Cronenberg's early films, such as “Shivers” (1975), “Scanners” (1981), “Videodrome” (1983) and “The Dead Zone” (1983), earned him critical acclaim and many fans for their multidimensionality. , philosophical and psychedelic narrative.
David Cronenberg – pioneer of psychedelic horror
His artistic and commercial breakthrough came in 1986 with the film “The Fly”, based on a short story by George Langelaan that first appeared in Playboy magazine in 1957. An earlier film adaptation of this story was made by Kurt Neumann in 1958.
The plot of the film tells the story of scientist Seth Brundle (played by Jeff Goldblum), who tests a teleportation machine. Determined, after successive failed attempts and under the influence of alcohol, he decides to teleport, not realizing that a fly has flown into the capsule with him. This mistake had disastrous consequences when scientists began transforming into human-insect hybrids.
“The Fly” from 1986 became a cult horror film thanks to its hypnotic atmosphere and graphic, shocking scenes typical of Cronenberg. The film won an Oscar for make-up (Chris Walas and Stephan Dupuis) and served as a preview of the future director's original work.