Blow Out

Explicit content warning

03/06/23 • 65 min

4 Listeners

With a director at the height of his game and a star at the early peak of his fame, Blow Out, directed by Brian De Palma and starring John Travolta, was poised to be one of the big hits of 1981. But despite being a rock solid re-imagining of Michelangelo Antonioni’s Blow Up and a nail-biting thriller in its own right, the film blew a flat tire at the box office. Join Sebastian and Jennifer as they comb the audio files for clues as to why this clever and suspenseful neo noir failed to blow up commercially.

Previous Episode

Posse

2 Recommendations

The 90s saw a resurgence in the western genre, though none of the many offerings outside of Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven were major hits. Unfortunately that held true for Mario Van Peebles’ Posse, which distinguished itself by featuring a mostly black cast and was the star/director’s follow up to his enormously successful New Jack City. Join Sebastian, Jennifer and VQ as they celebrate black representation in the old west and rustle up some posse love for this gunslinging cult classic.

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Fair is fair! Teenage rebellion and MTV were all the rage in the 80s, so it was only natural that a film would come along to capitalize on both trends and become a box office sensation. Sadly, Matthew Robbins’ The Legend of Billie Jean, starring hot young newcomers Helen and Christian Slater, was not that film. Join Sebastian and Jennifer as they stand up and face the enemy to discuss this legendary box office failure.