What we’re having today (at 18h, Zrinyi 14, Room 412) is one of these films that first comes to mind when you utter the word “voyeur”: Blow-Up (1966), by Antonioni.
The first English language film by the Italian director is loosely based on a short story by Julio Cortazar. (*) The unnamed protagonist of the film is a professional photographer, apparently making a living in the fashion world. He also relishes taking spontaneous pictures of people. In one of these occasions, he captures a romantic couple by spying on them from a distance. He gets caught by the woman, who insists on his giving the negatives. Upon this he first thinks that an illegitimate affair is the issue, yet a very detailed observation of the photos suggests him that something more dreadful is involved.
[Blow-Up] is an influential, stylish study of paranoid intrigue and disorientation. It is also a time capsule of mod London, a mindscape of the era’s fashions, free love parties, music (Herbie Hancock wrote the score and The Yardbirds riff at a club) and hip langour.
– from the backcover of the DVD relased by Warner Bros.
(*) The story can be found in this edition. After reading it you may want to take a look at this analysis of the story.
