Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

Sarita Rafferty There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Jemima It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

julienpinault 'Blow Out' is a 1981 thriller written and directed by Brian De Palma. The film stars John Travolta as a sound recordist for movies who becomes involved in a dangerous conspiracy after accidentally recording an alarming piece of evidence. De Palma's ion in the story is evident on screen, which came to him while working on the sound for his previous film 'Dressed to Kill.' He has crafted a riveting, unique piece of suspenseful filmmaking, especially for those interested in the medium. You can see De Palma's appreciation for sound design, lingering on recording instruments in striking closeups as we see Travolta carefully do his work. There is a scene in which his character 'Jack Terry' explains to Nancy Allen's character what he does for a living. She is initially confused, and precedingly fascinated, as if she never realised sound was actually designed for movies. It is clear De Palma must have had personal experience with a situation similar to this, and it adds to the sense of realism in the film. During sequences where we see the sound design process, the audience is treated with respect. The actions are not explained and we must therefore watch carefully, as the character is, what is happening. As you watch you feel as if you are learning secrets of moviemaking, which is one of the best aspects of the film and very rare in films today. The style of the film escalates the unique story, which is slightly inspired by Michelangelo Antonioni's 1966 film 'Blow-Up,' in which a murder may or may not have been witnessed and recorded in a London photographer's work. De Palma's fresh take on the story oozes style. Vilmos Zsigmond, cinematographer of 'Close Encounters of the Third kind' and 'The Deer Hunter' elevates the style of the film with rich, almost surreal images within a fairly grounded, realistic story. These surreal images with creative uses of lighting-a particular shot which stood out to me was one in which the camera is positioned inside a motel room, facing Travolta's character who sits by the window at night, listening to the fateful recording. The rain on the window pane is illuminated from what is presumably a car's light from outside, giving the rich red colour of blood. Combined with a blue curtain behind Travolta, a colour representative of anxiety, the shot reflects the state of his mind at that moment. There are frequent uses of colour throughout, with neon lights almost giving the feeling of a neo-noir film. A staple of the cinematography of De Palma's films is the split-focus diopter lens. It is a half convex second lens which is attached to the initial lens which allows areas of the background and foreground to simultaneously be in focus. The eye is not used to seeing this kind of image, so it may almost create a sense of anxiety due to its heightened surrealism. It is used in several scenes, most notably in the sound recording scene where it builds tension effectively with incredible shots involving owls and frogs in the extreme foreground, with Travolta in the background. It is also used to amplify John Ligathow's chilling performance, especially when he is listening to characters nearby - his face in the extreme foreground, his probable next victim in the background, still in focus. The screenplay is very cleverly written, with the story unfolding to the audience and characters as new information and characters are revealed. The sense of dread gradually increases throughout as everything becomes heightened. However, the ending of the film felt rather rushed and was slightly disappointing. This may be partly due to the fact that two reels of film were stolen of the Liberty Parade sequence and had to be reshot. On the other hand, I am willingly to accept the ending due to the near perfection of the rest of the film.To conclude, 'Blow Out' is a riveting thriller, worth watching if you enjoy the genre and a must-see if you are interested in the filmmaking process or a fan of John Travolta, who gives possibly his best performance.

Alan Smithee Esq. Brian DePalma is an acclaimed director and rightfully so ("Scarface" anyone?) But this seems to be a forgotten classic. This is such a great film. The direction is immaculate, the performances are amazing and the story will keep you guessing. It's like taking a classic Alfred Hitchock premise but mixing it with a heavy dose of the '80's (in a good way). John Travolta's best dramatic role ever.

rcolgan Out of Brian De Palma's entire filmography, Blow Out could easily be his most overlooked. Similar to his other works he plays homage to other classic films (such as Blow Up) in his own stylistic direction, whilst also combining it with cynicism and concluding with one of the most tragically powerful moments of De Palma's entire career. Travolta stars as sound recording artist Jack Terry. He works on cheap exploitation movies and his time is mostly spent gathering sound effects like screams to dub over bad actresses. One night when he's collecting new sound recordings, a car tyre blows out nearby and sends it plunging in to a river. Travolta dives in and rescues a girl named Sally (Nancy Allen) but is unable to save the driver. Later Travolta discovers the driver was a presidential candidate and after reviewing the sound recording becomes convinced that he heard a gunshot before the blow out. As Travolta begins digging deeper a man named Burke (John Lithgow) emerges who's willing to do anything to cover up what happened, even if it means killing even more people to do it. He's a pure sociopath who never shows any remorse for his actions. Beyond this, many others (including the police) also seem to be covering up whatever happened. Travolta is even told after the accident not to tell anybody that the girl was in the car with him. Supposedly this is to prevent distress to his wife that her husband was in an affair, but Travolta can't be sure that there wasn't some ulterior motive to this cover up.Similarly to Francis Ford Coopla's The Conversation, it's this feeling of Paranoia that dominates the majority of Blow Out. It's an extremely pessimistic film that is still reeling from the conspiracies and cover ups that surrounded the likes of Watergate and the Kennedy assassination. These events seem to have shaped Travolta's character to be distrusting of almost everyone around him. Even when somebody does eventually offer to help him out, Travolta remains hesitant and convinced that they're in on it too. And for good reason, since he's never entirely certain of just how large this conspiracy is. De Palma really helps build this paranoia throughout the film through a very voyeuristic style. For example, in one recurring shot we see Travolta from the street looking up at him through a window. This feeling of being watched recurs throughout the entire film and it serves as a constant reminder of the unknown conspiracy that constantly consumes Travolta's life. De Palma also seems to take great pleasure throughout the film in giving us a look in to the filmmaking process. In the introduction of the film then after following a long take from one of the horror films that Travolta's working on (in a shot resembling the introduction of Halloween) we see how he isolates each individual sound and the attention to detail that's required to create even something like a cheap exploitation film. Then later when Travolta is reviewing the recording of the crash we see the lengths that he goes to so he can put together the audio in order to make a solid case to prove his theories. It's an effective attention to detail that really shows a great appreciation to the entire film-making process. Interestingly this film is also the reason that Tarantino cast Travolta in Pulp Fiction and Blow Out is definitely a key example of Travolta at his very best. Throughout Travolta seems so worn down and constantly on the verge, whilst also still successfully creating a very loving and natural chemistry with Nancy Allen. On top of this he really brings a real sense of tragedy to the films climax and really brings home just how grim this world can be.

Leofwine_draca Another solid and stylish thriller from director Brian De Palma, who once again weaves his magic technically with lots of split screen effects, cool use of slow motion and excellent photography. This is a typically well-crafted movie, taut with plenty of suspense, twists and turns and one which keeps you gues until the finale as to the final outcome. All of the elements that made early Brian De Palma films successful are present, from the presence of regular performers Nancy Allen and Dennis Franz filling out roles to the flashy, overblown visuals and excellent command of action (check out Travolta's impromptu jeep chase across town, which wreaks havoc, for an example of the master at work). Although not as darkly horrific as De Palma's previous DRESSED TO KILL, BLOW OUT still contains a number of non-explicit but grisly murders that'll have you shifting in your chair, and the top-notch finale involves more woman-in-peril thrills to great effect.The leading role is taken by a young and handsome John Travolta, still riding high after the success of Saturday NIGHT FEVER. Travolta - although never one of my favourite actors, I have to it - plays his part well and comes across as a dependable heroic character, with none of the overacting that plague more recent parts for the actor. Nancy Allen plays a rather grating ditzy female character who gets caught up in the action yet somehow manages to make herself likable rather than irritating whilst Dennis Franz has a small but fine part as a real slimeball. Kudos to John Lithgow for creating such a memorable character, one of the best in De Palma's filmography. BLOW OUT is a fine example of the thriller genre at its most successful and the unusual plot - in which sound effects are the key - works to its advantage, making it a movie to seek out and watch.