Blow-Up
Michelangelo Antonioni, 1966, 111 min

Introduced by Ranjit S. Ruprai and followed by discussion with film historian Professor Melanie Williams

Inspired by Julio Cortázar’s short story “The Devil’s Drool”, Blow-Up features David Hemmings as a hip photographer who accidentally captures a murder mystery on film in a park. But what is really happening in this enigmatic masterpiece? Antonioni: “I want to recreate reality in an abstract form. I put reality in doubt.” This is an imaginary London constructed by Antonioni and accompanied by the jazzy sounds of Herbie Hancock. Blow-Up captures the real, counterculture spirit of the time whilst also fabricating an enduring mythology of swinging 60s London.

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Screening as part of The Counterculture on Camera double bill