Point Blank is a visual and storytelling tour de force: From the animal naturalism of Lee Marvin, to the highly influential neo-noir stylings of director John Boorman, so evident in the marvelous shadows and neon signage of the night driving scenes.
The visuals are visionary and as fascinating to observe today as they must have been when the movie was first released. The use of vertical angles as a visual motif, and the love affair that Boorman's camera has with the architecture and settings throughout the film can clearly be seen in later works by directors as diverse as Quentin Tarantino and Jim Cameron. Los Angeles becomes a character under Boorman's skilled stewardship, here closing in on Marvin and his enemies with the stark diagonal planes of the LA river basin storm drains, there opening up the world as Marvin stalks the Hollywood hills with the city laid out beyond him in magnificent, eye-popping clarity.
The story is one of passion, treachery, and revenge; the mechanics of the story are implicit not only in the spare, at times near-impressionistic dialogue, but in the stunning visuals Boorman's camera utilizes. From the acid-trip grooviness of the backstage nightclub battle, with the action reflected and commented on by the models' faces cast huge on a projected screen, to the splashes of psychedelic colour on Marvin's face at the conclusion of the scene, colour, lighting and angles are counted on to carry so much of this story -- and they bear the burden well.
I don't know if Patrick McGoohan was thinking of this film when he created The Prisoner, but fans of that series will also see echoes on the screen, in the way each scene is colour-coded across the board. On the commentary track, Boorman talks at length about his theories of colour in relation to the film, and it's a lesson with strong practical applications for anyone working with colour, in movies, comics, or any artform.
Point Blank is a movie I know I will be returning to again and again, to relish Marvin's primal scenery-chewing presence, and to bask in the glow of Boorman's vivid colour choices, so wonderfully recaptured on this DVD. If you want to tell stories, or if you just enjoy them being told to you well and with a challenging wit and intelligence, Point Blank is absolutely indispensable viewing.
The visuals are visionary and as fascinating to observe today as they must have been when the movie was first released. The use of vertical angles as a visual motif, and the love affair that Boorman's camera has with the architecture and settings throughout the film can clearly be seen in later works by directors as diverse as Quentin Tarantino and Jim Cameron. Los Angeles becomes a character under Boorman's skilled stewardship, here closing in on Marvin and his enemies with the stark diagonal planes of the LA river basin storm drains, there opening up the world as Marvin stalks the Hollywood hills with the city laid out beyond him in magnificent, eye-popping clarity.
The story is one of passion, treachery, and revenge; the mechanics of the story are implicit not only in the spare, at times near-impressionistic dialogue, but in the stunning visuals Boorman's camera utilizes. From the acid-trip grooviness of the backstage nightclub battle, with the action reflected and commented on by the models' faces cast huge on a projected screen, to the splashes of psychedelic colour on Marvin's face at the conclusion of the scene, colour, lighting and angles are counted on to carry so much of this story -- and they bear the burden well.
I don't know if Patrick McGoohan was thinking of this film when he created The Prisoner, but fans of that series will also see echoes on the screen, in the way each scene is colour-coded across the board. On the commentary track, Boorman talks at length about his theories of colour in relation to the film, and it's a lesson with strong practical applications for anyone working with colour, in movies, comics, or any artform.
Point Blank is a movie I know I will be returning to again and again, to relish Marvin's primal scenery-chewing presence, and to bask in the glow of Boorman's vivid colour choices, so wonderfully recaptured on this DVD. If you want to tell stories, or if you just enjoy them being told to you well and with a challenging wit and intelligence, Point Blank is absolutely indispensable viewing.