There’s really never an easy way to review an independent film and give it a negative review. I understand the time that goes in to making movies, but we really look to help the filmmaker and offer constructive criticism as opposed to just outright bashing. “Splitting Hairs 2.0” has a good idea of what it wants to be, but sadly can never rise to the occasion to be better than it appears on screen. Director Oscar Sanders looks to create a crime thriller and provides some enthusiastic direction, but the actors never want to oblige the story by going along with their characters. The editing covers up their difficulty delivering lines, but that leaves the performances feeling painfully stilted and often confusing, while most of the audio for the film is almost incoherent. As for Sanders direction, there were moments where you could see him struggling with the camera, and in one moment pans down to a prop much too late prompting an actor to look right in to the camera waiting for his cue.
 

Why were the officers so banal about a severed finger in their apartment? Why did the killer leave the note at the foot of the steps assuming the cops would find it? Why did the killer stand outside the apartment waiting to see if they’d find the finger? And how did he actually get in to the apartment? More so, why don’t the officers call for back up instead of chasing the suspect and then suddenly stop chasing him when they find the note? I never understood it. Sanders seems to be working on a very small budget, but it never really justifies the plot holes or confusing plot elements. “Splitting Hairs 2.0” looks for a tone between gritty crime thriller, and a guerilla indie film and it never finds that middle ground, all the while making references to the first short film that I never really quite caught up with. The actors never really convinced me they were officers, and I found much of the scenarios frankly hard to swallow. It’s a good try and strong effort, but with better editing, better actors, and a cohesive story, it could be much more watchable.