The Fly (1958)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Kurt Neumann

Writers:

George Langelaan (story)
James Clavell (writer)

Release Date:

1958 (Norway)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

If she looked upon the horror her husband had become... she would scream for the rest of her life!

Plot:

A scientist has a horrific accident when he tries to use his newly invented teleportation device.

Plot Keywords:

Fly | Scientist | Inspector | Teleportation | Told In Flashback

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

David Hedison	...	Andre Delambre (as Al Hedison)
Patricia Owens	...	Helene Delambre
Vincent Price	...	François Delambre
Herbert Marshall	...	Insp. Charas
Kathleen Freeman	...	Emma (Delambre maid)
Betty Lou Gerson	...	Nurse Andersone
Charles Herbert	...	Philippe Delambre

Also Known As:

La mosca (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
Öldüren arzu (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
A Mosca (Portugal) [pt]
A Mosca da Cabeça Branca (Brazil) [pt]
De vlieg (Belgium: Flemish title) [un]
Die Fliege (West Germany) [de]
Fluen (Denmark) [da]
Flugan (Sweden) [sv]
I myiga (Greece) [el]
Kärpänen (Finland) [fi]
L'esperimento del dottor K. (Italy) [it]
La mouche (Belgium: French title) [fr]
La mouche noire (France) [fr]

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Iceland:16 | West Germany:12 (f) (re-rated) | West Germany:16 (nf) (original rating) | USA:TV-PG (tv rating) | UK:15 (video rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:X (original rating) | UK:PG (video re-rating) (2001) | USA:Unrated

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

This was such a success at the box office that it became one of Fox's biggest hits of 1958.

Goofs:

Continuity: Just before they go to the ballet, Andre and Helene share a kiss near the telephone in their home. At the beginning of the kiss, both of them had their heads tilted to the right. When the camera zoomed in, they were suddenly tilting their heads to the left.

Quotes:

Andre Delambre: Help me! Help meeee!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Calendar Girls (2003)

A nightmare

The "help me, help meeeee" scene revolted and scared me so much as a young child that it was years before I could see this movie again. Even now I cringe when I witness that nightmarish scene. As good as Cronenberg's movie is (and it is very good), there is nothing that surpasses the delirious horror of the man-fly in the spider's grasp.

Elsewhere, the movie is rather subdued. In some spots, almost too much so. Although the first revelation of The Fly's appearance is another classic spot...the multiple reflections was a great touch. Like all great monsters, the Fly has a very sympathetic edge to it. We are revolted by the horror of this monster but we feel overwhelming pity for him as well.

Vincent Price does a workman-like job in a rather blasé part. Usually he adds a special touch to a film, but really, any number of actors could have played his part here.

The scientific basis of this movie is pure rubbish, as there is no way that insect and human parts could biologically interact with each other. The result of such a mixture would be instantly dead in real life.

But that doesn't matter here. A nightmare has its own logic. And "The Fly" is a nightmare.