Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
A movies special effects man is hired by a government agency to help stage the assassination of a well known gangster. When the agency double cross him, he uses his special effects to trap the gangster and the corrupt agents.
F/X is a clever, high-concept thriller that uses its premise—a special effects artist turning his craft into real-world survival tools—with genuine inventiveness. The novelty is its strongest suit: the meta-cinematic hook of movie magic deployed against corrupt agents is distinctively executed and rarely replicated. The plot is solid genre entertainment with satisfying twists, though it loses some steam in the second half. Bryan Brown and Brian Dennehy deliver capable, likable performances without quite transcending genre conventions. Cinematography is workmanlike New York location shooting—functional but unremarkable. The ending delivers a satisfying payoff that honors the film's central conceit without overreaching.