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DVD Review HTF REVIEW: The Fly - Collector's Edition (1 Viewer)

WillG

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Jan 30, 2003
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7,563


Has to be "The Game." if there is any hint you can give without "confirming"........

I would also like to throw my thanks in to David for "The Fly" Truly a Special Edition in every sense of the words. I just finished the commentary and "Fear of the Flesh" Not an uninteresting moment in the whole package.

I watched "The Fly II" today also. It was an excellent presentation as well. Despite the dubiuos quality of the movie itself.
 

Chris-F

Auditioning
Joined
Jun 17, 2005
Messages
13
David,

I'd just like to take this opportunity to thank you for an absolutely amazing effort. This release has immediately shot into my top 5 DVDs of all time.

"Fear of the Flesh" is a fantastic documentary. I actually watched it with my Father, who introduced me to the film itself when I was only 6. So it was nice to be able to show him that. Thanks.

The Deleted Scenes, I love. I agree with Greg about the pacing and the editing, and it does make sense that they were ultimately removed. But as they stand, they look and feel great. The musical choices surprised me, I didn't think they would work so well, but they do.

As for the Photo Galleries and other bits, well, I would have paid the price of the DVD for them alone. Again, great.

One question I have for you, and it's by no means a quibble. How much material did you have that was actually left off of this disc? I know there are bits, such as the shot from the trailer where Stathis Borans shouts "I want to know what's going on!" to Veronica (I won't say Ronnie, or Roni to save myself the trouble of taking sides).

Was there anything you would have liked to include but didn't have the time or space? Just a curiosity.

Thanks again,
Chris
 

David Prior

Insider
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Sep 28, 1999
Messages
165
Hello Chris,

Thank you so much for the kind note. And as for the Roni/Ronnie question, I really don't care. Let's just say it's a typo and call it a day.

The one thing, the only thing, that I miss from the disc is the participation of Howard Shore. I was desperate to get him involved, but he was on a round the world tour with the Lord of the Rings concerts (hadn't that stuff had enough play already?) and couldn't or wouldn't take the time. He's a brilliant composer and The Fly is still among my two or three favorites of his work and without him, the disc will always feel a tad incomplete, even though I'm very proud of it and think it's the best work I've done in DVD.

Otherwise, there were lots of other little snips of dialogue that I would have liked to include, but you have to bear in mind the fact that almost none of the original production paperwork has survived. No editor's logs, no continuity script, nothing. All I could do was look at the scene number in the script and hope that there was a mention of it on the dailies roll, and if there was, track the edge code numbers back to the original negative, which more often than not didn't match anyway, due to lab mistakes in the '80s. It was like trying to find a missing person without knowing their name or what they look like. Every snippet of deleted material was the result of either a hard-fought battle or a stroke of ubelievable luck and at some point, you have to start prioritizing.

I'm very glad you like the disc.

Best,

David
 

Chris-F

Auditioning
Joined
Jun 17, 2005
Messages
13
David,

Thanks.

I have one quick last question, and that's about a Menu on the DVD. Hope you don't mind. On the Menu for the Commentary there is a very quick tilt down over a file featuring a drawing of the telepod and some notes. Did you write these notes yourself or where they something you found from the set. I know there were a lot of files and papers in Brundle's lab. Do you know what the notes said, or is there a raw copy of the Image you could perhaps post?

Thanks again for your prompt response. I appreciate it. Rest assured that I more than like the disc. I love it, and I look forward to your next production.

Best wishes,
Chris
 

David Prior

Insider
Joined
Sep 28, 1999
Messages
165
Hi Chris. Nothing like hand props from the set exist anymore outside of whatever some crew members might have swiped back in 1986. The papers in the menu were bits of dressing created by the good folks at Drissi Multimedia specifically for the menus. They weren't designed to withstand scrutiny; they're just liitle bits of graphic filligree.
 

PaulP

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2001
Messages
3,291
Agreed, one of the best Special Editions, which is actually Special! Speaking of menus, why are they 4:3?
 

Christian Preischl

Screenwriter
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Oct 11, 2001
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Christian Preischl
PaulP, all the menus are 16:9. Funny you should mention it though. I checked out both discs on my PC with PowerDVD 4, and while the menus for the bonus disc were anamorphic, the ones on the film disc were displayed in non-anamorphic widescreen.

On my stand-alone player however, both discs' menus are displayed correctly in anamorphic widescreen!

Never had that happen before which is kinda weird.

Chris
 

PaulP

Senior HTF Member
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Oct 22, 2001
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That's what I meant. I didn't play it on a stand-alone player, since I mostly watch DVDs on my HTPC, and my stand-alone player is connected to a 4:3 TV.
 

David Prior

Insider
Joined
Sep 28, 1999
Messages
165
It's immensely gratifying that you all appreciate the disc. I take my work very personally (maybe too personally), especially on this one, so the encouragement is really meaningful.

Doug, I watched the doc again this weekend on my 60 inch TV and I have to say I didn't see anything unacceptable about the image. Apart from a certain degree of unavoidable compression artifacts, I thought the interview footage looked quite good. The only caveat I'll make is there were three interviews (Bierman, Spier and Sanders) which I wasn't able to shoot personally, since they were out of the country, and they weren't shot 16x9, so those interviews are a tad softer than the others, but I didn't see anything like what you describe. Can you be more specific? What equipment are you playing back on?

Best,

David
 

Greg K

Second Unit
Joined
Nov 6, 2001
Messages
414
The image quality is a little soft, but nothing terrible. In fact, it kinda adds to the whole "sick gray fear of the flesh" feel to the whole piece!

I must say, this is, all in all, a really fantastic release.

Still little things keep nagging at me...

The first page of Pogue's script is missing (not the title page, the first story page, which describes a spider about to eat a fly and which introduces/describes Barb Powell).


Also, I thought at first that the baglady scene as presented in the Deleted Scenes section was missing the intro paragraph that describes the baglady (as it appears in the Sept. 5th, 1985 draft I have). But, in checking out the rewrite script on the disc, that's missing, and there's just a bunch of "omitted"s between the end of the leg amputation and the baglady scene as it appears in the Deleted Scenes section.

The script as it appears on the disc also has a few oddities. I have reproductions of the Sept. 5th and Nov. 1st scripts, and the DVD version combines elements of both, with a few new twists.

Strangely, the baglady scene doesn't appear at all in my Nov. 1st script, yet it's on the DVD. Also, in the Sept. 5th script, Brundle and Ronnie do indeed have sex before the "poetry of the steak" scene, but in the Nov. 1st script, he avoids her advances and winds up leaning onto the circuit board. She then takes his shirt off and dabs the wound with alcohol.

The DVD version has it both ways. They're "naked and have been making love", but then Brundle injures himself and somehow Ronnie is still able to take his shirt off after that. Hmmmm.


The ending in the DVD version's script is also one I hadn't seen before. It's close to the final film, but the Brundlething dies at Veronica's feet on its own.


I also noticed that in the Fear of the Flesh version of the leg amputation scene, where we see Goldblum perched on the roof, he shouts "No!" once, then we cut to the shot of the back of his head. In the version presented in the Deleted Scenes section, we see him shout "No!" twice in that first shot, then cut to the back of his head.

The result of this is that the audio of his sixth and last "No!" is in sync with his mouth in the Fear of the Flesh version, but slightly out-of-sync in the actual Deleted Scene. Huh.


Still, there's an overwhelming amount of good things to say about this sucker. I can't be grateful enough!
 

TheBat

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Aug 2, 1999
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3,117
Real Name
Jacob
david:
are you doing the dvd of a history of violence? I wonder if the Q&A from the comic con for a history violence will be on the dvd? I was the one that asked about the fly question at the end of the program?

JACOB
 

dpippel

Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems
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Doug

David - Sorry for not getting back to you. I had surgery on my shoulder yesterday and am a bit under the weather right now. To add insult to injury I'm right-handed and it's my right arm that's out of commission, so typing is a real PITA until ambidexterity sets in. I'll be back in a couple of more days with the info I promised.
 

Mikel_Cooperman

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Jan 16, 2001
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Real Name
Mikey
I havent received my disc yet but am eagerly awaiting it.
Question, are there new interviews with Geena Davis and Jeff Goldblum talking about the film?
 

Vincent-P

Second Unit
Joined
Jan 19, 2004
Messages
337
David,
I have a question. What is the deal with Robert Bierman's glasses? It was really confusing me while watching his interview. I've never seen any like that before. Does he have something wrong with one eye or does he just wear those glasses for style?
 

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