched together from superior source material, emerging not as a coherent whole but as a cumbersome imitation of better films.
Narratively, KRISPR struggles under the weight of its own implausibility. Logic and common sense are notably absent throughout, leaving viewers to navigate a plot that often feels frustratingly inert. Much of the film’s considerable runtime centres on Dr Elijah Roelof, the scientist behind the titular clone, whose defining characteristic seems to be his incessant hostility towards his wife, Chloe, blaming her for virtually every inconvenience. Chloe, in turn, spends much of the film lamenting her husband’s emotional investment in his creation, resulting in repetitive exchanges that rarely evolve beyond domestic grievance.
The film’s central premise becomes increasingly difficult to accept when Elijah—ostensibly a brilliant scientist capable of pioneering advanced cloning technology—makes the baffling decision to remove KRISPR from a controlled laboratory environment and transport her to his parents’ home over Christmas and New Year. His justification, that he wishes to observe her behaviour, rings hollow given that he spends much of the film seemingly unaware of her whereabouts, frequently asking family members where she has gone. Stranger still, none of the household appears particularly concerned about the mysterious outsider wandering unchecked through their home. Such lapses in logic become impossible to ignore as the story progresses.
Elijah himself proves to be a particularly frustrating protagonist. Despite being positioned as a scientific visionary, he is portrayed as indecisive, emotionally volatile, and conspicuously lacking the intelligence his role demands. Spending nearly two hours in the company of a character who largely whines, broods, and demonstrates little meaningful agency makes for an exhausting viewing experience.
Pacing compounds the issue. At close to two hours, KRISPR feels substantially overlong, with scenes frequently lingering well beyond their dramatic usefulness. Extended sequences—such as a protracted family dinner conversation concerning meat consumption—test patience rather than deepen characterisation. The dialogue often feels improvised, lacking the precision or dramatic rhythm needed to sustain engagement.
Technically, the film fares little better. A near-constant score quickly becomes intrusive, inconsistent sound quality proves distracting, and the script rarely finds moments of genuine insight or tension. Combined with an ensemble of grating characters, the overall experience becomes increasingly wearisome. Watching KRISPR often recalls the infamous A Clockwork Orange sequence in which Alex is forcibly held open-eyed against his will: an endurance test rather than entertainment. The destination is obvious from early on, making the film’s prolonged journey toward an inevitable conclusion all the more frustrating.
Perhaps most tellingly, KRISPR includes a line strikingly reminiscent of Jurassic Park: “Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.” The sentiment proves unintentionally apt. One cannot help but feel the same question applies to KRISPR itself.
Trailer
Krispr is on UK digital 18 May from Miracle Media
