# “Too gruesome”: the 1986 horror remake that Vincent Price felt went too far

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/too-gruesome-the-1986-horror-remake-that-vincent-price-felt-went-too-far/
- Published: 2026-10-31T11:00:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-31T11:19:22+00:00
- Original publisher: Far Out
- Original article: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/1986-horror-remake-that-vincent-price-felt-went-too-far/
- Topics: Entertainment, Horror

## Key points

- Cronenberg’s 1986 The Fly remake made the transformation slow and horrific.
- Vincent Price praised Goldblum’s gesture but found the gore excessive.
- The remake reframed the story around ageing and physical decline.

## Summary

David Cronenberg’s 1986 remake of The Fly turned the original’s teleportation experiment into a drawn-out story of bodily and psychological deterioration. The article calls it one of horror’s strongest remakes, arguing that its new focus on ageing and physical decline gave the creature feature added meaning amid the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Vincent Price, who appeared in the 1958 film as François, praised Jeff Goldblum’s handwritten letter but thought the remake was too gory and lacked the original’s moralising quality. He singled out a scene in which Brundle uses acidic vomit to dissolve doughnuts, while the remake’s effects include mutations, corrosive vomit and severe injuries. The article counters that Cronenberg’s film offers a deeper reflection on physical decline than a simple cautionary tale about scientific ambition.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.