F/X

November 5, 2016 - A movie special effects whiz gets asked for some real-life help from the FBI and ends up having to use his talents to save himself. The cast of this R-rated flick from 1986 includes Bryan Brown, Brian Dennehy, Cliff DeYoung, Jerry Orbach, and Mason Adams.

Brown plays Rollie Tyler, an Australian import who's handling special effects for a film being shot in New York City. He runs his business out of a bread truck with F/X painted on the side. He also mixes business with pleasure by carrying on an affair with the movie's leading lady.

Everything's going great until FBI agent Martin Lipton (DeYoung) shows up and says the Federal government needs his help. They want him to stage the murder of a mob boss-turned-informant (Orbach) so that he can safely be put into witness protection. Tyler initially says no, but his ego gets the better of him when the FBI says they'll ask his professional rival instead.

Anyway, Tyler carries out the fake hit as planned. But, when the FBI considers him a "loose end" that needs tying up, Tyler must use his special effects skills to save his own life and turn the tables on the bad guys.

Overall review: ** (more like 2.5, but not quite 3). Tyler's resourcefulness makes him a force to be reckoned with. He's able to use whatever he has at hand to get done what he needs to get done. It makes him more than a match for the crooked, too-smart-by-half FBI guys. Overall, the movie holds up well despite a lack of cell phones and pre-Windows computer technology.