Blow Out

1981 108 min ★ 7.4 Crime, Mystery, Thriller

While recording sound effects for a slasher flick, Jack Terry stumbles upon a real-life horror: a car careening off a bridge and into a river. Jack jumps into the water and fishes out Sally from the car, but the other passenger is already dead — a governor intending to run for president. As Jack does some investigating of his tapes, and starts a perilous romance with Sally, he enters a tangled web of conspiracy that might leave him dead.

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Cast

John Travolta

Jack Terry

Nancy Allen

Sally Badina

John Lithgow

Burke

Dennis Franz

Manny Karp

Peter Boyden

Sam

John Aquino

Det. Mackey

John McMartin

Lawrence Henry

Deborah Everton

Hooker

J. Patrick McNamara

Detective at Hospital

Roger Wilson

Coed Lover

Details

Director

Brian De Palma

Tagline

"Murder has a sound all of its own."

Status

Released

Original Language

EN

Budget

$18,000,000

Revenue

$12,000,000

Production

Cinema 77, Filmways Pictures, Geria Productions

Reviews

J

John Chard

January 4, 2015

★ 8.5/10

Superior entry on De Palma's CV. Brian De Palma has always gotten a bad rap for his penchant for essaying his heroes and favourite thrillers, what often gets forgotten is just how great he could be in crafting said thrillers. Blow Out has John Travolta as a sound engineer for low budget horror movies, who while out recording sounds one night witnesses a car crash and dives into the river to ...

W

Wuchak

June 14, 2021

★ 6/10

_**Colorful De Palma crime mystery with Travolta and Lithgow**_ A sound effects man in Philadelphia (John Travolta) obtains evidence that a fatal accident involving the governor wasn’t really an accident, which thrusts him into danger with shady characters. John Lithgow, Dennis Franz and Nancy Allen are all somehow involved in the nefarious conspiracy. Written & directed by Brian De Palma, "...

J

JPV852

September 8, 2022

★ 9/10

This is one I've watched a few times over the years and it's still great with each viewing. John Travolta and Nancy Allen give great performances and although it's not one of these thrill-a-minute films, it still maintains the suspense throughout. It's one of the gems for Brian De Palma. **4.5/5**