Reviews: The Fly (1986) Movie Review
- Related: [ Movie Details for The Fly / Similar movies like The Fly ]
Subgenres: Creatures, Body Horror, Cult Classic, Mutants, Sci-Fi
Our review of The Fly (1986) dives into the story, the scares, and whether it truly delivers the horror fans crave.
The Fly (1986) is a David Cronenberg film about a brilliant scientist computer guy that is afraid to ride anything that moves so he makes a teleportation machine. Seriously, that’s his motivation; he once threw up on his tricycle; the throw up comes back in a horrific scene, so now he wants to be teleported from one place to another by a computer. A little simple, but it’s said so quickly at the beginning that you don’t have time to think “Hey, that’s kind of dumb.”
The Fly isn’t only considered to be one of the greatest horror movies of all time; it’s also considered one of the best remakes ever made. The original, although well made, was campy and was never going to hold up over the years. David Cronenberg reimagined The Fly as it actually would be, a gene splicing body horror flick. Where the original had the fly and the scientist’s heads simply switch, Cronenberg’s version shows Seth Brundle, played by Jeff Goldblum, slowly transform into a human-fly hybrid.
This is not a movie that everyone will like. I personally think it’s wonderful. Most of the special effects hold up; the imagery imprints itself on your brain, and the story is timeless. A man becomes literally enveloped by his work.
The movie isn’t without its flaws, though. The pacing is fine, but the timeline is a bit hazy. The romance between Brundle and Veronica, played by Geena Davis, is believable only based on the acting. The relationship itself moves very quickly; it is a relatively short movie after all.
Another small problem with The Fly is that some of the makeup doesn’t quite hold up. If you only look at Goldblum’s face as he transforms into a terrifying creature, it’s fine. But, if you look at the rest of his body, you can see the uneven plaster and latex covering him. It causes some of the more horrifying moments to be a little comedic. But, I’d say that’s part of this movie’s charm.
There are some plot points that seem tacked on in order to give characters some motivation. But, after seeing Jeff Goldblum perform the vomit drop all over himself, you tend to forgive such screenwriting mistakes.
I watch this movie once every two years or so. It’s fun, cheesy, and disturbing. I highly recommend adding it to your Halloween movies lists.
I give it 4 vomit drops out of 5.
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Sources Used to Shape This Review
Insights in this review are drawn from director interviews, fan commentary, production notes, and long-form breakdowns across genre-specific platforms. Content is written uniquely and reviewed for accuracy.
- The Fly Rating Scores
- Our Score: 8/10
- Overall Score: 8.22/10
- IMDB: 7.6/10
- MetaCritic: 8.1/10
- Rotten Tomatoes: 9.3/10
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