Review of Blow Out (1981) by Pablo V — 26 Nov 2009

An evident theft for anyone who has seen 'Blow Up' or 'the Conversation', De Palma leaves the viewew with another unoriginal hacky picture with mature directorial techniques that are all but forgoten amongst the crappy and predictable dialouge and the even more predictable outcome of this film.

There are some redeaming qualities of this film, notably Travolta's mediocre but acceptable performance and the interesting shots at the beggining of the film when Travolta's character is finding found sound and records the actual 'blow up'.

The rest of the picture you are left searching for any sort of verisimilitude or involving element as woman after woman is killed by a character played by the usually decent John Lithgow without anyone noticing in the busy streets of New York, including the audience who has probably passed out from boredom long before these events start happening.

The 'idea' of catching a mystery in a sound bite was done so much more tastefully in Francis Ford Coppola's 'The Conversation' which was released 3 years earlier and clearly had an impact on De Palma, who seams to need these sort of 'inspirations' to write his 'own' material.

This idea was also ripped off, including half its title, from the Antonioni film 'Blow Up' which is basically the same film with better acting and a focus on photography and the Italian Neo-Realist tradition rather than the hacky 80's hollywood tradition of this film.

Add in a horrendous synth based soundtrack and you have yourself a unwatchable film, laden with the quality idea's of other directors. No wonder this was a huge flop. YOU SUCK DE PALMA.