F/X - MURDER BY ILLUSION is a likable comedy thriller from the 1980s that feels a little like SHORT CIRCUIT for adults at times. That's because the film is based around the special effects industry, with main star Bryan Brown playing a top-rate FX artist drawn into a sinister murder plot involving a top gangster.
Brown begins the film by being set up and then forced to go on the run from the police, led by Brian Dennehy sporting one heck of a fuzzy moustache. Fun comes from Brown using his special effects expertise to fight the villains, with various illusions, pyrotechnics, and disguises brought into play. And fun is what this film is all about. It's not meant to be taken seriously, just to be enjoyed.
Brown was always a likable character and he makes good on his protagonist role here; the perfect choice for the part. Dennehy has little to do but act gruff in the clichéd cop role. There are smaller parts for LAW & ORDER actor Jerry Orbach in a cast-against-type role and Tom Noonan underutilised as a henchman. The film is fairly violent in places but nonetheless has a family friendly feel to it with a number of chases and shoot-outs as well as plot twists to keep you on your toes. It was successful enough to spawn a sequel made five years later.
Brown begins the film by being set up and then forced to go on the run from the police, led by Brian Dennehy sporting one heck of a fuzzy moustache. Fun comes from Brown using his special effects expertise to fight the villains, with various illusions, pyrotechnics, and disguises brought into play. And fun is what this film is all about. It's not meant to be taken seriously, just to be enjoyed.
Brown was always a likable character and he makes good on his protagonist role here; the perfect choice for the part. Dennehy has little to do but act gruff in the clichéd cop role. There are smaller parts for LAW & ORDER actor Jerry Orbach in a cast-against-type role and Tom Noonan underutilised as a henchman. The film is fairly violent in places but nonetheless has a family friendly feel to it with a number of chases and shoot-outs as well as plot twists to keep you on your toes. It was successful enough to spawn a sequel made five years later.