Jeff Goldblum stars as an overly ambitious scientist who accidentally merges with a housefly while conducting a bizarre teleporting experiment.  Now his journalist girlfriend (Geena Davis) suddenly finds herself caring for a hideous creature whose insect half gradually begins to take over.  A chilling, contemporary remake of an all-time horror classic has now been transformed into the ultimate Collector’s Edition DVD.

CRITIQUE

David Cronenberg initially passed on The Fly when the project was offered to him.  At the time he was working on a small, low budget independent film called Total Recall and did not have the time to work out another project.  Things changed, time passed, and after passing through the hands of at least two other directors, Cronenberg was back.  And it’s a good thing, too.  Looking at The Fly, we can see that Cronenberg is the only director who could have made this film.  The emphasis on science, machinery (the design for Brundle’s telepods was based on a Ducati motor), and the effects on the human body are all squarely in the Cronenbergian wheelhouse.  The story seems to have been written for him.

How ever appropriate the material, that did not stop Cronenberg from adding several of his own flourishes.  Brundle goes through a slow metamorphosis here, as opposed to a sudden change, and that metamorphosis is really what the film is about.  When Veronica learns that he has teleported himself without testing the machine first, she worriedly says, “You could have killed yourself.”  Of course, what neither of them knows is that he has killed himself, only his death will be a slow one. 

Like all great horror films, there are several allusions here; one could read into this film any number of things.  Teleporting becomes like a drug for Seth, a drug he feels has strengthened him and improved him and revealed himself to himself, and after he goes through his mind runs in a million different directions.  He even likens the experience to a drug, and when Veronica refuses to go through he screams, “You’re a fucking drag, you know that!”  Brundle can’t get enough.  To some, Seth might look like someone who does too much cocaine.  Later, he might look like someone dying of a disease.  Cronenberg said that if you replaced the word “teleport” with the word “cancer” in this film you would have a serious drama.  In a more modern context (especially if we look at the time in which this film was made), it might be an allusion to AIDS.  Later we learn that Veronica is pregnant.  Has Seth put his disease in her, too?  (If that disease is a ridiculous, god-awful sequel, then the answer is yes.)

Above all, the focus is on The Flesh, the overriding preoccupation of Cronenberg’s work.  When Veronica refuses to go through the machine, Seth begins ranting about “the flesh,” telling her that, “I bet you think you woke me up about the flesh.”  He rants about going beyond “the vale of the flesh.”  It all has the ring of the James Woods character in Videodrome declaring, “Long live the new flesh.”  The Flesh, in one form or another, is at the core of all of Cronenberg’s work.

The story is not driven by Brundle alone.  There is a love triangle at work as well.  Goldblum is the perfect actor to bring Brundle to life.  He is geeky enough so that we believe him as the brilliant scientist, yet suave enough that we believe a woman like Veronica would fall for him.  He looks enough like a schlub that we buy it when he says he doesn’t get out much, but he is also athletic enough that late in the film, with all of his acrobatics, we believe that too.  Geena Davis is attractive enough that it is easy to believe two men falling for her, and she is maternal enough that when we see her comforting him, it is genuine.  Davis has an accessible beauty makes her character than much more believable.  The third man in this twisted triangle is John Getz (Blood Simple, Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead) as Veronica’s editor-slash-lover.  He starts out as a self-involved prick, driven only by his fixation on Veronica, but as the film progresses we see that he truly does care for her, and takes on a heroic quality.

The Fly is ultimately about doomed romance, a doomed love affair, and the story is told with a lot of heart.  Smartly, we never deal with Seth as a fly, only as a man, even in the depths of his metamorphosis.  The film never loses heart, and it is probably for this reason most of all that is still holds up so well.  The clothes may be out of date, and Brundle’s cordless telephone is the size of a Louisville Slugger, but the core remains in tact.

THE VIDEO

The Fly is presented in anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen.  The color levels are sharply rendered, especially the blacks and whites.  When Brundle teleports, his machines emit a piercing white light, and that is captured here without degradation.  This film has been expertly remastered.

THE AUDIO

This DVD offers several audio options: English 5.1 DTS, English 5.1 Dolby Surround, Spanish Mono, and French Stereo.  The presentation is sharp, and all channels come through with positively zero distortion.  The audio presentation has been brought up to date just as masterfully as the video.

THE EXTRAS

Disc One:

Audio Commentary by Director David Cronenberg: Cronenberg, who always gives an insightful commentary, goes into great detail on the making of The Fly.  He talks about the short story, the original film, and what he wanted to change.

Disc Two:

Fear of the Flesh: The Making of The Fly: an in-depth, three part documentary on the making of the film.  With “Larva” (19:55) we have a look at the original film and the genesis of this one, from the involvement of Mel Brooks as producer, to the various directors the project went through before Cronenberg took it over, to the writing of the script.  In “Pupa” (1:22:23) we get into the casting and shooting of the film, and we here from Geena Davis, Jeff Goldblum and John Getz on how they were brought on, how they created their roles and how they worked together.  Finally in “Metamorphosis” (33:34) we get into post-production, previews and release.  These three parts can be watched individually or as a whole.  The documentary is incredibly detailed and insightful, and is worth the price of the DVD alone.

The Brundle Museum of Natural History: a tour of the design concepts and effects used in the film.  Along the way, Chris Walas comments on how the designs were refined and perfected throughout the making of the film.  (11:50)

Deleted Scenes: four deleted scenes and two extended cuts.  These are interesting in their own way, with each scene we get an explanation as to why it was cut.

Written Works: in this section of the disc we get scans of George Langelaan’s original short story, Charles Edward Pogue’s screenplay, David Cronenberg’s rewrite of the screenplay, as well as articles from American Cinematographer and Cinefex on the making of the film.

Film Tests: test footage of the title sequence, lighting, make up, and exploding bugs.

Trailers and TV Spots: the original teaser and trailer and three television promos for The Fly.  We also have the teaser and trailer for The Fly II, and trailers for the 1958 version of the film, as well as 1959’s Return of the Fly.  The vintage fifties trailers are a lot of fun.

1986 Electronic Press Kit: a short behind-the-scenes look at the film, as well as a quick profile of Cronenberg himself.

One Sheet & Lobby Card Gallery: a catalog of various posters from around the world.

Still Galleries: a large bank of photographs featuring everything from publicity shots to candid behind-the-scenes shots to concept art and make up effects.  There is quite a lot here.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The Fly holds up incredibly well, and this new DVD presentation does the film a great justice.  The audio-visual presentation is superb, and the bonus material is detailed and insightful.  This is definitely one for the collection.