Brian De Palma and Blow-Out

After watching Blow-Out, I felt like it was a different experience than watching Sunset Boulevard and Singin' in the Rain. The plot was definitely slower in this movie than the other two, and the climax was not reached until the end of the movie. Although it was more gradual in its plot, I think this movie had more depth in its chosen themes and more to say to its audience.

Two of the movie's main themes were discussed at the end of class: the moviemaking business and a depiction of America. The movie follows a man, played by John Travolta, who works as a sound editor for a company that produces sleezy horror films. The studio and film business is depicted as run-down and unoriginal in its movie production. Travolta is tired of the fake elements of his career; and after being told by his boss to find more realistic sounds, he takes his gear outside to record actuality. Coincidentally, Travolta ends up recording the fatal car accident of a famous politician. But he does save a young girl from the scene and befriends her.

At this point, the audience begins to see Brian De Palma's depiction of America. Once Travolta arrives at the hospital, the police department tries to convince him to forget about the accident and keep things quiet. Rather than pursuing justice, the detectives are satisfied with covering the accident up in order to protect the politician's reputation. Unwilling to go along with the police, Travolta decides to take justice into his own hands. But in the end, the young girl who Travolta befriended gets killed during a liberty parade. This final scene is very striking because it encompasses De Palma's message about America to his audience. There was a murder occurring, yet no one else heard or saw it because they were listening to the music and enjoying the festivities. No one else heard or saw it besides Travolta because they were not looking for the truth. America, according to De Palma, can be corrupt and ignorant when it comes to actuality and the truth in our daily lives. I do not know if I would have picked up on these themes of reality and America had we not discussed them. But I am glad I did simply because it makes the movie more deep and real; rather than just telling a story, the movie taught its audience about truth and reality.

In addition, our discussion focused on the tendency for filmmakers to borrow/steal elements of cinematography from other movies and previous filmmakers. For example, we discussed how Blow-Out was a re-make of the 1966 Blow-Up. Modernly, I have seen many movies that are re-makes of older films. It is interesting to compare the two because they are not always exactly the same. And I do not know if this is notable or not, but I have always liked the original movies better than the re-makes.

Discussing how this film was a homage to Hitchcock's work, in the sense that many of the filming techniques and shots were the same, was interesting to me. It makes sense that borrowing occurs in the film world because there are only so many shots that can be done. And I never realized this until today, but by looking at other movies and the techniques that are used, we can be inspired to use some of them in our own short films. Having the genre of a horror film, this should be interesting, to say the least.