Blow-Up (1966) - A look paranoia in the movie

Blow Out is a 1966 mystery thriller movie directed by Michelangelo Antonioni that follows a successful London photographer named Thomas (David Hemmings) who captures a murder on film. However, in contrary to the description of this movie, the paranoia in this film is not in the murder at all, nor in the details of it, but instead can be found in the questions asked and in the reality that this movie lays out.

Unlike in a typical detective movie, the story lies in Thomas’s view of the world, his relationship to it, and the way it is altered by these events. The way this is presented, however, creates a certain level of paranoia throughout the film that is not found in the danger, but instead within the lack thereof and within the unknown. It is not about the violence at all. The paranoia comes how much is hidden or not explained to the audience. There are countless examples of this such as how the emotions and thoughts running through Thomas’s mind are only occasionally explained. It is the reality portion of it. In fact, Thomas’s inability to focus as events come and go is part of what adds to the mystery of this movie. As Michelangelo Antonioni quoted in The Complete Films (2004), “The photographer in Blow-Up, who is not a philosopher, wants to see things closer up. But it so happens that, by enlarging too far, the object itself decomposes and disappears. Hence there's a moment in which we grasp reality, but then the moment passes. This was in part the meaning of Blow-Up”.

Potentially disturbing photoshoots that to an extent show the dirty side of glamor (his style really reminds me of the famous photographer and director Tyler Shields), and the rudely and controlling way he treats others, adds to the unresolved but thought provoking moments of this film. So much in this movie lies on the borderline of what could be and what is. When Thomas and the two girls are tumbling around naked on the purple paper, it was directed in such a way that makes the audience unsure (and even repelling to some people) as to if the girls viewed it as sexual assault or was that them laughing, stumbling, and having fun. And why show us Thomas snatching up the guitar-neck only to later toss it aside like junk after it loses its value of being chased after? To put it simply, it doesn’t matter! And that is the brilliance of it! All of these connections, commitments, and events that show up are viewed as important in the moment but then disappear and that is exactly what makes up life! As Colin Gardner states in the article Antonioni’s Blow Up and The Chiasmus of Memory “What Blow-Up seems to suggest is that for every moment made visible there is another that becomes invisible in a reversible interchange”.

As for the ending of this movie, that is where I think the true spectacle lies. Some may say the movie has no ending, but the way I see it, the ending is just the final realization and view towards Thomas’s doubt about his purpose and place in this world. In the end, when Thomas throws the imaginary ball back to the mimes, you can actually hear a ball bouncing as the game resume and you see Thomas’s facial expression change. His hearing the ball bounce, is him realizing their perception of reality. This entire movie had been about Thomas’s perception of reality as he goes about his daily life, taking photos, talking to the women, learning about the murder, ect. And as he walks off into the distance, he is just going to continue going about daily life, as he has throughout this entire movie, however now he is finally changed and inspired.

Watch the trailer here: