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The Fly (David Cronenberg, 1986)
"Be Afraid. Be Very Afraid." One of the greatest advertising tags to any movie proves to be truth in advertising in what I consider Cronenberg's best film by about a million miles. Somehow, the characters in this film, Seth (Jeff Goldblum) and Roni (Geena Davis), are so empathetic and wonderfully portrayed by the pair of actors that they turn the film into a pure tragedy, almost ranking with Brooksfilms' own The Elephant Man or The Hunchback of Notre Dame which this film occasionally resembles visually. Jeff Goldblum gives a performance worthy of an Oscar, let alone the nomination he was robbed of, and Geena Davis (who married him the next year) is equally spectacular in a film which delves into characters and reality in a way which this year's Watchmen was totally incapable of doing. Seth Brundle in The Fly has more humanity in his "fly hair" than all the Watchmen combined. Now, whether you want to argue that the Watchmen are fleshed out in the graphic novel or not, I'll stand by my statement because Brundle doesn't have a flippin' backstory to somehow try to convince you that he's worthy of your care and concern. However, he does have Goldblum's eyes, voice, wit and intelligence.
The Fly is a pure horror film. What it shows the audience is disgusting and pathetic, but it never begs for any forgiveness, and that's exactly why the characters earn it; they all behave as woefully human as people you and I know. Yes, even the character I consider the Bastard in the film, John Getz (Blood Simple) as Roni's scummy boss, seems to somehow redeem himself and turn into a form of human being at the end when he's the most-deformed. The Fly is a straight-out masterpiece to me. It's not only Cronenberg's most mature film, it's his funniest, most-romantic, most complete and fulfilled flick, no matter what you may think of the way it ends so quickly. In fact, the ending most reminds me of another fave film of mine from the '80s which many of our younger MoFos seem to misunderstand, An American Werewolf in London. The endings of both films are so quick only to emphasize the shocking tragedy involved while not wallowing in any sentimentality to make you think differently than the disturbing imagery to which you have just been witness.
"Be Afraid. Be Very Afraid." One of the greatest advertising tags to any movie proves to be truth in advertising in what I consider Cronenberg's best film by about a million miles. Somehow, the characters in this film, Seth (Jeff Goldblum) and Roni (Geena Davis), are so empathetic and wonderfully portrayed by the pair of actors that they turn the film into a pure tragedy, almost ranking with Brooksfilms' own The Elephant Man or The Hunchback of Notre Dame which this film occasionally resembles visually. Jeff Goldblum gives a performance worthy of an Oscar, let alone the nomination he was robbed of, and Geena Davis (who married him the next year) is equally spectacular in a film which delves into characters and reality in a way which this year's Watchmen was totally incapable of doing. Seth Brundle in The Fly has more humanity in his "fly hair" than all the Watchmen combined. Now, whether you want to argue that the Watchmen are fleshed out in the graphic novel or not, I'll stand by my statement because Brundle doesn't have a flippin' backstory to somehow try to convince you that he's worthy of your care and concern. However, he does have Goldblum's eyes, voice, wit and intelligence.
The Fly is a pure horror film. What it shows the audience is disgusting and pathetic, but it never begs for any forgiveness, and that's exactly why the characters earn it; they all behave as woefully human as people you and I know. Yes, even the character I consider the Bastard in the film, John Getz (Blood Simple) as Roni's scummy boss, seems to somehow redeem himself and turn into a form of human being at the end when he's the most-deformed. The Fly is a straight-out masterpiece to me. It's not only Cronenberg's most mature film, it's his funniest, most-romantic, most complete and fulfilled flick, no matter what you may think of the way it ends so quickly. In fact, the ending most reminds me of another fave film of mine from the '80s which many of our younger MoFos seem to misunderstand, An American Werewolf in London. The endings of both films are so quick only to emphasize the shocking tragedy involved while not wallowing in any sentimentality to make you think differently than the disturbing imagery to which you have just been witness.