Hooptober 9 - 2/2 insect films

This is not exactly what I expected but now I understand why this is a lot of people’s favorite film while others aren’t left quite as enchanted. The story/plot is a little too thin for its lean runtime and the ADR is a crime against audio engineering. Punch-up lines that are added in in post-production despite no mouth movement at that time to even imply speech or sound as well as the sound not being synced to lip movements…ugh, stuff like is just hard for me to forgive and those are the reasons this isn’t a perfect film for me. Had the ADR even been close to lining up, I’d probably let this slide as a perfect film but it holds it back because it’s too distracting for me.*

You feel at home with Cronenberg’s signature style of ~weird~. It’s a great reinterpretation of a b-movie and we end up with a b-movie underneath Cronenberg’s serious and dry as a bone comedy intermixed with the horror elements. We end up with a creature feature unlike any I’ve seen (okay The Thing & An American Werewolf in Paris, & hell, even Gingersnaps are gnarly too but this is relentless) and Jeff Goldblum does a great job, showing a range of his acting I’m sadly unfamiliar with as his characters are usually fairly restrained and meant to evoke himself playing a character more than being able to look past him so he can embody a character. In The Fly, he plays so many roles within one and yet they’re all believable with unique tweaks here and there to differentiate his stages, both physical and mental. He is grotesque in his form which is a physical reflection of his grotesque behavior, most crucially when it comes to Veronica and the end of their tumultuous relationship. Cronenberg’s use of sexual parallels was perfectly suited for the film and he used them well, weaponizing (biological) males against one another. It’s primal and feral but lucid and thus lends itself to the nefarious and evil side of humanity. Geena Davis was great within her role, despite its limited scope. I was disappointed with how quickly they moved through Veronica & Seth working together to achieve Seth’s “victory”. I felt they also moved too quickly and to be able to really get emotionally invested in their relationship so as we witness the beginning of the end of it, in addition to the breakdown of humanity between them and within Seth, there’s more of an emotional disconnect than needed. As Seth succumbs to his fuck up, Veronica is left with the horror of knowing what occurred and that she contributed to it. That being said, she doesn’t take ownership at any point but I think that had she not come along, it’s questionable as to whether the same result would have occurred, or if it occurred at all without her participation. We see that Seth’s newfound confidence and love breed such pitiful jealously that he ruins himself with it (a lá Mr. Brightside with a panic attack about what Veronica may be doing with her ex).

I like that Cronenberg makes it clear that everyone has been tainted and traumatized, that the incident isn’t just an accident but that it has real consequences. Modern consequences and treatment that made for interesting social commentary for the time and crowd. Anyway, I’m rambling and repeating myself (much like the movie does at times) but I do so without purpose and thus end this review by saying this is the best body horror I’ve seen to date and that this is a must see film for those that can handle icky shit. Truly impressive practical FX handled with love, cheeky dry humor, and a heart full of passion to create something that would disturb viewers for generations. They didn’t fail in their endeavor, even though these things have been repeated, it seems that they are taking inspiration from this film, not ripping it off. What a legacy for both David Cronenberg and especially for Chris Walas. Such a talented film. Oh I forgot I was supposed to stop rambling so I’ll act like an old movie and abruptly end here. Roll credits.

*I should note that I have a degree in audio engineering and although I do nothing with it, it’s the reason ADR and other sound issues really stick in my craw and are so difficult for me to ignore. I also have generally poor hearing—probably should’ve put that together before getting a useless and expensive piece of paper but despite all of my moments of regret in life, if given the opportunity to go back to a few moments in time and kick my own ass, this would certainly be a moment I’d be sure to revisit.