MamaGravity good back-story, and good acting

JinRoz For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

Forumrxes Yo, there's no way for me to review this film without saying, take your *insert ethnicity + "ass" here* to see this film,like now. You have to see it in order to know what you're really messing with.

AshUnow This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

LeonLouisRicci A Movie Full of Film Flourishes. The Always Fanciful and Never Shy to Show-Off Director, Brian De Palma, Relishes in the Glory of Film-Making and Makes Love to His Movies. Here He makes another Visually Interesting Picture and the Audio Track is No Side-Bar. It is Present right Beside the Images.John Travolta is a "Sound-Man" for Low-Budget Horror Movies and as He is doing some On Location Recordings, the Tapes Immediately become Central to the Plot. Not to be Upstaged, the Visual Images become just as Important. Travolta Literally Pieces Together Clues to a Crime, uncovers a Conspiracy, and the Chase is On.Nancy Allen Co-Stars as a "Honey Trap" who is in Over Her Head. The Two Encounter Cover-Ups, a Psycho-Killer, Cynical Cops, and Political Corruption in the "City of Brotherly Love" during a Week of Bi-Centennial Celebration.John Lithgow makes quite an Impression with Limited Screen Time. Dennis Franz is Typecast as a Sleaze who Drinks, Drools, Urinates, and Oozes Odorous Obscenity.De Palma Pulls every Trick in His Considerable Bag of Cinematic Trademarks to make this a Pulse-Pounding, Neo-Noir and it is one of His Most Bleak and Depressing Movies.Colors Explode from the Screen as De Palma Paints a Picture just a Heartbeat Removed from Reality. An Amped Up, Pulpy Presentation with Crafty Cinematography (Vilmos Zsigmond), Music and Sound that is an Earful, and a Pace that is Swift and Unrelenting.Another De Palma Movie that is a Delight the way it Pays Homage to Film and Filmmakers of the Past with Referential Playfulness and Artistic Hubris. The Director has made Many Movies. All are Interesting at the Very Least, Entertaining, and some are Great Films. This One Falls somewhere in there, Depending on Point of View.Where it Ranks in the Director's Impressive Filmography is an "Eye of the Beholder" Thing and this one is a Sight...and Sound...to Behold.

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.

Cheritaro At the start of filming, the girl is killed in the communal shower. This is homage to Psycho, directed by Hitchcock. De Palma's may be Hitchcockian. Since we know the way of film, we expect scream. But we disappointed at the girl's hilariously inept, warbling cry for help. By doing this, Palma gives us strong impression. The screaming of the girl opens the film with a laugh. However, at last, real scream gives us despair. Though same image, comedy changes to tragedy. Also, Burke focus on the ad of the liberty bell twice. Not only the technique of film, De Palma reflects that people already know wiretapping is anywhere.

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 guessing up 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 admit - 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.