#181: The Fly

The Fly (1986)
Directed by David Cronenberg
Written by Charles Edward Pogue
Based on the short story by George Langelaan
Starring Jeff Goldblum, Geena Davis, John Getz

Cronenberg is hit and miss. His pseudo-sexual thrillers (Crash) and some of his really early work (Scanners) are pretty awful. Even his adaptation of The Dead Zone is weak. Critics seemed to like it but other than Christopher Walken's performance I don't see what was so good about it.

Cronenberg was able to generate enough buzz though with his early films to get a bigger budget this time around and stars who at the time were up and coming fresh faces. Oh Goldblum where art thou?

No real story around this one when I think of it, it's just a good horror movie that hits all the hyperbolic notes. Who wouldn't want to watch a movie about an obsessed scientist who accidentally mutates into a giant fly-man (man-fly?) when tinkering with his nifty matter transporter? In fact who wouldn't want his own matter transporter? Sure if something as tiny as an insect jumps in with you, you're likely going to suffer some horrible mutation, but that's worth the risk as far as I'm concerned.

It could be different anyway, because this is just a movie. In real life I imagine there would be no awful side-effects, only the bliss of having superpowers should my body mix with the DNA of a fly or spider perhaps.

Okay, it's a pipe dream but super powers regardless of the terrible and inevitable repercussions are a dream to any comic or film geek, guaranteed. See by the time Star Trek is set, science has reached a point of near perfection so the matter transporters don't destroy every particle of your body accidentally. You just have to hope you don't get transported inside a rock.

Now a dream of mine for years and Drew can attest to this is the eventual development of rocket boots and my inevitable acquisition of said rocket boots. Super powers are one thing but what side-effects would rocket boots have? Only one. Greatness.

The technology is not researched or perfected enough and with the use of rocket fuel it's doubtful one would get very far with these boots in the initial prototype. I am ready, willing and able to test rocket boot technology. Any government out there with a rocket boot development program would do themselves a favour by bringing in this strapping young lad and fellow rocket boot enthusiast.

Eagerly I will await my day in (or near...natch!) the sun. Who wants to turn into a fly anyway? Certainly not after seeing poor Brundlefly in action.