Murder has a sound all of its own.
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.
Blow Out (1981) is a crime, mystery and thriller film directed by Brian De Palma, released on July 24, 1981 with a runtime of 1h 48m. It stars John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow and Dennis Franz. Viewers rate it 7.4 out of 10 across 1,738 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for Blow Out before you stream it.
Official trailers, teasers, clips and featurettes for Blow Out.
Trailer
Trailer
Clip
John Travolta
as Jack Terry
Nancy Allen
as Sally Badina
John Lithgow
as Burke
Dennis Franz
as Manny Karp
Peter Boyden
as Sam
John Aquino
as Det. Mackey
John McMartin
as Lawrence Henry
Deborah Everton
as Hooker
J. Patrick McNamara
as Detective at Hospital
Roger Wilson
as Coed Lover
Missy Cleveland
as Coed Lover
Curt May
as Donahue
Directed by Brian De Palma, written by Brian De Palma and Bill Mesce Jr., produced by George Litto.
Average viewer score of 7.4/10 from 1,738 ratings.
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 rescue the call girl…
Reviewed on January 4, 2015
_**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, "Blow Out” (1981) is a…
Reviewed on June 14, 2021
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**
Reviewed on September 8, 2022
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Blow Out (1981) is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Prime Video with Ads, and to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube and Fandango At Home. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of Blow Out (1981) includes John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow, Dennis Franz and Peter Boyden. The film was directed by Brian De Palma. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
Blow Out was released on July 24, 1981 and runs for 1h 48m.
Blow Out (1981) holds an average rating of 7.4 out of 10 from 1,738 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy crime, mystery and thriller films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official Blow Out trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
