F/X & F/X 2: Blu-Ray Review
Both F/X and its’ sequel have been available on Blu-ray for quite a few years, Kino Lorber has finally released them as a double feature set and since I never owned the prior disks, I am very happy about this. I have been a fan of both F/X and F/X 2 since their theatrical releases but until now, never actually owned them. While this was never a major franchise, it did wind up spawning a 40-episode television series the following decade. Truth-be-told, I remember absolutely nothing from the show.
Released in 1986, F/X centered on Roland “Rollie” Tyler (Bryan Brown), a highly sought-after movie special effects expert who has been working in New York. When FBI Agent Lipton (Cliff De Young) approaches Rollie about helping stage a fake public assassination of mafia boss Nicholas DeFranco (Jerry Orbach), the effects master initially turns down the job before agreeing to do it. All it took was Colonel Mason (Mason Adams) saying they will offer the job to Rollie’s competition, to get him to change his mind.
Well, it turns out, Rollie should have gone with his initial instinct because as soon as the job was done, those dirty FBI agents turned on him and he might have really killed DeFranco. Now he might fight to clear his name, while trying to outsmart those who want him dead. The only person who believes Rollie might be innocent is New York cop Leo McCarthy (Brian Dennehy), and while Rollie is just trying to make it out of this alive, Leo is doing his own investigation which leads everyone to the same place for the film’s final act.
While 1991’s F/X 2 is nowhere near as intelligent or as well staged as the first film, it is a more entertaining film at times. The reason for this is because we get a whole lot more Brian Dennehy. The veteran actor didn’t show up until about halfway through the first film. In the sequel, he is pretty much buddied up with Brown’s Rollie. Story wise, it is more of the same. Roland Tyler agreeing to do a job with law enforcement followed by him going against dirty-cops and using his F/X magic to turn the tables on them.
While we were supposed to get a remake more than a decade ago, I am not sure if the idea would have still worked today since most effects work now is digital. It would probably have to be a very tech-enhanced narrative. I am still happy with the original films and if you are fan, this set it worth picking up.
Blu-ray Extras:
- On-camera interview with F/X Director Robert Mandel
- The Making of F/X and F/X 2 Featurettes
- FX and FX2 Theatrical Trailers
- O-Card Slipcase
- Optional English Subtitles
By: Marc Ferman