Replicator is an ambitious new creature feature from writer-director Mark Andrew Hamer. He and co-scribe Russ Lindway craft a story about small town litigator, Darby (Brey Noelle), and who is facing the usual uphill battle of being one of the few in her life with a moral compass. The mystery begins when most of the criminals and ne’er-do-wells start behaving. Not just behaving but adopting the personalities of high-functioning robots. What follows is a moderately entertaining mix of Invasion of the Body Snatchers and The Thing that is all upstaged by top-notch practical creature effects and gut-churning make up work from David Greathouse and Sean Rodgers.

To be fair, Darby isn’t a saint, but compared to all the sinners around her, she’s doing okay. After losing what should have been an open and shut case in court, Darby heads over to see her bestie, Nelia (KateLynn E. Newberry), at Nelia’s dive bar to blow off steam. Here, Darby breaks some news to Nelia that seems to bother her. After learning that her father Ron (Jim Azelvandre) has cancer, Darby allows him to move in with her. Ron is a sleaze bag. No one and I man no one likes him. Soon enough, though, Ron has a run in with a mysterious creature as he stumbles home from the bar late one night. The next morning Ron is not acting like himself. Darby wakes up to find Ron making breakfast for her and insisting that he will be a better father. Strange, yes, but then after a sudden turn of events, a certain Dr. Jonathan (Beau Roberts) begins to uncover Ron’s deceptive, dark secret. A secret that, with each discovery leads to more questions.

Darby’s not-so-secret fling, Sherrif Ty Williams (Brian Spangler), does what he can to help solve the mystery as well with little result. Along the way, the audience is clued in on what’s actually happening. Through cutaways filled with glorious slimy tendrils and oozing puss we see there is a creature afoot. One that is slowly taking over the town and making everyone nice! Okay not nice, per se, but strangely pleasant and bland. Will Darby and her gal pal Nelia get to the bottom of what’s happening in their small town before it’s too late?

Replicator has more going for it than against it. Still, the script could have used just a few more passes. Hamer and Lindway create a pretty interesting monster at the center of it all. But its effect on the town doesn’t seem all that bad. We needed to see a lot more menace in the monster and its minions. Yes, assimilation is creepy, but give us a real reason to be afraid of who might be next. There is also an odd tone to the movie as it tries to blend raunch-com and horror leaving us wanting more of both.

All said, Replicator shines when the creature is doing its thing, tearing arms off the townsfolk and leaving puddles of goo everywhere. Come for the creature, stay for the effects.