Before I get started, I would like to thank my good friend Ellen Giai Gianetto for providing two pieces of artwork. I highly recommend checking out her site, www.ellengiagianetto.com to see more of her artwork.
Like
many of his fellow filmmakers, Brian De Palma has regarded Alfred Hitchcock as
an influence on his films. Released in 1981, “Blow Out” tells the story of a
sound technician, played by John Travolta, who becomes a witness to a car
accident and rescues a young woman, Nancy Allen. As he was recording sounds, he
captures the accident via audio and trouble follows. De Palma has brought us
many classics such as “Carrie”, “Scarface”, “The Untouchables”, “Mission
Impossible” and many more. In the supporting cast, John Lithgow plays a
psychopathic assassin who is one step ahead of them. What follows next is a journey into suspense.The late great Vilmos Zsigmond photographs some of the best looking shots that gives it an almost dreamy atmosphere. As a fan of the paranoia thriller genre that includes “Klute”, “The Parallax View”, “The Conversation” and “Three Days of the Condor”, “Blow Out” is a flawless masterpiece in my opinion. It shows De Palma’s style and storytelling devices that allude to Alfred Hitchcock. Aside from being a thriller, the film also becomes a metaphor to filmmaking itself from Travolta’s character. This is also is where the line blurs between reality and fiction. For a fun fact, the film’s title is homage to “Blow-Up”, a film from the 60’s that I can discuss later.
The performance of John Travolta as Jack Terry is one of his finest and we get to see the action from his point of view. He plays a sound technician for a small movie studio that produces low budget slasher films and provides them all kinds of sound effects. In a scene where he takes out Sally, he reveals his past ranging from happy to tragic moments. Nancy Allen also does a great job in the role of Sally, a passenger caught up in the accident. Like Jack, she is also haunted by her past and the two of them have great chemistry. Each time they are on screen, they have good banter. Then there is Dennis Franz as a sleazy photographer who is acquainted with Sally and John Lithgow as pretty much the definition of pure evil as a contract killer.
The performance of John Travolta as Jack Terry is one of his finest and we get to see the action from his point of view. He plays a sound technician for a small movie studio that produces low budget slasher films and provides them all kinds of sound effects. In a scene where he takes out Sally, he reveals his past ranging from happy to tragic moments. Nancy Allen also does a great job in the role of Sally, a passenger caught up in the accident. Like Jack, she is also haunted by her past and the two of them have great chemistry. Each time they are on screen, they have good banter. Then there is Dennis Franz as a sleazy photographer who is acquainted with Sally and John Lithgow as pretty much the definition of pure evil as a contract killer.
The
film opens with a nearly four minute voyeuristic steadicam shot of what appears
to be a generic slasher film. It is revealed humorously that it is a film that
Jack is working on. If you thought you were going to watch a horror film about
a stalker killing beautiful college girls, just wait till the shower scene. In a way, De Palma could have poked fun at the rise of slasher films with their over the top violence and gratuitous sex. This is how we are introduced to Jack, laughing when the scream of the girl halts the screening
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJu-jcfFxAE&t=68s
If you
have not seen the film, I highly recommend seeing it before reading further.
In
between are some terrific scenes that follow Jack making a film using pictures
from a tabloid magazine. Using the sound he recorded to carefully
assemble a short film using stop motion. It shows his expertise in the craft of it and
where the line starts to blur. Near the beginning, the screen splits between Jack and
the television that shows political turmoil. As the film progresses, they cross paths with each other as Jack begins to grow an obsession over the audio tapes. Being a cinephile from a young age, I have often thought about making a film. This scene will always stick with me when I think about this film.
Another scene features the camera doing a 360 degree in Jack’s office when it becomes evident that someone erased not only the accident recording but also for his entire office. I felt like I was experiencing what he was feeling as the camera just keeps spinning. The craft of the scene is better with the white noise in the background, letting us hear what he hears. On the Criterion blu-ray, De Palma gives an hour long interview with filmmaker Noah Baumbach. He talks about how he was on top of the set with Zsigmond as no one could be in the shot.
Making the Film
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3u5sAz3_AwQ
Another scene features the camera doing a 360 degree in Jack’s office when it becomes evident that someone erased not only the accident recording but also for his entire office. I felt like I was experiencing what he was feeling as the camera just keeps spinning. The craft of the scene is better with the white noise in the background, letting us hear what he hears. On the Criterion blu-ray, De Palma gives an hour long interview with filmmaker Noah Baumbach. He talks about how he was on top of the set with Zsigmond as no one could be in the shot.
Making the Film
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3u5sAz3_AwQ
360 Degrees
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cjURzWLsks
The
direction and pacing of this film is on top notch. It hypnotizes you from the
beginning and eyes glued by the climax when Jack has to race against the clock. However, the ending displays a grim tone that might have contributed to its negative reception upon release. Over the years has helped the film found its audience and more than one viewing makes the film more fun to watch. One thing I forgot to mention is the fantastic score by Pino Donaggio, who has done six films for De Palma. Ranging from "Carrie", "Dressed to Kill", and "Body Double". He has also done Nicolas Roeg's "Don't Look Now", which is another favorite film of mine. If you are looking for a film that is less than two hours, I will guarantee that you will not be bored this one.
