We always get angry and gripe a whole bunch when a classic and beloved film is rebooted. However, can you get angry about a reboot if it's rebooting a past reboot that was wildly successful, and that same filmmaker is returning? Although he said he'd never return to the world of The Fly, The Hollywood Reporter's Risky Biz Blog reports that David Cronenberg is going to develop a reboot with Fox, direct it and probably write it as well. Yes, dear readers, Cronenberg is returning to The Fly.First we had the 1958 classic from Kurt Neumann, the one that made "Help me! Help meee!" a classic phrase. Then came Cronenberg. With a whole new world of effects, he whipped up the epic 1986 version, where Jeff Goldblum played Seth Brundle -- a scientist whose teleportation attempt goes horribly wrong when a damned fly buzzes about. Of course, those special effects are child's play compared to what Hollywood can do now, and one would assume that's why the Canadian filmmaker is back.
But how should it play out? I would hope that the reboot would be an entirely new and different story, otherwise I'll spend a few hours wishing for more Goldblum. But what if he and Geena Davis came back? This isn't a sports legend or teen story -- a scientist can be a little older. But ultimately -- Can the '80s film be improved enough to make it worth it?
1. Goldblum? We've been there. If Cronenburg wants to revisit this property, he's entitled to; heck, Hitchcock did it. But the same cast? I don't think I'd be interested.
Posted at 10:32AM on Sep 24th 2009 by ML