When he acquires a different kind of show for his station, a sleazy cable-TV programmer begins to see his life and the future of media spin out of control in a terrifying new reality.
The almost-human son of "Brundlefly" searches for a cure to his mutated genes while being monitored by a nefarious corporation that wishes to continue his father's experiments.
After developing an addiction to the substance he uses to kill bugs, an exterminator accidentally kills his wife, and becomes involved in a secret government plot being orchestrated by giant bugs in a port town in North Africa.
Seth Brundle (Jeff Goldblum), a brilliant but eccentric scientist attempts to woo investigative journalist Veronica Quaife (Geena Davis) by offering her a scoop on his latest research in the field of matter transportation, which against all the expectations of the scientific establishment have proved successful. Up to a point. Brundle thinks he has ironed out the last problem when he successfully transports a living creature, but when he attempts to teleport himself a fly enters one of the transmission booths, and Brundle finds he is a changed man. This Science-Gone-Mad film is the source of the quotable quote "Be afraid. Be very afraid."Written by
Mark Thompson <mrt@oasis.icl.co.uk>
There is a limit, even to the imagination, where our greatest creations meet our deepest fears. Doctor Seth Brundle is about to go beyond that limit...and he's bringing you for the ride. See more »
Geena Davis wasn't acting when Jeff Goldblum's right ear falls off and her reaction in the film was genuine and she was genuinely shocked when it was filmed and David Cronenberg kept the take of Geena Davis's reaction in the film. See more »
Goofs
The common housefly has a chromosome number of 12, humans have 46. The combined organism Brundlefly would not have lived long or lived at all. Organisms that have mismatched chromosomes are stillborn or miscarried. Compounding errors during cell division results in death. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Seth Brundle:
What am I working on? Uhh... I'm working on something that will change the world, and human life as we know it.
See more »
Crazy Credits
The background for the opening titles consists of an optically distorted, swirling mass of colors, which gradually transform into the opening shot of the film. This is a representation of how biologists believe a fly's vision would appear to a human. See more »
Alternate Versions
There is a deleted scene of Brundlefly putting the surviving baboon & a cat in the telepod at the same time. The baboon evolves into a catlike creature. This scene is talked about in a book called "Men Makeup & Monsters" by Anthony Timpone. See more »
I think that this is a grossly underrated film - a noteworthy landmark in modern horror. I would expect nothing less than excellent from my favourite director Cronenberg, and this doesn't disappoint. Goldblum's performance is particularly good as the nervy scientist Brundle, but I think the main reason for the film's achievement is its structure - very subtle, very well made. Most of the action takes place in the last third of the picture, but there is a great suspense building up to that point. And the special effects are jaw-dropping - Brundle's hideous transformation is reminiscent of Lynch's 'The Elephant Man'. This film has a reputation for being unnecessarily gory, which is actually not at all true. It is a very intelligent picture, about love and other issues as much as horror, and a must-see for anyone.
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I think that this is a grossly underrated film - a noteworthy landmark in modern horror. I would expect nothing less than excellent from my favourite director Cronenberg, and this doesn't disappoint. Goldblum's performance is particularly good as the nervy scientist Brundle, but I think the main reason for the film's achievement is its structure - very subtle, very well made. Most of the action takes place in the last third of the picture, but there is a great suspense building up to that point. And the special effects are jaw-dropping - Brundle's hideous transformation is reminiscent of Lynch's 'The Elephant Man'. This film has a reputation for being unnecessarily gory, which is actually not at all true. It is a very intelligent picture, about love and other issues as much as horror, and a must-see for anyone.