Review of Blow Out

Introduction

John Travolta`s career seems to be going back downhill at present but this little gem from 1981 comes from way back, when John was the man in Hollywood. Back when Grease was the word and he was strutting his funky stuff in Saturday Night Fever he took numerous other roles in smaller movies that were never big buck takers but were decent captivating movies.

Video

Clear and crisp with only a slight amount of grain. The 2.35:1 anamorphic picture is clear of blemishes with not a scratch or pop-out in sight. Colour is a little subdued and the majority of the film is dark but good contrast keeps a great sense of depth to what is an old movie. MGM are releasing some great back catalogue films at present and seem to be doing them justice in the transfer dept.

Audio

A simple but strident Dolby Digital 2.0 mix. It`s a little harsh in places and lacks some good bass punch. Mono surrounds are used for some good ambient effects but lack the clarity of a good remixed DD 5.1 track that have appeared on older films than this.

Features

You get a trailer, whoopee doo! A commentary would have been nice!

Conclusion

Good transfer for the age of the feature. Sounds not so good but probably better than it did on release. An underrated De Palmer gem!