Rent Blow Out on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: Brian De Palma, Bill Mesce Jr. (uncredited)
Directed by: Brian De Palma
Starring: John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow, Dennis Franz
Rated: R
Watch the trailer
Plot
A movie sound recordist accidentally records the evidence that proves that a car accident was actually murder and consequently finds himself in danger.
Verdict
The protagonist stumbles upon a coverup and it's only through his job as an audio technician that he can unravel the mystery. There's a focus on the technical side of the protagonists job, and it certainly relates to film making .The story is solid, which allows for a lot of flourish. I'm certainly partial to a movie that isn't a trite happy ending.
It depends.
Review
This was directly inspired by Blow-up, updating the time period and occupation of the protagonist.
The opening is bewildering until we realize we're watching a movie in a movie. Jack (John Travolta) is an audio technician for a low budget slasher. His job is why he ends up at the wrong place in the wrong time and is able to uncover the depths of a political scandal. This has to be at least inspired by political scandals like Chappquiddick, but we're seeing it from an outside point of view.
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| John Travolta play Jack Terry |
The focus on the technical side of Jack's job as he cuts a rough video to the audio he recorded adds a neat dimension. Jack is functioning as the detective of the story due to his unique skill set that makes him perfect for this job. Jack dives headlong into this mystery, ignoring all other responsibilities. He's got to know he's messing with something dangerous, but he doesn't seem concerned. It's short sighted justice, but it's his former job that explains why he's focused and why he's working a low level job.
To a degree this is about the process of film making, and this certainly has a lot of camera shots and angles you don't typically see. The movie is focused on what you can do with the medium. The movie has a certain style, and that's evident throughout, but the story allows for that. This movie doesn't seem hollow or style only. This is a different view on a ripped from the headlines story. This plays into the passer by that wants to solver the mystery, and as viewers we often want to do just that
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