This movie could've been campy, but it's quite emotional thanks to great peformances by Geena Davis and Jeff Goldblum

I was very impressed that Geena Davis and Goldblum played these characters like two real people. Despite all the extraordinary (and yes, sickening) stuff going on all around, it's grounded by their performances. When Geena Davis is choking back sobs over the gradual loss of Seth Brundle, we feel her pain. What could've been campy and melodramatic is actually powerful, heartbreaking and tragic. You'd never expect that in a sci-fi movie about a guy who turned into a fly!

Round of applause to Cronenberg, Davis and Goldblum for maintaining a level of emotional authenticity even in a creature feature/horror flick. It's also why the William Friedkin The Exorcist still works today. They didn't look at this genre and go "Oh, no need to stress yourself out with realistic performances here. You can phone it in for this horror flick."