# In 1981, Brian De Palma was “very proud” of his latest movie. Everyone else thought it was a “catastrophe”

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/in-1981-brian-de-palma-was-very-proud-of-his-latest-movie-everyone-else-thought-it-was-a-catastrophe/
- Published: 2026-11-14T23:30:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-15T00:23:45+00:00
- Original publisher: Far Out
- Original article: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/1981-brian-de-palma-proud-of-latest-movie-everyone-else-thought-catastrophe/
- Topics: Entertainment, Film

## Key points

- *Blow Out* earned $12 million on release.
- De Palma later called it one of his best films.
- Travolta played a sound recordist uncovering a crash’s hidden truth.

## Summary

Brian De Palma’s 1981 thriller *Blow Out* failed at the box office despite starring John Travolta, then one of Hollywood’s biggest names. De Palma later called its opening a “catastrophe”, but the film is now widely regarded as one of his best, and he has said he is very proud of it.

Travolta plays Jack Terry, a sound recordist who captures evidence of a fatal car crash involving a governor and is pursued by people trying to suppress the truth. The film earned $12 million, compared with $31 million for De Palma’s *Dressed to Kill* and $33 million for *Carrie*. De Palma attributed the poor reception to the tastes of the time, when audiences expected Travolta to play lighter roles.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.