Blow Out (1981)

A movie sound recordist accidentally records the evidence that proves that a car accident was actually murder and consequently finds himself in danger.

Director:

Brian De Palma

Writer:

Brian De Palma

Stars:

John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Travolta	...	Jack Terry
Nancy Allen	...	Sally
John Lithgow	...	Burke
Dennis Franz	...	Manny Karp
Peter Boyden	...	Sam
Curt May	...	Donahue
John Aquino	...	Detective Mackey
John McMartin	...	Lawrence Henry
Deborah Everton	...	Hooker
J. Patrick McNamara	...	Detective at Hospital
Missy Cleveland	...	Coed Lover (as Amanda Cleveland)
Roger Wilson	...	Coed Lover
Lori-Nan Engler	...	Sue
Cindy Manion	...	Dancing Coed
Missy Crutchfield	...	Dancing Coed (as Missy O'Shea)

Storyline

This stylish Brian DePalma thriller plays off the theme of the unsuspecting witness who discovers a crime and is thereby put in grave danger, but with a novel twist. Jack is a sound recordist who works on grade-B horror movies. Late one evening, he is recording sounds for use in his movies when he hears something unexpected through his sound equipment and records it. Curiosity gets the better of him when the media become involved, and he begins to unravel the pieces of a nefarious conspiracy. As he struggles to survive against his shadowy enemies and expose the truth, he doesn't know whom he can trust.

---

Plot Keywords:

sound | murder | car accident | recording | witness | 

---

Taglines:

The Blow Out took them to the edge of terror . . . his questions took them way beyond [Video Australia]

---

Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

MGM

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 July 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Personal Effects

Filming Locations:

Penn Square, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinema 77, Geria Productions, Filmways Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The underwater components of the car crash on the bridge set piece were shot in a huge tank in California. Nancy Allen suffers from claustrophobia and hence had a hard time with being trapped in the car in the underwater scenes.

---

Goofs

Manny Karp's cigar jumps from his mouth to his hand as he sits Sally down during their conversation in his apartment.

---

Quotes

Sally: Ya know, the only trouble I ever got into was when I was TOO careful!

---

Connections

References From Russia with Love (1963)

User Reviews

Wonderfully written and directed story...

1st watched 10/03/2005 - 8 out of 10(Dir-Brian De Palma): Wonderfully written and directed story by Brian De Palma about a sound man who records an accident(we think) at a bridge while doing his job of recording sounds for a recent movie gig. We find out the accident involved a Governor who happened to be running for President of the United States and the title character(Jack played by John Travolta) just happened to rescue another person from the vehicle(who was a lady of the night played by Nancy Allen) and the Governor dies. What ensues is a major attempt to cover up some of the facts while Jack tries to piece together what he heard and saw for evidence of the foul play. He believes he heard a shot that blew out the tire of the vehicle and with an amateur photograph's pictures rigs together a pretty convincing portrait of the truth. Travolta is great in what I consider one of his best acting stints but Nancy Allen is tolerable at best. This is the only real negative to this otherwise well made and pieced together thriller that works to the very end and deserved more recognition than it received. I think everyone(audiences and critics alike) expected something different from someone who was known mainly for horror movies before this but this movie started a string of well-received movies coming from him and is definitely one