The colours don't look quite right, a slight red cast and oversaturated. Otherwise fine. There was a cool sounding bit with a cat. I won't spoil it. Mostly standard procedure otherwise. This is very different to the remake. In some ways more interesting and in some ways worse. The acting is wooden and far less inspired. It is less visceral and more thoughtful. Much better than I was expecting.

"The Fly" is a really cool story which is sort of let down by fairly dull direction. It's never as horrifying as it should be, at least until the end.The plot concerns a scientist who is found crushed by his own machine in a set-piece which is surprisingly bloody for a '50s picture. His wife admits to some involvement, but swears she didn't murder him. In flashbacks, we see the man invent teleportation devices which he uses on inanimate objects and then on animals. We learn that a mishap, perhaps due to this hubristic intrusion into God's realm, has led to the creation of a half-man, half-fly.For much of "The Fly"'s run-time, I appreciated its story, but not the way it was told. Vincent Price, that actor of inimitable voice and bearing, does not, in fact, play the fly-man. His role in the movie is hard to account for. I understand that the audience might not have been expected to warm to the fly-man, but what about his wife? Could she not have been relied on to carry the movie, while at the same time providing a channel for pathos? I can't believe I'm having a hard time justifying Vincent Price's participation in a movie. It's not like his presence bothers you. It's just hard to explain.Anyway, I was all set to give "The Fly" a seven out of ten. That is the rating I give to good movies which fail to hold my attention throughout due to pacing issues, or poor direction. Then I saw the ending, and what an ending. That will prove hard to forget, and was genuinely horrifying. Hence I would give "The Fly" seven-point-five out of ten, if IMDb would let me.

This is one of those movies that most any fan of the horror genre has some acquaintance with, even if they have never seen the movie. The final shot in this movie is so legendary that it has been shown repeatedly in horror movie countdowns and anthologies and imitated in pop culture. As time travels on, though, and the younger generations get further removed from this decade, I find that a lot of my horror fan brethren have never seen the original, other than that final shot, or are much more familiar with Cronenberg's remake (which is also excellent), but this is shame because this movie is a gem that needs to be seen and appreciated.The movie starts off at the finale, with our "hero" being killed by his wife. The police start investigating what could cause this housewife to snap and murder her husband and, so, the majority of the movie plays in flashback as the events leading up to this death are revealed. This opening kill scene is very notable for the amount of bright red blood that is poured all over the press in which our hero dies. The film is a contemporary of the beginning of Hammer horror and much like those movies would have shocked audiences at the time. Horror films were just starting to be created in color, really, and no one showed this amount of blood. Yes, it seems tame compared to what we see on crime TV nowadays, but it was an important step in horror evolution to show gore like this.It seems our scientist hero has developed a way to teleport matter. One of the things that stands out so much is how likable that scientist is in this movie. Most of the mad scientists in horror history were unstable, or just plain maniacal, but David Hedison, as our hero, is "nice guy" who may not spend as much time with his family as he should, but it's clear he's devoted to them. His wife is, for most intents, the "main character" of the movie and it is through her eyes that the viewer sees the events unfold. Patricia Owens plays this character with a great amount of talent. She is loving and devoted when needed, but plays concerned, to stressed out and finally a woman on the verge of collapse, until she must carry out her husband's final wishes, leading to another shade of emotion where we get to see her emotional detachment (which may or may not be a ploy). The other great actor in this movie is, of course, Vincent Price. He plays the scientist's brother, secretly in love with his sister- in-law, but a man who loves his family. It's a refreshing role for Price as he does not play the hammy villain in this one, but rather the "straight man" trying to put together the pieces of the scientific mystery.Back to our experiments, which are bound to go wrong. Surely any fan of pop culture knows the twist, in which our hero's particles are mixed with those of a house fly, causing a monstrous mutation. At first, we see only the scientist shrouded in hood to keep his secret hidden, but slowly the director reveals more of the mutation, until a stunning reveal shot, complete with "fly's eye" camera shot. I can't imagine to know what this shot would have been to a 50s audience, but it still stands up today and is one of the best moments in the film. From here, the movie revolves around finding the fly that caused this mess so they can attempt to undo the accident, until we finally get to the tragedy that begins the movie. This movie should never lose its' place in history and should be required viewing for anyone claiming to be a student of horror history. It earned its' p;ace in the horror pantheon.

(Halloween 'Horror' Reviews #12)The Fly is one of the most dignified and refined science fiction thrillers in the entire 1950's, the heyday of the genre. Its slow, laid back pace and well constructed dialogue turns the film into more of a sci-fi drama than a horror. However the film marketed itself as a horror, and it continues to be held in the same regard as the other horror films of the time.As a drama, the film excels. Its acting is very good all around, with Vincent Price turning in a wonderful performance, demonstrating the genuine dramatic weight he possessed. It's also got a nice slow pace, allowing the audience to take in the fairly heavy and serious ideas the film presents. Finally the film has significant emotional weight, particularly in its third act. It honestly gets quite heavy and asks some evocative questions at this point in the film.Aside from the films dramatic pursuits, it also functions as a solid sci-fi film with a horror edge. The set design is excellent, specifically the lab set, and there are some creepy ideas on display. I would argue that the film shouldn't really apply as a true horror (it rarely even tries to scare the audience), however it succeeds in presenting some sinister visuals on occasion. Overall I feel the producers mistook the film's intentions. It really isn't a horror film, however if accepted for what it is (a superb science fiction drama about families the horrid results of a small mistake) it is very strong.