Blow-Up

Year 1966. Swinging London enjoys the reputation of being Europe’s cultural capital, the favorite city of musicians, models, and filmmakers. Michelangelo Antonioni decides to take a closer look at the British metropolis, setting his English-language debut there. Loosely inspired by Julio Cortázar’s short story Blow-Up, the Italian director presents the daily lives of London’s artistic elite with a mixture of genuine fascination and his signature skepticism. The guide to this world is a successful photographer, Thomas (David Hemmings). His life, clouded in marijuana smoke and filled with lucrative assignments and fleeting romances, takes an unexpected turn when he discovers that one of his photographs may have accidentally captured a murder scene. In his attempt to unravel the mystery on his own, Thomas inadvertently embarks on a different kind of investigation – one that forces him to pierce through existential emptiness in search of the truth about himself.

Piotr Czerkawski

Michelangelo Antonioni (1912–2007) was a master of modernist cinema, known for exploring alienation and existential unease. The Adventure (1960) revolutionized cinematic storytelling, while Blow-Up (1966) became an iconic reflection of its era. Antonioni redefined film language through bold visual experimentation. In The Passenger (1975), he examined identity and escape. His films are visual poetry and profound studies of the human condition. In 1995, he received an Honorary Academy Award for his lifetime achievements.