WARNING!!!POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!! It's a well-known fact that a rivalry has existed between New York and Hollywood, virtually since the first images flickered across a large screen, and that the myth has always been upheld that good movies can only be made with any sense of professionalism or competence in L.A. If F/X didn't finally put that lie to rest, then no other film would, but we all know how that turned out...
A Hitchcock-flavored vehicle for hot Aussie heartthrob Bryan Brown, his charm, good looks and machismo are used to maximum advantage to portray special effects whiz Rollie Tyler, who is hired to stage a murder by the guys at Witness Protection, to enable former gangland kingpin Nicholas DeFranco to testify before a Grand Jury against his one-time associates. In the finest tradition of anything the Master of Suspense ever did, special effects are used as a metaphor for all of the characters and situations that Rollie encounters throughout the film. Nobody turns out to be exactly who or what they appear, most of all, Our Hero...
Brown does a great job with the lead, but the most remarkable and enjoyable part of F/X is the support he gets from some of the finest actors to ever walk across a stage, or in front of a camera. Brian Dennehy gets one of his first breakout roles as the cantankerous but canny detective Leo McCarthy, who is one of the first people to navigate the twists and turns of what's happening (eagle-eyed viewers will remember his role as Chevy Chase's partner in the '70's comedy/mystery FOUL PLAY); seasoned stage vet Jerry Orbach (TV's LAW AND ORDER) makes a fine cad as mob boss DeFranco; Mason Adams (TV's LOU GRANT) and Cliff De Young are also terrific as the not-so-intrepid government guys.
Diane Venora (WOLFEN) gives a much more fleshed-out portrayal of Rollie's actress/girlfriend Ellen Keith than what was probably on the script page, and Martha Gehman as Rollie's assistant/sidekick Andy gives a quirky, naturalistic performance that would seem out of place anywhere else, but works fine here.
Even the bit parts are rendered by some of the best character actors to be plucked from the Big Apple's talent pool: Jossie De Guzman, (whose on-screen chemistry with Dennehy would be criminally wasted in the so-so sequel); Joe Grifasi as McCarthy's partner, Mickey; Roscoe Orman as Leo's gruff boss, Capt. Wallinger (from CTW's SESAME STREET, believe it or not, the same company that would produce Morgan Freeman); M'el Dowd, Trey Wilson (RAISING ARIZONA and A SOLDIER'S STORY) and Tom Noonan (MANHUNTER, ROBOCOP 2). Even future leading lights Angela Bassett and James Pickens Jr. (X-FILES, THE PRACTICE) put in some early appearances.
With all this rich casting, plus a great script by Greg Megginson and Bob Fleeman, taut direction by New York-based vet Robert Mandel and a fantastic Bill Conti score, F/X predicted a long and prosperous future for many more Manhattan Projects.
And though the effects technology seems dated now, the tricks of the trade, which were state-of-the-art for the time, were supervised by John Stears. Name not familiar? John was one of the many effects people who cut his teeth on a little independent film you may have heard of, called STAR WARS. And makeup designer Carl Fullerton would go on to apply his talents to many films, including some of the FRIDAY THE 13TH sequels, (probably the best part about those.)
A highly recommended piece of movie entertainment.
A Hitchcock-flavored vehicle for hot Aussie heartthrob Bryan Brown, his charm, good looks and machismo are used to maximum advantage to portray special effects whiz Rollie Tyler, who is hired to stage a murder by the guys at Witness Protection, to enable former gangland kingpin Nicholas DeFranco to testify before a Grand Jury against his one-time associates. In the finest tradition of anything the Master of Suspense ever did, special effects are used as a metaphor for all of the characters and situations that Rollie encounters throughout the film. Nobody turns out to be exactly who or what they appear, most of all, Our Hero...
Brown does a great job with the lead, but the most remarkable and enjoyable part of F/X is the support he gets from some of the finest actors to ever walk across a stage, or in front of a camera. Brian Dennehy gets one of his first breakout roles as the cantankerous but canny detective Leo McCarthy, who is one of the first people to navigate the twists and turns of what's happening (eagle-eyed viewers will remember his role as Chevy Chase's partner in the '70's comedy/mystery FOUL PLAY); seasoned stage vet Jerry Orbach (TV's LAW AND ORDER) makes a fine cad as mob boss DeFranco; Mason Adams (TV's LOU GRANT) and Cliff De Young are also terrific as the not-so-intrepid government guys.
Diane Venora (WOLFEN) gives a much more fleshed-out portrayal of Rollie's actress/girlfriend Ellen Keith than what was probably on the script page, and Martha Gehman as Rollie's assistant/sidekick Andy gives a quirky, naturalistic performance that would seem out of place anywhere else, but works fine here.
Even the bit parts are rendered by some of the best character actors to be plucked from the Big Apple's talent pool: Jossie De Guzman, (whose on-screen chemistry with Dennehy would be criminally wasted in the so-so sequel); Joe Grifasi as McCarthy's partner, Mickey; Roscoe Orman as Leo's gruff boss, Capt. Wallinger (from CTW's SESAME STREET, believe it or not, the same company that would produce Morgan Freeman); M'el Dowd, Trey Wilson (RAISING ARIZONA and A SOLDIER'S STORY) and Tom Noonan (MANHUNTER, ROBOCOP 2). Even future leading lights Angela Bassett and James Pickens Jr. (X-FILES, THE PRACTICE) put in some early appearances.
With all this rich casting, plus a great script by Greg Megginson and Bob Fleeman, taut direction by New York-based vet Robert Mandel and a fantastic Bill Conti score, F/X predicted a long and prosperous future for many more Manhattan Projects.
And though the effects technology seems dated now, the tricks of the trade, which were state-of-the-art for the time, were supervised by John Stears. Name not familiar? John was one of the many effects people who cut his teeth on a little independent film you may have heard of, called STAR WARS. And makeup designer Carl Fullerton would go on to apply his talents to many films, including some of the FRIDAY THE 13TH sequels, (probably the best part about those.)
A highly recommended piece of movie entertainment.