Review of Blow Out (1981) by Georges C — 07 Dec 2007
A fantastic but flawed thriller combining elements of Antonioni's "Blow Up" and Coppola's "The Conversation". The main weakness here is Nancy Allen. Never the greatest actress, her likeability carried her through the role of the plucky hooker in "Dressed to Kill" with reasonable success; in "Blow Out", as a sweet and ditzy make-up artist, she's just plain bad, although, to be fair, she does improve as the movie progresses.
The bleak ending, though nicely ironic, offers ample evidence of De Palma's cruel streak and his contempt for audience expectations. Shot by Vilmos Zsigmond, the film looks great, and the crucial scene where Travolta makes his sound recording of the accident, featuring some lovely deep focus 'scope shots with super-size animals in the foreground, is a classic.
This review of Blow Out (1981) was written by Georges C on 07 Dec 2007.
Blow Out has generally received very positive reviews.
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