Despite its undoubted appeal, Jeff Goldblum It has been difficult to place him as a leading star in Hollywood. It hasn’t been for lack of trying, like when he took over the leadership of the Jurassic franchise in ‘The Lost World (Jurassic Park)’, but clearly that role doesn’t fit an interpreter as particular and meticulous as he is.
That does not mean, of course, that he does not have great moments as a leading actor. There is a very clear example, where he can develop his character actor tics and provide the necessary pillar to sustain a movie as powerful as it is quirky. We speak, of course, of ‘The fly‘, the masterful work of David Cronenberg that we can now enjoy on Disney +.
Evolution or involution?
In the 1980s, interest in re-adapting the horror classic by Kurt Neumanfrom 1958, especially with John Carpenter facing his own version of ‘The Thing’. It was Mel Brooks who tried to carry out the production, although keeping his name hidden so as not to give the wrong impression of the project. His first choice to direct, mind you, was busy trying to pull off Total Recall: David Cronenberg.
But the Canadian ended up falling out of that project, and Brooks had lost the option he had promised at that time. It was almost a quirk of fate, and Cronenberg transformed the script to make it a house brand nightmarecentered on a scientist researching a method of teleportation, using himself as a guinea pig to experiment.
The process takes an unexpected turn, with a fly entering the capsule it was in, combining its genetic materials and starting a process of transformation that is not very clear if it falls under evolution or involution. The physical and mental deformation of the character is pure classic material from Cronenberg’s work. and the new meat, so it’s understandable that it takes so much juice out of the material.
‘The fly’: when the remakes come out better
What especially distinguishes ‘The fly’ from other of his works is how focuses more than ever on the tragic aspects of history, making it one of his most strangely emotional films. To this contribute a beautiful soundtrack of Howard Shore and how they sell the emotional core of the leading couple of Jeff Goldblum and Geena Daviswho essentially share the leading role in the story.
Goldblum in particular gives himself body and soul to show the remarkable changes his character undergoes throughout the film. His bizarre tendencies give precisely the special charisma to the film that manages to sell all its grotesque and terrifying component. An absolute triumph that manages to shine more than its predecessorbeing with Carpenter’s one of those clear cases where the remake triumphs over the original.