From Mary Poppins Returns to "His Dark Materials," take a look back at the TV and movie roles of Lin-Manuel Miranda and the stars of Hamilton.
Related lists from IMDb users
Title: Blow Out (1981)
Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| John Travolta | ... | Jack | |
| 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) |
This stylish Brian De Palma 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 Terry is a master audio technician who makes his living by recording unique sounds for 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 does not know whom he can trust. Written by Tad Dibbern <DIBBERN_D@a1.mscf.upenn.edu>
In 1981, Brian De Palma released what might be considered his "best" thriller to date. The "Slasher" genre was at full blossom, and the conspiracy driven, psychological thrillers of the 1970s were slowly declining in terms of popularity.
"Blow Out" stars John Travolta as Jack, a sound engineer for an independent movie picture, that discovers what first appears to be a tragic car-accident - is in fact a murder. Sally, who is rescued from the wreck by the protagonist (Travolta) himself stays as his counterpart though out the movie. Jack must set the story straight, and prove the police wrong.
De Palma is known for his themes of guilt, paranoia and obsession which work as essential parts for the character development in "Blow Out". It's a hell of ride from start to finish, and one can truly state that Brian De Palma is a master of suspense.
The acting of John Travolta is superb and convincing, and I dare to say that it's his best role to date. I was a bit skeptical to Nancy Allen at first, but her naive character grew on me over the course of the film, and might actually be one of the things that makes this film so great; that is believable character development without the often sudden change of identity.
Blow out is stylish, and both the directing of De Palma and cinematography of Vilmos Zsigmond is highly impressive. From beautifully shot scenes in the vein of Francis Ford Coppola to the drastic suspense of Hitchcock, De Palma uses all the best tricks in the book.
"Blow Out" is non-stop suspense thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. The last 15 minutes finale is quite extraordinary. The atmosphere, mood and cinematography are all close perfect. It truly is Brian De Palma's forgotten masterpiece.