The Fly 1986 quotes

Seth

Listen. I want you to go through. I want to teleport you. As soon as possible, right now! You'll feel incredible, Ronnie! I hardly need to sleep any more, I feel wonderful! It's like a drug, but a perfectly pure and benign drug! The power I feel surging inside me...! And I won't be able to wear you out! We'll be the perfect couple, the dynamic duo! Come on, right now!

Veronica

Hey, wait! Don't give me that "born-again teleportation" rap! I told you I was scared to do it. What do I have to say?! I'M NOT GOING TO DO IT!

Seth

You're a **** DRAG, you know that?!

Veronica

Something went wrong, Seth. When you went through, something went wrong.

Seth

Help me. Help me be human.

Veronica

How?

Seth

Well, I go there, and you go there. We come apart, and then we come together there. You, me and the baby. Together. [starts the countdown]

Veronica

No...

Seth

We'll be the ultimate family. A family of three, joined together in one body. More human than I am alone.

Veronica

No!!

Veronica

Those weird hairs growing out of your back, I took them to a lab. I had them analyzed.

Seth

The hairs? The hairs? Oh. Yeah, that’s a strange thing to do.

Veronica

Not as strange as the results. The guy at the lab had trouble identifying them. He finally came to the conclusion that they were definitely not human.

Seth

Oh, very good.

Veronica

Not human, Seth. In fact, very likely insect hairs.

Seth

That's silly, that's ridiculous--

Veronica

Look, now there's more. Look at your face... Something happened when you went through, Seth. You've got to get some help, I think you must be sick--

Seth

YOU'RE JEALOUS!! I've become free, I've been released and you can't stand it! You'll do anything to bring me down! Come here, does this look sick? Does this look like a sick man to you?

Veronica

No, stop it!

Seth

Know any sick man who can do that?!

Veronica

We've gotta do this, Seth. Talk to the tape. Get in the habit. The world will want to know what you're thinking--

Seth

"****" is what I'm thinking!

Veronica

Good... The world will want to know that... What else? Why didn't it work?

Seth

I think it turned the baboon inside-out.

Veronica

Why?

Seth

It can't cope with the flesh. It only seems to work on inanimate objects; nothing that's living. Must be my fault.

Veronica

Why?

Seth

Computers are dumb. They only know what you tell them. I must not know enough about the flesh myself. I'm gonna have to learn. [is silent for a moment] I don't wanna talk now.
[Ronnie turns off the camera and sadly watches him leave]

Seth

Okay, okay! Now you're going to like it!

Tawny

I don't want to! [Seth drags Tawny to the lab] I'm afraid!

Seth

Don't be afraid!

Veronica

No. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Seth

I seem to be stricken by a disease with a purpose, wouldn't you say? Maybe not such a bad disease after all.

Veronica

I can't stay here.

Seth

No, no, no! Why not? Why can't you?

Veronica

I can't take it... It's too much.

Seth

What's there to take? The disease has just revealed its purpose. We don't have to worry about contagion anymore, I know what the disease wants.

Veronica

What does the disease want?

Seth

It wants to...turn me into something else. That's not too terrible, is it? Most people would give anything to be turned into something else.

Veronica

Turned into what?

Seth

What do you think, a fly? Am I becoming a hundred-and-eighty-five pound fly? No, I'm becoming something that's never existed before. I'm becoming... Brundlefly. Don't you think that's worth a Nobel Prize or two?

Seth

You have to leave now, and never come back here. Have you ever heard of insect politics? [Veronica shakes her head] Neither have I. Insects don't have politics. They're very brutal. No compassion, no compromise. We can't trust the insect. I'd like to become the first insect politician. Y'see, I'd like to, but...I'm afraid... [groans]

Veronica

I don't know what you're trying to say!

Seth

I'm saying... I'm saying I-I'm an insect who dreamt he was a man, and loved it. But now the dream is over...and the insect is awake.

Veronica

No, no, Seth...

Seth

I'm saying...I'll hurt you if you stay.

Seth Brundle

You're relics. Yes, you are. Vestigial, archaeological, redundant. Artifacts of a bygone era. Of historical interest only. [Notices Veronica] You've missed some good moments. Is that why you're here? To catch up? My teeth have begun to fall out. The medicine cabinet is now the Brundle Museum of Natural History. You wanna see what else is in it?

Seth Brundle

How does Brundlefly eat? Well, he found out, the hard and painful way, that he eats very much the way a fly eats. His teeth are now useless, because although he can chew up solid foods, he can't digest them. Solid food hurts. So like a fly, Brundlefly breaks down solids with a corrosive enzyme, playfully called "vomit drop". He regurgitates on his food, it liquefies, and then he sucks it back up. Ready for a demonstration, kids? Here goes...

Seth Brundle

"Residue" means old boyfriend, doesn't it? Stathis Borans is her old boyfriend. "From the desk of Stathis Borans" - how about "Under the desk of Stathis Borans"? She's working for her old boyfriend. Now she runs out late at night to see him. What is this, the Ronnie game?! I'm catching on, I'm catching on... [As the baboon swats at a fly] I didn't mean to kill your brother. But he didn't die in vain, if that's of any comfort. And, as the General said, "There's nothing I'd ask you to do that I wouldn't do myself, boys." ...Hey, you're all right. From looking at you, I can tell you're okay. What are we waiting for? Let's do it.

Seth Brundle

I was not pure. The teleporter insists on inner purity; I was not pure. A fly...got into the transmitter pod with me that first time when I was alone. The computer got...confused, there weren't supposed to be two separate genetic patterns, and it decided to, erm...splice us together. It mated us, me and the fly. We hadn't even been properly introduced. [Smiles] My...teleporter turned into a gene-splicer. And a very good one. Now I'm not Seth Brundle anymore. I'm the offspring of...Brundle and housefly.

Seth Brundle

I will say now, however subjectively, that human teleportation, molecular decimation, breakdown and reformation is inherently purging. It makes a man a king. From the moment I walked out of the pod, I felt like a million bucks... I mean, what an accomplishment! But what have I really done? All I've done is say to the world: "Let's go! Move! Catch me if you can!"

Seth Brundle

You're afraid to dive into the plasma pool, aren't you? You're afraid to be destroyed and recreated, aren't you? I'll bet you think that you woke me up about the flesh, don't you? But you only know society's straight line about the flesh. You can't penetrate beyond society's sick, gray fear of the flesh! Drink deep or taste not the plasma spring, see what I'm saying? And I'm not just talking about sex and penetration, I'm talking about penetration beyond the veil of the flesh! A deep, penetrating dive into the plasma pool!