Fly, The (1986)

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The Fly
Credits
Title:	The Fly
Genres:	Sci-fi Horror
Directed by:	David Cronenberg
Written by:	Charles Edward Pogue; David Cronenberg; George Langelaan
Produced by:	Stuart Cornfeld; Marc Boyman; Kip Ohman
Music by:	Howard Shore
Cinematography:	Mark Irwin
Edited by:	Ronald Sanders
Production
Distributed by:	Brooksfilms SLM Production Group Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Released:	August 15th, 1986
Rating:	R
Running time:	96 min.
Country:	USA
Language:	English
Budget:	$15,000,000
Gross:	$60,629,159
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The Fly is an American feature film of the horror, drama and science fiction genres. It is a remake of the 1958 film of the same name. The movie was directed and co-written by David Cronenberg and produced by Brooksfilms and the SLM Production Group. It was distributed through Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation and released theatrically in the United States on August 15th, 1986. The film stars Jeff Goldblum as nerdy scientist Seth Brundle who develops teleportation technology. He comes to trust a reporter named Veronica Quaife (played by Geena Davis) and invites her to follow his work. As is the custom of most films of this variety, things go awry when Seth decides to test his theory by teleporting himself from one pod to another. He probably should have sprayed some repellent before getting inside however, as a fly gets caught inside the pod with him and the device merges their DNA together.

Plot

At the Bartok Science Industries' Meet-the-Press event, Veronica "Ronnie" Quaife interviews Sethaniel "Seth" Brundle, regarding his current project. Seth refuses to divulge the details of his projects out in the open, so he invites Ronnie to his lab. Uninterested, Ronnie walks away, arguing that she has other interviews to do. He convinces her when he promises that his project will change the world.

On the way, Seth gets motion sickness during the drive, noting that he's been sensitive to riding vehicles since he was a kid. When Seth tells her to pull over, Ronnie isn't impressed by the desolate area where he claims his laboratory is.

He takes her inside, where he shows her two adjacent pods in his laboratory. Ronnie starts to wonder if she's wasting her time, but Seth jokes that he can't let her leave alive since she'd seen his project already. Ronnie assumes that the pods are designer phone booths and points to a cloaked machine, assuming it's a jukebox. Seth raises the sheet and notes that it's a prototype, which works but is unstable. He explains that his machines are called telepods. To demonstrate, he asks Ronnie to give him something that's uniquely hers. Ronnie rolls her eyes and offers him a stocking. He then places it inside one of the pods and logs into the computer using voice recognition software. He whispers the command to the computer to keep Ronnie in the dark. Seth then tells Ronnie to watch her stocking while the telepod automatically closes. From the window, she sees an electric current strike the stocking, and it disappears. Ronnie is still unimpressed, assuming that he just disintegrated the item. Seth points to the monitor, where it says that the teleportation was successful. With her interest piqued, she checks the opposite telepod where she finds her stocking. Seth proudly claims he teleported the item from one pod to the other. Finally impressed, Ronnie switches on her tape recorder from her bag to record their conversation. She shoots questions about his projects, so Seth explains that he got several ideas from other brilliant minds and combined them into his own. Bartok Science Industries funds his research but lets him work in secret because he doesn't ask for much funding, and they'll own whatever he creates. Suddenly, Ronnie's tape recorder beeps, alerting her that the tape is full. Seeing her change the tapes, Seth clarifies that he doesn't want to write about his project. Ronnie reminds him that she's a journalist who was sent to the party to write a story, and she chose his project. Seth stresses that she can't write about it and asks for her tape, but Ronnie refuses and leaves.

The next day, Ronnie plays the tape to the editor of Particle Magazines, Stathis Borans. However, he doesn't believe Seth's claims, thinking that he did a parlour trick on Ronnie. Suddenly, Seth arrives, and Stathis leaves him with Ronnie, uninterested in the story. Once he leaves, Ronnie tells Seth that Stathis thinks he's a con man, to which Seth is relieved. Ronnie still intends to find a magazine to publish the story, but Seth asks her out to lunch.

At a diner, Seth insists that he'd been working alone for so long that he was eager to discuss his project with someone. However, if she publishes an article while the telepods aren't ready, he'd be in danger with his colleagues. He hasn't been able to teleport living things successfully, but this doesn't deter Ronnie from releasing the story. Seth entices her to work on the story as her biggest project by following his progress daily until it's complete and she can publish a book about it. Intrigued, Ronnie considers it.

Later, she arrives home but hears the shower running. Cautiously, she heads to the bathroom and finds Stathis in the shower. Stathis explains that he was just passing by and used his copy of her keys to get in. Ronnie regrets not changing the locks after they broke up, but Stathis teases that she hasn't done so because she wants him back. Ronnie denies this, blaming her laziness instead. Stathis then discusses Seth, whom he learned was the leader of the F-3-2 team and nearly got a Nobel Prize at the age of twenty. Ronnie claims that she's reconsidering doing a story about Seth, but Stathis notes that it's not like her to abandon a story.

One day, Ronnie records a video as Seth makes adjustments to the computer to teleport a baboon. They see the baboon disappear from one pod, but when it appears on the other pod, it's turned inside out. Later, Ronnie encourages Seth to share what he thinks to the camera, noting that the world would want to know. Seth, however, is pissed that the teleportation didn't work. He ponders if the teleportation can't handle flesh, then blames himself for it. The computer only does what he tells it to, so he'd have to learn how to teleport organic matter.

That evening, Ronnie points out that Seth doesn't seem to be changing clothes. When he claims that his clothes are clean, Ronnie checks his closet and sees that he has five sets of the same attire. Seth explains that it makes it easier to start the day since he doesn't have to worry about what to wear. Ronnie offers to make him dinner, but Seth suggests heading out instead. Ronnie approaches him and tells him he's cute. Then, she leans in for a kiss, and the two spend the evening in bed together. Seth rolls back after their intimate time and gets something stuck on his back. Ronnie pulls the chip from his back and then starts to kiss him again. Suddenly, Seth gets an idea.

Seth slices a raw steak in two and puts one part inside the telepod. He teleports the steak and then cooks it along with the other part that wasn't teleported. He lets Ronnie taste both steaks to compare, and she notes that the teleported one tasted synthetic. Seth concludes that the computer mistranslates biological matter and creates its interpretation into the telepod.

While Seth works, Ronnie heads out. Unbeknownst to her, Stathis has been waiting for her and follows her. At a department store, Stathis confronts her about going through Seth's story. He mocks her relationship with Seth, and she yells that she doesn't need his permission for what she does.

One evening, Seth uses another baboon to teleport. They wait quietly as the telepod opens up, and the baboon suddenly runs out and jumps into Seth's arms. To celebrate, Seth and Ronnie drink champagne. Seth notes that he still needs to have the baboon tested to ensure that it's okay. Ronnie then invites him on holiday, and Seth asks if they're really entering a romantic relationship. When Ronnie confirms, Seth kisses her. While Seth is ordering food, Ronnie finds an envelope from Stathis addressed to her. Seth explains that he just found it under the door, so Ronnie opens it and discovers that Stathis is planning to publish her story ahead of her. Ronnie excuses herself from Seth, reasoning that she has to deal with personal matters.

At the Particle Magazine office, Ronnie confronts Stathis. Ronnie insists that it's her story, but he reminds her that he's the one who sent her to the Meet-the-Press event, so whatever story she got from there is his. Ronnie stresses that Seth's invention will turn modes of transportation obsolete, and she's been working to be part of that history. Stathis finally concedes, as long as Ronnie promises to keep him updated about the story. Ronnie agrees, but before she leaves, Stathis offers to sleep with her, which she refuses.

At the laboratory, Seth drunkenly rants that Ronnie went to Stathis when they're supposed to be celebrating. He then apologises to the baboon about killing its brother, though he notes that the baboon seems to be okay. Determined to prove himself, Seth decides to use the telepod on himself. As the telepod closes, a fly hovers around and goes inside unnoticed. Finally, the telepod flashes and the opposite telepod opens, revealing Seth, seemingly well.

Later that evening, Ronnie returns and finds Seth asleep, so she kisses him awake. She apologises for leaving, and Seth reveals that he used the telepod on himself because he was drunk and upset. Seth asks if she's still in a relationship with Stathis, and Ronnie clarifies that they broke up, though she admits that he's still in love with her. Ronnie laments that she wasn't there when he teleported himself, but Seth reveals that he taped the event. While kissing, Ronnie brushes her hand down his back, not noticing the hairs that are growing from the wound from the previous night. While asleep, a fly hovers around them, and Seth catches it as he wakes.

In the morning, Ronnie wakes up and finds Seth standing in the middle of the lab. Much to Ronnie's surprise, he begins doing handstand push-ups on the chair. He then does pull-ups and demonstrates his heightened agility and strength. Afterwards, Ronnie approaches, impressed by his physical capabilities. As the two have coffee, Seth explains that he believes his new abilities are the result of the teleportation rearranging his atoms, likening it to purifying coffee through a filter. Ronnie points out the excessive amounts of sugar that he placed in his coffee, but he brushes it off, excited over his project's potential. Seth continues to enthuse how he felt like a better version of himself after emerging from the pod.

Later, the two spend another intimate time together. Ronnie gets tired, noting how they've been doing it for so long, but Seth isn't ready to stop yet. While making out, Ronnie notices that odd hair on his back, but Seth doesn't pay mind to it. Ronnie gets a pair of scissors to cut the hair while Seth eats ice cream. She notes that the hairs are too coarse and tough. Suddenly, Seth insists that she gets teleported as well so she can also experience how he feels. However, Ronnie gets scared, and Seth yells at her. Ronnie concludes that something wrong happened when he teleported himself, but Seth isn't listening. He decides that she's not worth his time, so he storms out to find someone else to be his partner.

Seth heads to a bar and notices a woman named Tawny watching an arm-wrestling match. When Tawny notes that she wants one of the guys to win because she likes him, Seth shares that he likes her, so he's considering joining the match for her. He then bets one hundred dollars to beat the man in arm wrestling, but he'll take Tawny home if he wins. Tawny complains about the arrangement, but the men insist it's an easy win. Seth arm-wrestles with one of the men, all while a white substance excretes from his palm. Seth breaks the man's wrist and then proceeds to take Tawny away.

They reach the laboratory in the morning, but Tawny is too drunk to climb the stairs, so Seth carries her up. After showing her the teleportation process, Seth sleeps with Tawny. After their time together, Seth urges Tawny to get teleported. Tawny refuses, and when she teases him, Seth pulls her towards the pod. Ronnie suddenly arrives, so Tawny rolls her eyes and leaves. Seth accuses Ronnie of being jealous, but she asserts that Seth has changed, pointing out his appearance and smell. She then reveals that she had the hairs from his back analysed, and they were identified as insect hairs. She insists that he's sick, so to prove that he's not sick, he starts breaking one of the posts before throwing her out. Ronnie cries as she walks out of the building.

Seth checks himself in the mirror and notices that his face is changing. He tries to shave, but it hurts him, so he smashes the razor on the bathtub. Then, he bites his fingernail, and it pulls off easily. When he squeezes his fingertip, liquid spurts out from it. Seth finally realises that something is wrong with him. He checks the computer's report of his teleportation and sees it recorded two elements. He then checks the recorded sequence and finally discovers that a fly was inside the pod when he teleported, leading to him fusing with the insect on a molecular-genetic level.

After a month, Ronnie receives a call from Seth, having not heard from him since she left the lab. Seth admits that he'd been afraid to see her over the weeks, but he's gotten much worse, so he wants to see her.

Ronnie arrives at the lab later and finds Seth in his deteriorated form. He keeps his distance, in case he's contagious. He notes that his deterioration is growing faster and shares that a fly got into the pod when he teleported. It confused the computer, so it spliced them together. Hearing this, Ronnie cries. Seth knows that his cells are in chaos, and he'll eventually disintegrate. Ronnie urges him to get cured, but Seth refuses to be an experiment. While scratching his ear, it falls off, scaring both him and Ronnie. Ronnie hugs him worriedly while Seth begs her to help him.

The next day, Ronnie tells Stathis what happened, but he insists that she should avoid Seth because he might be contagious. Ronnie insists that she has to help Seth, so he suggests recording a video of Seth to allow Stathis to see his condition before he decides what they can do next.

Ronnie returns to the lab and finds Seth climbing the ceiling and walls. Ronnie decides that she can't take the horrors anymore, but Seth promises that he understands what the disease wants, which is to change him into Brundlefly. He then takes a video camera so Ronnie can record his daily life for her book. While on camera, Seth explains that he can't use his teeth anymore, so like a fly, he secretes a digestive enzyme onto his food before eating. Later, Stathis watches the video in Ronnie's apartment. Suddenly, Ronnie storms in and heads straight to the bathroom. Stathis checks on her, and she reveals that she's pregnant with Seth's baby. One day, Stathis takes Ronnie to the hospital to give birth, but what comes out of her is a giant maggot. Ronnie wakes up from the nightmare and freaks out about the idea.

Meanwhile, Seth concludes that he needs to fuse with another pure human subject to become more human. When he commands the computer, however, his voice has changed, so the voice recognition doesn't work. Suddenly, his tooth falls out, so he hides it in his medicine cabinet, where his other discarded body parts are. Ronnie arrives and cries, stating that she wanted to see him before what she's about to do. Not knowing what she means, Seth tells her that she shouldn't come back anymore because his mind is turning into an insect, so he might hurt her. Ronnie steps out and reunites with Stathis. She insists that she couldn't tell Seth, but she wants the child she's carrying out of her body now. Stathis tells her she should think about it first, but Ronnie is scared and insists on getting rid of it. As the two get in their car, Seth watches them from the roof, having heard their conversation.

At the hospital, Stathis tries to convince the doctor, Brent, to perform the operation, excusing that the child might be deformed because the father is. Brent suggests running some tests first, but Ronnie insists that she just wants the operation. While Ronnie waits in the operating room, Seth crashes into the window and carries her away before Stathis can catch them. He takes her to the lab's rooftop and begs her not to get rid of the last piece of his humanity. Ronnie expresses her fears, but Seth continues to insist that she carries his child.

Meanwhile, Stathis sneaks into the lab and loads his shotgun. He finds the laboratory empty, so he checks the computer and sees that it's programmed for gene-splicing. Suddenly, Seth drops down. Stathis aims to shoot, but Seth vomits the digestive fluid on his hand, melting his flesh. Stathis tries to retrieve his shotgun, so Seth vomits on his foot as well. With Stathis knocked out from the pain, Seth moves to melt his skull, but Ronnie begs him not to. Seth then explains his plan to splice himself, Ronnie, and the unborn baby to create the ultimate family, fused into a single body. He begins the countdown, but Ronnie tries to fight back. She accidentally removes his jaw, and Seth transforms into a monstrous insect humanoid. Seth throws Ronnie into one pod while Stathis regains consciousness. With his little strength, he crawls to the pods while Seth enters his own pod. Stathis shoots the cables from Ronnie's pod, disconnecting her from the computer. Seth breaks down his pod's door, but the teleportation activates before he exits, so he disappears in a bright light. Stathis frees Ronnie while the computer processes Seth's genes into the third prototype pod. When it opens, Seth comes out with metal protruding from his body, having been spliced with the pod itself. Ronnie grabs the shotgun and tearfully approaches Seth. Seth takes the shotgun muzzle and aims it at his head, but Ronnie can't bear to shoot him. Still, she has no choice but to put him out of his misery. Ronnie shoots and falls to her knees after killing the once brilliant scientist.

Cast

Actor	Role
Jeff Goldblum	Seth Brundle
Geena Davis	Veronica Quaife
John Getz	Stathis Borans
Joy Boushel	Tawny
Les Carlson	Doctor Brent Cheevers
George Chuvalo	Marky
Michael Copeman	2nd man in bar
David Cronenberg	Gynecologist
Carol Lazare	Nurse
Shawn Hewitt	Clerk

Appearances

Items

• Shotgun

Vocations

• Nurse
• Scientist

Miscellaneous

• Defenestration
• Flies
• Insects
• Monkeys
• Scientific experimentation
• Suicide
• Teleportation

Notes

• Production on The Fly began on December 1st, 1985. Principal photography concluded on February 28th, 1986. The movie was filmed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

• The movie was shot in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

• Actor Leslie Carlson is credited as Les Carlson in this film.

Fun Facts

• The tagline for this film is, "Be afraid. Be very afraid". This is an actual line of dialogue spoken in the film by Geena Davis' character.

Recommendations

1980s horror films

Aliens An American Werewolf in London Beast Within, The Bride of Re-Animator Child's Play Children of the Corn Chopping Mall Cujo Dolls Evil Dead Fly, The Fly II, The Friday the 13th Friday the 13th Part 2 Friday the 13th Part 3 Friday the 13th Part 4: The Final Chapter Friday the 13th: A New Beginning Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan Fright Night Halloween III: Season of the Witch Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers Hell Night Hellraiser Hellraiser II: Hellbound Howling, The Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf Howling III: The Marsupials Howling V: The Rebirth Humanoids from the Deep Jaws 3-D Jaws: The Revenge Lost Boys, The Nightmare on Elm Street, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors, A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child, A Omen III: The Final Conflict Poltergeist Poltergeist II: The Other Side Poltergeist III Pumpkinhead Puppet Master Razorback Re-Animator Return of the Living Dead Return of the Living Dead II Serpent and the Rainbow, The Scanners Shining, The Shocker Silver Bullet Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, The Thing, The Warlock Zombie High

1980s Sci-fi films

2010: The Year We Make Contact Aliens Battle Beyond the Stars E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial Flash Gordon Fly, The Fly II, The

Galaxy of Terror Not of This Earth Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi Terminator, The Xtro

Sci-fi/horror films

Alien Aliens Alien³ Alien: Resurrection Alien vs. Predator Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem Curse of the Fly Ghosts of Mars Hollow Man Hollow Man 2 Predator Predator 2

Predator, The Predators Prey Prometheus Species Species II Species III Species: The Awakening Thing from Another World, The Xtro Xtro 2: The Second Encounter Xtro 3: Watch the Skies

External Links

The Fly at AMG The Fly at IMDB The Fly at Wikipedia The Fly at Metacritic The Fly at Popcorn Pictures

The Fly at Themoviedb.org The Fly at Horrormovies.org The Fly at Rotten Tomatoes The Fly at Obscurehorror.com The Fly at Classic-Horror.com

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