The Fly main backdrop
The Fly main poster

7.4/10 • 4.6K

1986-08-151h 36m

HorrorScience Fiction

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

When Seth Brundle makes a huge scientific and technological breakthrough in teleportation, he decides to test it on himself. Unbeknownst to him, a common housefly manages to get inside the device and the two become one.

Directors
David Cronenberg
Editors
Ronald Sanders

Top Billed Cast

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  1. Jeff Goldblum

    Jeff Goldblum

    Seth Brundle

  2. Geena Davis

    Geena Davis

    Veronica Quaife

  3. John Getz

    John Getz

    Stathis Borans

  4. Joy Boushel

    Joy Boushel

    Tawny

  5. Leslie Carlson

    Leslie Carlson

    Dr. Cheevers

  6. George Chuvalo

    George Chuvalo

    Marky

  7. Michael Copeman

    Michael Copeman

    2nd Man in Bar

  8. David Cronenberg

    David Cronenberg

    Gynecologist

  9. Carol Lazare

    Carol Lazare

    Nurse

Reviews4

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Wuchak Avatar

Wuchak

Dec 3, 2020

6/10

Slowly turning into a monster, aka slowly succumbing to age An eccentric scientist living in a warehouse laboratory in a big city in the Northeast (Jeff Goldblum) discovers how to teleport objects, which draws the attention of a journalist (Geena Davis). Everything is going fine until he foolishly uses his invention on himself and a pesky fly inadvertently teleports with him. John Getz is on hand as the woman’s editor while Joy Boushel has a notable small role as Tawny. "The Fly" (1986) has a lot of devotees presumably because of director/writer David Cronenberg, but I found it less effective compared to the 1958 version with Vincent Price. Despite the gory state-of-the-art effects, it’s just not as compelling or horrifying (especially that final scene in the original). The one-dimensional locations are also a turn-off: Excluding the great bar scene the whole movie takes place in a grungy lab or a swank office building. The cast trilogy is exceptionally tall. While Goldblum (6’4½”) is serviceable and gives it his all, he’s not leading man material, although he’s fine in secondary roles. And I was never big on Davis, but she’s a’right I guess. At least the two absolutely look & act like they were meant for each other. In its favor, the movie is a metaphor for how aging & disease slowly destroys the body. Despite the sickening visuals, it’s heartbreaking and tragic, which you might not expect in a sci-fi flick about a guy who morphs into a fly. It thankfully avoids the rut of camp and melodrama. The film runs 1 hour, 36 minutes, and was shot in Toronto with studio work done in nearby Kleinburg. GRADE: B-/C+

Media

  • The Fly poster
  • The Fly poster
  • The Fly poster
  • The Fly poster
  • The Fly poster
  • The Fly poster
  • The Fly poster
  • The Fly poster
  • The Fly poster

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Status
Released
Original Language
English
Budget
$15,000,000.00
Revenue
$60,629,159.00
Keywords
monsterexperimentmutationtoronto, canadamutanttransformationhalloweenremakecreaturescientistbluntbodily dismembermentpsychoticparasite underneath skinfly (insect)disturbedanimal horrormeltinganimal researchfly/human hybridin-home laboratorybody horrorawestruckcommandingdisgustedfrightenedhorrified