F/X & F/X 2 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

F/X & F/X 2 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 7, 2022

Robert Mandel's "F/X" (1986) and Richard Franklin's "F/X2" (1991) arrive on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include excursive program with Robert Mandel; archival featurettes; and vintage promotional materials for both films. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for each film. Region-A "locked".

The magic man

F/X

Special effects technician Rollie Tyler (Bryan Brown, Cocktail, Full Body Massage) is approached by federal agents and offered $30,000 to stage the execution of crime boss Nicholas DeFranco (Jerry Orbach, Prince of the City), who has recently agreed to testify against the mafia. If Rollie "kills" DeFranco in public, the Justice Department will be able to fool his former associates who really want him dead and keep him alive until it is time for him to go to court.

At first Rollie refuses to get involved, but later on he changes his mind and opens up his bag of tricks. He "kills" DeFranco using first-class special effects in a chic restaurant, but something goes terribly wrong and the crime boss really dies. Shortly after Rollie contacts the men who hired him, someone also tries to kill him.

Meanwhile, Lt. Leo McCarthy (Brian Dennehy, First Blood) begins asking questions and realizes that Rollie’s staged execution of DeFranco is only a very small piece in a very big play with plenty of important players.

Robert Mandel’s F/X is a fast and very entertaining thriller with some great performances from a very solid cast. The film looks a bit dated, but it is still as charming as it was some twenty seven years ago.

The first half of the film reminds of Andrew Davis’ The Fugitive. Rollie is alone, running for his life and trying to figure out how to prove that he is innocent. After he identifies his opponents, however, the film moves into a slightly different territory where the action is more important than the suspense. Some of the most entertaining sequences in the entire film are right here.

The second key character in the film is Leo, the old-fashioned cop. He does not like what he is told and alone tries to assemble the scattered pieces of the puzzle Rollie is a part of. Leo’s clashes with his colleagues makes this film look appropriately raw.

The finale is very well done. In a large mansion, Rollie shows why he is considered the best in the highly competitive visual effects business and proves that he is innocent. (Some of his tricks may look a bit dated now, but I assure you that when the film first came out a lot of people, myself included, were quite impressed with them).

Brown, a terrific Australian actor who sadly isn’t as active as he used to be, is outstanding as the special effects technician who does not know who to trust. Dennehy also impresses as the feisty cop would not mind risking his job and pension to expose the men responsible for DeFranco’s murder. There are also notable cameos by Cliff De Young (The Hunger), Mason Adams (TV’s Lou Grant), and the beautiful Diane Venora (Heat).

F/X was lensed by acclaimed Czech cinematographer Miroslav Ondricek (Milos Forman’s Loves of a Blonde, Taking Off, Amadeus).

In 1991, Brown and Dennehy reunited for the sequel of F/X, F/X2. The second film was directed by Australian filmmaker Richard Franklin (Road Games, Psycho II).

F/X2

Rollie Tyler (Bryan Brown) still makes ends meet as a magic man, but this time he is in the toy business. In his studio, he designs and prepares sophisticated toys capable of doing things that sometimes amuse even his new girlfriend, Kim (Rachel Ticotin), with whom he has started a family. Even though the money isn’t great, he loves his job and the freedom that comes with it.

When Kim’s ex-husband, Mike (Tom Mason), who is a cop, asks Rollie to help him and his colleagues catch an elusive killer, he reluctantly agrees. Soon after, they set up a trap for the killer in a posh apartment, but even though Rollie is in charge with the trickery a lot goes wrong and Mike is killed. Rollie then accidentally discovers that the ‘awful accident’ was an inside job that has accomplished its goal, and while trying to uncover the identity of the people behind it somehow gets involved with mafia guys pursuing some stolen golden medallions crafted by the great Michelangelo. Old friend Leo (Brian Dennehy) unexpectedly reappears to help him stay alive and his mission.

Richard Franklin’s film has most of the classic flaws that plague poor sequels, though it is probably unfair to describe it as that kind of a misfire. One of these flaws is the ambition to outdo Robert Mandel's original film while essentially mismanaging most everything that worked well in it. As a result, in Franklin’s film the narrative is a lot more complex, Rollie’s magic tricks more advanced, and the characterizations more exotic. But more does not always equate better, and this is precisely why Franklin’s film begins to stutter almost immediately after the wrong killer goes after Rollie.

Another one of these classic flaws is the attempt to improve the likability of Rollie and Leo while mishandling their compatibility. In the original film the two connected as well as they did precisely because they were too different and for a long period of time suspicious of each other’s intentions, so the new chemistry that they are expected to legitimize now quickly begins to feel very, very artificial.

Then there is the massive amount of trickery that the film clearly struggles to accommodate. Even though some of Rollie's new magic is in fact more entertaining, there is simply too much of it, leaving the impression that in many areas a lot happens simply to create the right opportunities for it.

When all is said and done this sequel, which came out five years after the original film, is unlikely to gravely disappoint anyone that found Rollie’s previous troubles entertaining, but it is awfully difficult not to describe as instantly forgettable. It just feels like it does a range of things from a pre-approved checklist.

F/X & F/X 2 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in their original aspect ratios of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted 1080p transfers, F/X and F/X2 arrive on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

BLU-RAY DISC ONE - F/X

I picked up this double-disc set because I hoped that it might offer better technical presentations of F/X and F/X2, both of which were previously made available as individual releases by Kino Lorber. Unfortunately, each disc offers an identical presentation with the same ranges of limitations and issues.

For example, even though on this release F/X is properly encoded in 1080p, it looks every bit as flat and anemic as it does on the old Australian release, which was encoded in 1080/50i. Additionally, I expected to see proper gamma levels, but as you can tell from the screencaptures we have included with our review, they are off again. The current master cannot support a proper grain structure as well, so if you view F/X on a larger screen, you will see daylight and darker footage that tends to have a very shaky video-esque appearance. Image stability is good, but fluidity can be a lot better. A few small blemishes can be seen, but there are no distracting large cuts, debris, damage marks, warped or torn frames to report. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

BLU-RAY DISC TWO - F/X2

Like the individual release of F/X2, this release offers a presentation of the film that is even weaker than that of the original film. Simply put, the master that was used to source it so old and has so many different limitations that a lot of the visuals do not have acceptable delineation, density, and depth. The nighttime visuals can be particularly disappointing because the grain routinely collapses there and turns into conventional video noise (see example in screencapture #21). The gamma levels are off again and with the weak color reproduction the dynamic range of the visual can be very, very underwhelming (see examples in screencaptures #30 and 33). Image stability is good. There are no annoying age-related imperfections to report. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

F/X & F/X 2 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Both discs have English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 tracks. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for both films as well.

There are no serious anomalies to report in our review. I think that both lossless tracks are very nice and handle the original soundtracks of F/X and F/X2 very well. (If you are an Australian reader and are wondering whether there is a notable difference between the Dolby Digital 2.0 track from the Australian release and the lossless track on this release, the answer is yes, there is). The dialog is very clear, stable, and clean. I don't think that all of this is in any way surprising because even very old masters that emerge from MGM's vaults usually have solid tracks. Can the audio be improved? I am unsure. Yes, there could be some cosmetic adjustments that might strengthen a few spots here and there, but the existing lossless tracks for F/X and FX/2 are very good.

F/X & F/X 2 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

BLU-RAY DISC ONE - F/X

• Interview with Director Robert Mandel - in this exclusive program, recalls how he became involved with F/X and what it was like to work on it. There are some quite interesting comments about Rollie's effects as well. In English, not subtitled. (14 min).

• The Making of F/X - an archival program with short clips from interviews with Brian Brown, special effects consultant John Stears, and Robert Mandel, as well as raw footage from the shooting of the film. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• Trailer One - a vintage trailer for F/X. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Trailer Two - a vintage trailer for F/X2. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

BLU-RAY DISC TWO - F/X2

• Making of Featurette - this archival program features clips from interviews with Richard Franklin, Brian Brown, and Brian Dennehy, as well as well as raw footage from the shooting of the film. In English, not subtitled. (7 min).

• Trailer One - a vintage trailer for F/X. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Trailer Two - a vintage trailer for F/X2. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

F/X & F/X 2 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Even though Richard Franklin's sequel is a pretty average film, it is good to have it next to Robert Mandel's film. Unfortunately, MGM's masters for these films are very, very old and have all sorts of different limitations that ultimately make them unsuitable for Blu-ray. Indeed, both films can and should look very vibrant and attractive, but at the moment their visuals routinely remind of video material. Should you pick up this double-feature release if you already have the individual releases of F/X and F/X2? No. The new discs could have been encoded differently to fix a few things, but they are not.