F/X2



F/X2 (also known as F/X2: The Deadly Art of Illusion) is a 1991 American action thriller film directed by Richard Franklin and starring Bryan Brown and Brian Dennehy. It is a sequel to the 1986 film F/X. This was Franklin's final American film before he returned to his native Australia.

Plot
Rollie Tyler (Bryan Brown) is asked by his girlfriend's ex-husband, a cop, to use his special-effects expertise to help catch a serial killer. However, when things go wrong and the cop is killed, he begins to suspect a setup and corruption within the police department. He calls on the help of his friend Leo McCarthy (Brian Dennehy) to investigate the death and they discover the trail leads to an old case involving stolen gold medallions that have been missing for decades. The antagonists mean to retrieve the stolen Medallions and return them to their proper owner, the Catholic church. At the same time, an unknown assassin is trying to kill Rollie and his family in an attempt to destroy all evidence of the murder.

Cast

 * Bryan Brown as Roland "Rollie" Tyler
 * Brian Dennehy as Leo McCarthy
 * Rachel Ticotin as Kim Brandon
 * Joanna Gleason as Assistant DA Liz Kennedy
 * Philip Bosco as Lt. Ray Silak, NYPD
 * Kevin J. O'Connor as Matt Neely
 * Tom Mason as Mike Brandon, NYPD
 * Dominic Zamprogna as Chris Brandon, Mike's Son
 * Josie de Guzman as Marisa Velez, Police Computer Expert
 * John Walsh as Rado
 * Peter Boretski as Carl Becker, Medallion Thief
 * Lisa Fallon as Kylie, Model for Decoy
 * Lee Broker as DeMarco
 * Philip Akin as Det. McQuay
 * Tony De Santis as Det. Santoni
 * James Stacy as The Cyborg

Critical reception
The sequel was not as successful as the first film. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a "rotten" score of 31% from 13 reviews. Roger Ebert gave the film two stars out of four and said, "There should be a special category for movies that are neither good nor bad, but simply excessive. [...] F/X 2 is actually the kind of movie that rewards inattention. Sit quietly in the theater and watch it, and you will be driven to distraction by its inconsistencies and loopholes. But watch it on video, paying it half a mind, and you might actually find it entertaining."

Box office
The movie debuted at No. 1.