Pssst, want to check out F/X in our new look?
Information
- A.k.a.
- Murder by Illusion
- Year
- 1986
- Runtime
- 109 min.
- Director
- Robert Mandel
- Genres
- Action, Thriller
- Rating *
- 6.7
- Votes *
- 13,614
- Checks
- 842
- Favs
- 22
- Dislikes
- 12
- Favs/checks
- 2.6% (1:38)
- Favs/dislikes
- 2:1
Top comments
-
Siskoid
The idea behind F/X - a movie special effects man is roped into faking a hit on a mobster for the Witness Relocation Program - is a terrific one, and if they'd focused on the con man aspects of the story, I might have been more happy with it. When it turns into a thriller with our boy Rolly (Bryan Brown) on the run from both good and bad cops, it unfortunately veers into some tired clichés, even if he does use effects wizardry to get out of a several tight spots. Part of the problem is that at some point, Brian Dennehy becomes a secondary protagonist, the "one good cop in New York" trying to figure out what's really happening ("one good", but he suffers the most cliché of fates, hand over your badge fella) and those dueling stories prevent what is essentially a fun high-concept action flick from sustaining its momentum. And the ending? Ugh, no. But the premise is a good one as evidenced by the fact there was a second film and a television series I was mildly aware of. 3 years 4 months ago