FX - Murder By Illusion [DVD]

Product Information

Movie special effects expert Roland "Rollie" Tyler is hired by the Department of Justice to stage the murder of Mafia informant Nicholas DeFranco. They did not want to hire an action director, [3] but instead wanted a director who would bring a realistic touch to the film and make the audience care about the main character having been impressed with Mandel's direction of actors in Independence Day. Celebrity Paradox: The Rambo films exists in the film's universe, evidenced by the poster for the second film in Rollie's apartment.

Jump Scare: Rollie has a latex movie monster set up to leap at his door while a recording of the monster's roar is played, whenever somebody comes in. DeFranco shoots out several windows in Mason's study and Rollie falls through one of the windows, appearing to be dead. Rollie retreats to his girlfriend Ellen's apartment, but she is killed the next morning by a sniper, whom Rollie kills in a fight.Stuff Blowing Up: The opening prologue of the sequel starts off with a cop car failing to blow up on cue, only for the effects team to do so just after the director chews them out.

Always a Bigger Fish: The plot of the sequel kicks in when a third party kills both the ex-husband of Rollie's girlfriend and the killer he was going to catch at the same time during a sting operation. It contains fights and shootouts and big chase scenes, but they're all firmly centered on who the characters are and what they mean to one another. Lighter and Softer: The PG-13 sequel is this to the R-rated original film, due to less profanity, gore and violence.With Brown’s uncharismatic hero backed up by the king of hammy 80s concepts Brian Dennehy’s lumbering, interesting cop-on-the-case, and enough plot twists and reversals to keep you going, this is probably more satisfying as a video item than it ever was in the theatres. Set a Mook to Kill a Mook: In the climax of the first movie, Rollie deals with Mason's mooks by using special effects tricks to make them kill each other while trying to kill him (for instance, by making a reflection of himself appear to a mook who shoots at it and kills another mook who was standing behind it). Principal photography began in the spring of 1985 in New York City, with additional filming taking place in nearby Orange, New Jersey and Rye, New York.

F/X: Murder by Illusion is a 1986 movie starring Bryan Brown and Brian Dennehy about a special effects designer who gets dragged into a criminal conspiracy. It stands out with a slick basic idea developed to a proper script that offers twists and surprises all the way to the end, but luckily not as much as "Mission: Impossible" did. Decoy Protagonist: In the first film Ellen seems like a typical love interest and a sidekick, but is shot by a sniper 30 minutes in. it works a little too well, as the killer and the person used as bait are both taken out at the same time by a third party. Before he dies of heart failure, Mason takes from him a key to a Swiss safe deposit box containing the funds DeFranco stole from the Mafia.He contacts Mason, who is shocked by Lipton's actions and instructs him to wait for other agents to take him to a safe location; however, another man thought to be Rollie is killed by the agents, proving that Mason is trying to kill him too. Using an elaborate phone setup, Rollie lures Lipton out in the open and kidnaps him in his official car, taking him on a rough ride in the trunk to get Mason's address out of him. The world of movie make-believe meets the gritty New York crime scene in this taut and clever suspense movie. Mason tries to bribe Rollie by giving him the key, proposing that they split the money, but Rollie refuses and puts his gun down.

S. Department of Justice to stage the murder of a mobster about to enter the Witness Protection Program, but complications arise when he is targeted for murder himself; meanwhile, an NYPD detective becomes suspicious of the circumstances of the case. I recorded this on Sky Sony channel in 2017 and it is just a great movie, I have to fast forward the adverts however which is annoying so I will be purchasing this classy film on Dvd as I have also bought the sequel which is surprisingly just as good as the first movie. The Department of Justice hires him to stage the murder of a gangster about to enter the Witness Protection Program. In his review for The Globe and Mail, Jay Scott wrote, " F/X is simply out to give a good time, which it does superbly".Chekhov's Armory: Any and all special effects equipment that is shown at one point in either movie will come in to play by the end for more than Rollie's work. However, when the Mafioso kingpin goes missing for real, it is the SFX man who is collared for his murder. s witness protection program to use his special effects skills to fake the death of notorious mob boss Nicholas DeFranco ( Jerry Orbach). Justified as the crew behind the film's effects were also responsible for the robotic effects in Short Circuit and Class of 1999, with a skull from the latter being seen among Rollie's belongings as an Easter Egg. Rollie Tyler, Hollywood's best special effects man, is commissioned to execute a murder that can only be carried out through the use of his incredible skills.