
Blow Up
MYSTERY • DRAMA • THRILLER
A stylish London fashion photographer believes he has accidentally captured evidence of a murder in one of his photographs. As he enlarges the images, the line between reality and illusion begins to blur in Michelangelo Antonioni's groundbreaking mystery.
Release Year
1966
Runtime
111 minutes (1 hour 51 minutes)
Rating
R
Genre
Thriller, Mystery
Director
Michelangelo Antonioni
Country
United Kingdom / Italy
Language
English
Studio
Carlo Ponti Productions / Bridge Films

Friday October 16, 2016
3:10 PM
Capitol Theatre
Port Hope, Ontario
One of the most intriguing movies of the Sixties, Blow-Up features British actor David Hemmings as Thomas, a mod fashion photographer in Swinging London. Like so much great art, Blow-Up looks at illusion vs. reality, as perceived in the shallow lives of Sixties youth, the faux glamour of Carnaby Street and Twiggy, and the trivial, insincere encounters of the sexual revolution. At the film’s heart is a mystery: but, the deeper Thomas delves into it, the more it seems to evaporate. This fascinating film, marking its 60th anniversary, was Italian director Michelangelo Antonioni’s first in the English language. It won the Palme D’Or, the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival.
Content warning: Blow-Up is an R-rated film.
Blow-Up won the Palme d'Or at the 1967 Cannes Film Festival
The film features a memorable performance by The Yardbirds, with both Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page appearing together during the band's brief overlap.
Blow-Up was director Michelangelo Antonioni's first English-language film
Julio Cortázar, who wrote the original short story ("Las babas del diablo") that inspired the film, can be spotted briefly among the homeless men whose photos the photographer takes.

