BLOW OUT: A love letter to Vertigo & voyeurism
By Sarah Jester Ever get the feeling you’re being watched? Okay, ever peer into the apartment across the street to catch a glimpse of the neighbors’ evening routine? Eye the sidewalk down below from your comfortable perch as a melodramatic tableau unfolds? You are a voyeur. Through these practices, you regularly exchange validation, entertainment, and answers with strangers and companions alike. You just might not know what questions you’re unconsciously asking them. Cinema is pure, unadulterated voyeurism. Film directors are some of the most voyeuristic individuals alive. As a result, there’s no shortage of films about voyeurism. Famously, Hitchcock concerned himself with depicting voyeurs of all kinds -- both sympathetic and villainous. Whether it’s a retired policeman, an injured photographer, or a chillingly cold housekeeper, someone is always watching . If Hitchcock is the patron saint of cinematic voyeurism, Brian De Palma is one of his most devout worshippers. Take 1981’s Blow O...