Production Year: 1986 - Thriller - Director: Robert Mandel - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Bryan Brown, Brian Dennehy, Diane Venora, Cliff De Young, Mason Adams more
Rollie Tyler, a special effects expert, famed for his work on horror movies, is approached by a director to work on his latest movie. When they meet to discuss the job, Rollie discovers that the director is in fact a federal agent wanting to employ him to help with a case. They want him to use all his special effects knowledge to stage the fake death of a former gangster who has agreed to turn state evidence against other crime bosses.
Agreeing to do the job, Rollie sets about creating a staged shooting in a busy restaurant, even agreeing to be the gun man so that no one knows the truth. But when things seemingly go wrong, Rollie finds himself being set up for the murder and being pursed by not only the police but some very dubious underworld characters. Not knowing who he can trust, he has to rely on his own expertise with special effects and his knowledge to try and clear his name before time runs out.
When this film was released back in 1986, it was triumphed as something original, in reality it wasn't that original, but the way the plot is explored is very entertaining, especially for film fans. The basis is a pretty standard detective movie, with the lead character being framed for a murder, but placing the story in the realms of movie making and in particular, the world of the special effects expert, provides for numerous enlightening and very entertaining scenes. The opening sequence which comes across as a bloody killing in a bar, turns out to be a scene on the set of a movie, and sets the pace for the whole movie, as you are never entirely sure what is real and what is staged. This 'misdirection' is one of the key elements to the success of making this thriller better than most from the 80s, as even after all these years it still manages to lead me into believing that something or someone is one thing, then in a later scene the truth is shown, and you are left thinking how did I miss that. Of course there are some gaping holes in the plot, but in reality you don't notice these unless you sit there and examine every word and character to any great length.
The main focus of the film is the character of Rollie Tyler played by Bryan Brown, and is another of the key elements as to why this film is better than others. The character of Tyler is an individual, totally different to the usual run of the mill characters which appear in thrillers. Although he becomes the victim, he never looses the strength of character which is built very quickly in the opening few scenes. The character is perfect for Bryan Brown, who has always played strong enigmatic characters in all his films from The Thorn Birds to Cocktail. Opposite Brown is Brian Dennehy as cop Leo McCarthy, who manages to befriend Rollie whilst on the run. Although Dennehy plays the part really well, the character could have been pulled out of any detective thriller from the last 3 decades. You could pretty much guess the sort of lines he would speak even before he opened his mouth. The same goes for all the other main characters, from Rollie's tomboy assistant to the nasty gangster played by Jerry Orbach. All of which are well played but you sit there thinking that you have seen them somewhere before, in another movie. The shining light is easily Bryan Brown and without him this film would just fade into being another 80s detective thriller.
Directed by Robert Mandel, FX - Murder by Illusion was packed full of interesting and innovative techniques but sadly these are now run of the mill and seem somewhat inadequate compared to today's movies. Saying that, his ability to use the world of the special effects to tell the story but still leave some mysticism about it is truly ingenious. Especially as it allows for the movie to twist and turn at a reasonable pace and every now and then throwing you in a completely different direction. The soundtrack like the film, is packed full of the synth sounds that were the main stay of movies in the late 80s and at times is highly distracting. But in general it fits nicely against each of the scenes.
After 20 years FX - Murder by Illusion has sadly become very dated and compared to modern films it looks like a straight to DVD release. But getting past the dated soundtrack and 80s fashions, the film remains one very compelling thriller which still has enough about it to keep you gripped for its duration. A lot of this is down to the enigmatic acting of Bryan Brown who always manages to entertain with his tough characters and straight talking. On top of this, the insight into the world of special effects is highly interesting especially for a film fan, but may be lost on someone who finds this less than appealing. Although I still enjoy this film it will sadly not be everyone's cup of tea and although available on DVD, I would recommend to most people to either rent it or wait for it to appear on TV before buying it.
Director: Robert Mandel Producer(s): Dodi Fayed and Jack Wiener Writer(s): Gregory Fleeman & Robert T. Megginson
Bryan Brown .... Rollie Tyler Brian Dennehy .... Leo McCarthy Diane Venora .... Ellen Cliff De Young .... Lipton Mason Adams .... Col. Mason Jerry Orbach .... Nicholas DeFranco Joe Grifasi .... Mickey Martha Gehman .... Andy Roscoe Orman .... Capt. Wallenger Trey Wilson .... Lt. Murdoch
Technical Details ============
Year of Release: 1986 Duration: 109 mins Certificate: 15 Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Production Year: 1991 - Thriller - Director: Albert Hughes, Allen Hughes, Tim Burton, Julian Schnabel - Original Language: English - Classification: 18 years and over
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