F/X

This is very much an 80's action flick. It's got the tough cop who doesn't play by the rules. The unexpected hero. Car chasing, shoot-outs, and a theme song concocted to perfectly match with the movie it's for running over the end credits. Not every last one of those are good, though they tend to be entertaining. Fortunately, this one is both. And quite original and creative, too. Brown stars as Rollie Tyler, a special effects genius who is hired to help fake the death of a mobster, Orbach, who's going into a witness protection program. However, something goes wrong, and our lead now believes that he accidentally did kill him. The plot holds several surprises and twists, and it's carefully written enough to keep you guessing, without being pretentious or overly difficult to follow, and the pieces of the puzzle fit together nicely after you've seen them all. This has great pacing, it never slows down or is in a hurry. The suspense is quite excellent, and you may find yourself on the edge of your seat numerous times. This is 100 minutes of pure fun, and it never fails to deliver. The humor almost invariably works. Acting ranges. This has incredibly memorable moments, and dialog you can quote. The DVD only holds a theatrical trailer. I recommend this to any fan of this type of film, and/or anyone involved in making it. 7/10

I had this movie on my Instant Queue for a long time and never watched it for some reason. Anyway I just got done watching it and loved it! It was way better than I expected. I saw it had a 6.5 before I watched it so I thought it would be good, but it was really good to my surprise. The idea was original and exciting. If you haven't seen it the story is a Special Effects guy is asked by the government to help fake a former Mob members death so the Mob stops going after him. It turns out that wasn't the whole story and Roland(The main character) is in for a wild ride. It keeps you thinking and it actually has a good bit of action.

If you have not seen it go watch it, I promise you will like it.

F/X is a movie I had been hearing about for years, so I finally buckled down and rented it, and I was pretty surprised. It's a good, suspenseful movie with nice effects, a decent story, and some good performances (except for the girl who plays the effects assistant, though she's not on-screen a lot). Bryan Brown plays Roland Tyler, a freelance special effects artist who seeks revenge after some shady Justice Department guys set him up to be the fall guy in a staged execution they had hired him to pull off. Brian Dennehy doesn't enter the film until nearly forty minutes into the picture, but once he does, he's as good as always, even if his character just sort of moves from place to place and effortlessly picks up clues along the way. I would have liked to seen the two stars have more scenes together, but they never even meet up until the final scene of the movie. Cliff DeYoung does his usual weasel villain, though he mysteriously vanishes from the film without explanation, and Jerry Orbach is good in a supporting role as the mobster whose execution is staged. The effects used by Tyler aren't as spectacular as I had thought they would be (disguises to avoid police, smoke bombs, fake blood, etc.), but they're used effectively. F/X is an entertaining little movie with a fair amount of suspense and some good action. Oh, and what I wouldn't give to have that home security system Tyler has inside his front door. The sequel's not bad either.

I missed this movie when it was originally issued, and after all I read and heard about "Cocktail" (in which Bryan Brown starred a couple of years later) I had no desire to seek it out. But upon just surfing to cable's AMC channel one weekend morning, and finding it having just begun - I watched for a couple of minutes and found myself absorbed in it. After looking at some of the previously-posted comments in this section of IMDb, during commercials, I was even more interested.

First, my regard for Brown is heightened. Anyone married to Rachel Ward, for 23 years, has to have a lot going for him - even beyond what you see on-screen. And actors with British/Australian accents all provide effective "men-on-the-run, harried, danger-beset" characterizations. The acting here is all good. The late Trey Wilson, as Denehy's unctuous NYPD colleague evokes memories of his small-but-key, scene-stealing roles in "Twins" and "Raising Arizona." Cliff De Young, as the even more unctuous pursuer/would-be killer of the endangered Brown, could (from this and prior roles) be Hollywood's solution to replace Dabney Coleman as the quintessential, smarmy, "horse's ass," now that Dabney is getting well-along in years. As with all his roles, Mason Adams gives a good performance - but I can never watch him without expecting that any moment he is going to take a Smucker's jar from his pocket and begin a spiel.

Brian Dennehy is always fun to watch, and his "gruff-but-still-likable" persona was never better-suited to a role than here - he's the only one (except for one assistant) who has a clue, literally and figuratively, of the shenanigans occurring and besetting poor Rollie (Brown). Give this film a solid "8." Enjoyed the final minutes and the ending. I'm looking forward to getting a copy of the sequel.

"F/X" is a underrated little movie from the 80's , that I believe deserves some kind of recognition. It manages to entertain with drama, humor, and thrills. It's a lot of fun. I wouldn't call it an action movie. I agree there is some action here , but personally I think this movie is more of a thriller.

The idea for the story is very original - a special effects expert gets involved with a police and mafia . "F/X" is a great love letter for all those special effects guys (and girls) that were some kind of magicians in the past , when computers weren't involved in creating the movie magic.

"F/X" feels like "Home alone" for adults. The whole movie is basically Rollie Tyler using his skills and toys against his enemies. Bryan Brown ("Cocktail") is great as Rollie , the main hero .He's got a down to earth, normal guy attitude that makes us like him. There is also another Brian - Brian Dennehy ("Rambo : First blood ") as the smooth-talking detective, Leo McCarthy. He's a good supporting character , the only one that suspects what is going on.

The special effects are good. It's not strange , since this movie is a tribute to the movie wizards that help us make our dreams come true (at least on the screen). Action scenes are done well . The acting is good. There are nice twists and good ideas are along the way . There's a great song at the ending credits of the movie - Imagination " Just an illusion".

"F/X" inspired a television show of the same name starring Cameron Daddo and also a nice sequel. It's a good , fun movie. It shows that originality means much . I miss the 80's movies with their originality...

I give it 7/10.