Split Second (1992)
In a world gone mad the only thing more dangerous than a crazed killer . . . is the cop hunting him. It’s the 21st century. The River Thames floods large areas of London; the effects of global warming. Rats, mutants and disease are rampant. The big city is no longer the place to live. Crime is now a way of life and the masses have long fled. In the year 2008, the cops are better armed than before, but nothing has prepared them for this. Swift, sharp-clawed and deadly, something moves among them on the streets, in the alleyways, on the rooftops, tearing out human hearts and devouring them. Maverick cop “Harley” Stone lost his partner to the beast, and now it looks like his girlfriend Michelle is next on the killer’s list. Even in the future, there aren’t guns big enough to stop the creature’s deadly force, but Stone has no choice. Teamed with rookie detective Durkin, Stone must stalk the edge of his own sanity if he is to destroy the rampaging Evil on the outside and banish the very real demons within . . . It could all be over in a Split Second.
• SPLIT SECOND (UK, 1992)
Dir: Tony Maylen [and Ian Sharp]. With: Rutger Hauer, Kim Cattrall, Neil Duncan, Michael J. Pollard, Alun Armstrong, Pete Postlethwaite. XYZ Funding N.V./Challenge/Muse Productions B.V./Chris Hanley/InterStar. Colour.
—Specialist Publicity/Consultant
—EPK Director/Interviewer [uncredited]
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[Note: In 1991, US Executive in Charge of Production Susan Nicoletti (who I had previously worked with on Night Life) called me up from Los Angeles. She was worried that this film wasn't getting the right kind of coverage and asked me to come on board. As there was a publicity agency already working on the movie, I joined the crew under somewhat modified titles. The film was mostly shot on flooded locations at the Hartley Jam Factory on London's Tower Bridge Road. It was not a happy experience—the original publicists resented my presence, while Rutger Hauer was one of the most uncooperative actors it has ever been my misfortune to work with. When the director left the production before the completion of principal photography, everybody was forced to chip in and help before a replacement was brought in. I ended up re-writing the opening screen titles to try and make some sense of the futuristic setting. At least I got to hang out with legendary American character actor Michael J. Pollard, who was lovely. The script was written by Associate Producer Gary Scott Thompson, who went on to become the show runner and executive producer of the revived Knight Rider TV series (2008-09), while Stephen Norrington (the future director of Blade and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) was in charge of the impressive creature effects (barely seen in the finished film). Executive Producer Keith Cavele owned the rights to the classic Moody Blues song 'Nights in White Satin', which is why it incongruously turns up on the soundtrack. Some months later I found myself with Keith, Susan and Producer Laura Gregory having meetings in The Beverly Wilshire hotel at Rodeo Drive helping to sell the film's US rights. —Stephen Jones].
