Touches You

Nice effects though.

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Buried with a Beating Heart, this Low-Low-Low-Budget Movie Hangs on to Film-Noir with a Last Gasp of Nihilism and Seedy Style.The Result was a Forgotten, Little Seen Film Relegated to Bottom of the Bill Double Features and Fell almost Instantaneously into a Comatose State of Existence, but Thankfully the Plug was Not Pulled and it Remained almost Dead but Still Alive.The Revitalization and Return from its Dying State was Thanks to Film Festivals, Critics, the Cult of Sleeper Cinema, and Later the likes of Iconic Director and Film Historian Martin Scorsese. It was Featured in the Underground Book "Re-Search".The Talent Showcase of the Writer/Director/Actor, Allen Baron was Not Fully Realized and He Pacified Himself with Easy Paychecks in TV-Land for the Remainder of His Career.Now Considered a Favorite among Film Fanatics, especially Fans of Film-Noir and Indie Cinema, the Newly Released Criterion Collection Disc has caused Glee among Film Geeks and is Available for all to See. Hard to Live Up to its Accolades among the Obscure Inteligencia, it Impresses those that Seek it Out because of its Bleak Presentation and Unpretentious Display.The Movie Manages to Entertain as a Curiosity Piece and Provides Inspiration for Aspiring Filmmakers with Little or No Money. Worth a Watch for Fans of Film-Noir, B-Movies, and those that Love to Find Forgotten Little Gems.The Sharp Expression of the Existential Big-City Images, Low-Brow, Paperback, Pulp, Voice Over Narration that is Numbingly Repetitive but Adds some Charm, and the Overall Audacious, Uncompromising, Challenging Production make this a Remarkable Entry in the Field of Forgotten Films.For Better or Worse the Movie is now in a Deconstruction Mode from Thankful Pontificates and much Verbiage is out there for Your Consideration.

If you watch "Blast of Silence", I strongly recommend you watch the accompanying making of featurette featuring Allen Baron reminiscing decades later about the film. This is because it really helps you appreciate how good the movie is. After all, although the film looks very professionally made, it was assembled with a shoestring budget. In fact, the budget was so tiny that the writer/director, Baron, was forced to act in the lead. This is pretty funny, as he was just perfect in this role--yet this was only his second (and last) acting credit! I would really love it if young filmmakers today watched BOTH to get an idea of economy in filmmaking and that you don't need huge budgets nor big names to make a decent film.As for "Blast of Silence", it's a wonderful noir-like film. I say 'noir-like' because it's a lot less like an American film noir picture and more like one of the next generation that including the French noir films. In many ways, this film is comparable to those of directors like Melville--very compactly told and with little in the way of filler or remorse. Additionally, I kept thinking to myself that Allen Baron sure bore a strong similarity to one of my favorite gangster actors, Lino Ventura--the look and the style were clearly similar.The story is simple. A cold assassin named Frank Bono (Allen) is in New York to make a hit for the mob. However, he's got a few days to kill. This along with a betrayal by one of his 'associates' take Bono off his game. While the hit goes off pretty much as planned, Bono uncharacteristically shows that his nerves are on edge and he's tired of the life--both things which make him a liability.The film is told very well and I loved most of it. However, like too many gangster films of the 1940s-60s, there is an unnecessary narration. While Allen must have been thrilled to get the character actor Lionel Stander to narrate (and his voice was perfect), I don't think it added anything to the film and could have easily been eliminated. Still, it is a much better than average crime film--and a marvelous example of inexpensive filmmaking. Ironically, Allen went on to have a very long career...but almost completely with television and not in film despite the quality of this production.

Allen Baron established himself in 1961 as one of America's most promising new filmmakers with Blast of Silence, a noir thriller that he wrote, directed and starred in. He practically disappeared from the industry afterwards, directing only a handful of other projects that haven't lasted the test of time and mostly working in the television field, but his debut feature lives on as a gritty, atmospheric work of art. Immediately, the film explodes onto the screen, surrounding the viewer with sounds of a child being born, as we are narrated through child birth and find ourselves inching closer and closer to a distant light. The style is unique and very aggressive, as Baron is essentially giving birth to his audience into the world he's about to shove us down.The premise is a simple one, stripped down to it's essentials as Baron's hit-man Frank Bono is sent from Cleveland to New York in order to perform a job. It's a standard pulp set-up, but Baron constructs it all in a bold and innovative fashion. For starters, most of the dialogue is told through narration, but the narrator is his own character and tells everything from the second-person. Baron creates Bono as his audience, having the narrator refer to the character as "you", telling us what is happening in our mind in response to the surroundings. It's an absorbing technique that draws you in quickly and he utilizes it for the entire picture.We are constantly reminded of how Bono wants to be alone, but over and over he finds himself having to confront one person or another, be it an old flame or an overweight gun dealer and his pet rats. Baron surrounds us in chaos, a technique which gets us to deeply appreciate the serenity of isolation we are often told about. There's not much violence in the picture, but when it does come on screen it is surprisingly graphic for it's time. Thanks to some quick, chaotic editing, each moment of violence is unsettling and as aggressive as the style itself. We see Bono walk the streets of New York casually, but after seeing the violence that he is capable of this simple act takes on a much more grim and intimidating tone. The whole film has a very gritty, bleak atmosphere that is perfectly contrasted by the seasonal setting, occurring in the period from right before Christmas Day into the New Year.Blast of Silence is just what it's title suggests, an explosion of an isolated creature into a world that he wasn't ready for; or maybe it wasn't ready for him. Constantly it feels like Bono doesn't belong, and Baron utilizes this to give the film an uneasy tone, as if something dangerous could be coming at any turn. There's a theme of social unrest that lurks in the background at all times and Bono is just another of the many unruly citizens who occupy our common streets. It's a shame that Baron didn't continue displaying his immense talent after this one, because it really is one of the finest debut features I've come across.

This film bridges the gap between classic 50s noir, and the more complex, improvisational dark NYC films to come, first by Cassavettes, and then by Scorsese. Very reminiscent of, if not as psychologically complex, surreal, and twisted as, the writings of Jim Thompson. A hit man from Cleveland comes to New York for one last job. The film uses 2nd person narration – 'You feel this', or 'You sense danger'. It's an interesting technique I can't remember encountering in a movie before, which plays with your head in a good way. Who's narrating the film? Obviously the 'you' is the main character, but by subtle implication it makes US him. The narration was written under a pseudonym by the great blacklisted writer Waldo Salt. Beautiful, stark and depressing photography – which I guess describes the film as a whole as well.A couple of terrific, odd supporting characters add to the nightmare atmosphere. While some of the acting is variable, and a few twists are too telegraphed, this is a film that has stuck with me.