Film Noir An American Film Genre with a French Name Film Noir - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
http://blog.ctnews.com/meyers/files/2010/07/noir4.jpg Film Noir An American Film Genre with a French Name Film Noir Literal translation=black film (Barsam 86) American genre named by French critic Named for its dark tone and
An American Film Genre with a French Name
http://blog.ctnews.com/meyers/files/2010/07/noir4.jpg
Literal
translation=“black film” (Barsam 86)
American genre
named by French critic
Named for its dark
tone and look
http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/f/film_noir.asp
Emerged out of the
era of WWII and post- war era in which no
87)
Sense of suspicion of
Cold War
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II
http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/f/film_noir.asp
Contrast with the
uplifting propaganda war films and cheery musicals of the time
http://screencrave.com/2010-04-25/tcm-film-festival-singin-in-the-rain/ http://woodyhaut.blogspot.com/2010/08/film-noir-encyclopedia- edited-by-silver_21.html
Mystery/intrigue (a detective story) Convoluted narrative that leaves the
audience feeling disoriented (Barsam 88)
Character goals shift Victims are revealed as corrupt Allies reveal themselves to be enemies and
seeming enemies can become allies-all done to keep the mood of suspicion
Often uses night scenes
(Barsam 87)
Large urban areas such
as LA, NY, San Francisco, Chicago to add a grittiness
Often to be considered
more about mood set rather than the exact location
http://sensei-lmno.deviantart.com/art/Film-Noir-Dark-Alley-103588227
Example-The Maltese Falcon (John Huston 1941)
Premise
Sam Spade is a private detective in S.F. Partner Miles Archer is killed shortly after a woman hires the
detectives to follow a man
Man who Archer was tailing also ends up dead the same night Sam-not too shaken up over the death of his partner, but he aims to
solve the crime after being considered a suspect
He starts back with the woman who had hired them and gets
caught up in her lies
She is caught up in a scheme connected to the valuable statuette of
a bird (the Maltese Falcon) as are two other men (Gutman, the fat man, and Joel Cairo) who have been searching for the bird
The story shifts from focusing on the murders to trying to find the
falcon and make a profitable exchange
http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/f/film_noir.asp
Anti-hero with unclear morality Outsider Often private detective
(between law and criminals with associates on both sides)
Aging “world-weary” Self-destructive Sometimes misogynistic (Barsam 87)
Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade of The Maltese Falcon
Literal translation=“deadly
woman” (Barsam 87)
Often the antagonist Deceptive female Seduces men and uses them
for their own means
Gets the protagonist caught up
in the scheme (“Film Noir”)
Often meets with tragedy in
the end
Mary Astor as Brigid O’Shaunessy in The Maltese Falcon
Character types: Private detective and femme fatal
#2 “Sweet new client” #5 “Grieving widow” #6 “Dangerous lady?”
Cynicism (Barsam 87) Suspicion: Can’t trust anyone Everyone is corrupt and moral lines are
blurred
Love is doomed (“Film Noir) Despair, lack of innocence, mistrust,
paranoia
Sam, the detective and the femme fatale
http://www.cclapcenter.com/2008/01/movies_for_grownups_the_maltes.html http://www.djmick.co.uk/movies/15-film-noir-femmes-fatales/
#8 “Losing a shadow” #9 “A little trust” (paranoia) #16 “Falcon lore” (enemy or ally) #19 “We’re all here” (convoluted plot, can’t
tell who to trust)
#20 “Fall-guy candidates” (don’t trust
anyone)
#25 “Taking the fall”
http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/f/film_noir.asp
Lighting emphasizes strong contrast
(Barsam 87)
Importance of shadows to show contrast Use of shadow lines for tension Sometimes uses first person narration
Opening credits #3 “Killed in action” (darkness)
Contrast in lighting and dark shadows
http://www.filmcritic.com/reviews/1941/the-maltese-falcon/
Notice the diagonal shadow lines across the door in the background http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1151178752/tt0033870
While the form emerged most strongly in the 1940s, the components of film noir are still influential in today’s films
Fargo (Joel Coen 1996) Insomnia (Erik Skjoldbjaerg 1997) Insomnia (Christopher Nolan 2002) Memento (Christopher Nolan 2000)
Even Batman Begins (Christopher Nolan) incorporates elements of film noir. Watch for these dark elements in your future film viewing.
Barsam, Richard and Dave Monahan. Looking at Movies, 3rd Ed. New York: W.
“Film Noir.” Film Site. American Movie Classics Company LLC. http://www.filmsite.org/filmnoir.html 2010.