Martin Brundle (Eric Stoltz), the son of a scientist who accidentally mixed his DNA with a fly’s, is raised by corporate CEO Anton Bartok (Lee Richardson) as a science experiment. Martin, unaware of his past, grows to adulthood in five years and starts a relationship with Beth Logan (Daphne Zuniga). Then, his dormant mutations become active, and he begins to transform.
The Fly II exists in a world where the political right has taken control of the nation. Does it say that in the film? Nope. But it is the only way to explain Veronica Quaife not rushing to the nearest abortion clinic after being impregnated by a fly-man. Without a theocratic soldier on every corner, would any woman bear an insect baby (particularly after seeing how messed up the father was)? This new conservative reality also accounts for the power of corporations (that can hold people prisoner within their fortified walls), and the lack of education, as the film is filled with dim people. The scientists and doctors are barely literate and have never heard of words like containment or objectivity. The members of the security force all have control issues. And the CEO’s business model includes world domination merely by having the “secret” of a fly-man.
So, in this setting of people making stupid decision after stupid decision, The Fly II presents a 1950s-syle monster movie. The bad guys are evil for no better reason than to be evil. The monster is improbable even given the altered universe (Martin is super-intelligent; did he get that from his fly chromosomes?), but does run amuck and kill folks. The love interest is a love interest because she’s of the correct gender and is in the right place; there is no other reason for the two characters to get together. And that’s all there is. Don’t look for depth, meaning, or intricate plot. There’s some gore in the form of a squashed head and an acid dissolved face, a barely acceptable puppet creature, and a mutated dog that looks like a squished Muppet. On that simple level, it’s not a bad way to spend an hour and a half.
It follows David Cronenberg’s far more interesting 1986 ode to flesh, The Fly, which was a remake of the 1956 The Fly. That film had two sequels, Return of the Fly and Curse of the Fly.