A sequel to one of the greatest, most powerful horror films of all time, yet one without the input of original director and co-writer David Cronenberg, was always going to be a hard sell. Unsurprisingly, The Fly II is a disappointment, emerging as a mere exercise in formulaic shocks and little else, as young Martin Brundle (Eric Stoltz) is brought up by the sinister Bartok (Lee Richardson) only to realise his horrendous destiny as dormant genes in his body begin to transform him into a crossbreed of fly and human, just his like deceased father. While reasonably entertaining throughout, this is a sloppy, scrappy film that underwrites its characters, gives them some silly dialogue and then feeds them to the lions in a gory finale that's just like any other in the genre. Stoltz and Richardson are quite good (plus the first film's John Getz makes a welcome return in a cameo role), and there are some effective moments here and there, but this is a totally pointless sequel, one that doesn't even come close to matching the original.