MOVIE REVIEW : ‘The Fly II’--Get a Swatter

That “The Fly II” (citywide) isn’t called “Son of the Fly” typifies the earnestness with which this lame sequel to the 1986 smash attempts to set a serious tone. But it is “Son of the Fly” and just might have been more entertaining had its makers owned up to that.

As it is, the film becomes faintly silly in its dead-seriousness, then slides into tedium and triteness.

Essentially a bare-bones replay of “The Fly,” it more closely resembles countless other routine sci-fi horror pictures. So much dogged determination, plus considerable technical flourish, have gone into “The Fly II” that it can’t be said to be truly terrible, merely ponderous and uninspired.

If you saw the poignant and oddly poetic 1986 film, you’ll recall that Dr. Seth Brundle (Jeff Goldblum) inadvertently mixed his molecules with those of a common housefly during an experiment in the transmission of matter. Now we’re told that his girlfriend was pregnant and, as the sequel opens, she’s giving birth at an industrial complex whose owner (Lee Richardson) holds the rights to Brundle’s cursed device. The woman dies giving birth to a monstrous creature, but out of its entrails comes a perfectly formed baby boy.

This is not to say that the kid is exactly normal. He’s incredibly brilliant, and his growth, carefully monitored, is so accelerated that by the time he’s 5, he’s played by the grown-up Eric Stoltz. And then there are those still-dormant “aberrant chromosomes. . . .”

It’s easy to see what’s coming; not helping matters is that there is nothing distinctive in the romance that develops between Stoltz and a young scientist at the lab (Daphne Zuniga). Richardson proves to be a stock megalomaniacal villain. Indeed, so much is so dull that the sheer nastiness of Richardson’s bullying, dirty-minded head guard (Gary Chalk) livens things up in welcome--albeit pointless--relief.

“The Fly II” (rated R for much repulsive gore, some sex) is a sleek production, featuring a portentous score and an elaborate sound design, but its makers had better be braced for unintended laughter.