For my Film Studies creative project I have chosen to create a film of the film noir genre. I will be filming a sequence from my imagined film which will contain the conventions of film noir.
Hollywood's classic film noir period was from the early 1940s to the late 1950s. Film noir of this era is associated with a low-key black and white visual style that has roots in German Expressionist cinematography. Audiences were led to understand and build a relationship with the protagonist or anti-hero.
Film noir has many conventions, such as the story lines are non-linear and twisting. The story lines often consist of the protagonist in an unwanted situation, morally questionable or being framed for a crime he didn’t commit. Film noirs narratives also frequently involve flashbacks. Having the entire narrative shot in flashbacks is also conventional. First person narration by the protagonist is also conventional in film noir. For example in the 1946 film ‘Gilda’ the protagonist Johnny Farrell is narrating throughout the film. Other non-diegetic sound conventionally used in film noir is down beat music and diegetic sound such as heavy breathing and sudden noises. This creates suspicion for the audience.
This clip is an example of first person narration from the 1944 film 'Double Idemnity'.
American society had changed whilst the men were serving in the army for the Second World War and so when they returned they faced unemployment, changing gender roles, alienation, and often disablement. Some of the film noir films, with hard-boiled heroes and anti-heroes, presented audiences with traumatized but tough men that could express and work through America's post-war disappointment. The protagonists of film noir are usually insecure, bitter and alienated. There are many archetypal characters such as femme fatales, corrupt policemen, detectives and jealous husbands. There are also gangsters, crooks, murderers and plain Joe's. Femme fatales are usually mysterious, unloving, beautiful and double crossing. Their costume is conventionally something sexy e.g. a black dress with red lipstick, jewellery and sometimes fur. This connotes them as wealthy, mysterious, powerful and seductive. It is typical for a femme fatale to overpower the male characters as they are the ones who usually get them to commit a crime of passion. Some famous Film Noir Femme Fatale characters are: Barbra Stanwyck, Rita Hayworth, and Laura Turner. Trench coats are iconic for the detectives and they also wear suits with a hat. Gangsters would usually wear a suit with braces, a hat and leather gloves. Nearly all the characters in the film would smoke a cigarette. These are iconic of film noir.
In this clip from the 1946 film 'Gilda', the leading female Gilda is dressed in a long black dress and long black gloves. They connote power, elegance, formality, and mystery. It also represents the grief she had from being distant from Johnny Farrell. Her necklace represents she is wealthy. The way she is dancing is seductive and also when she removes her gloves.
Film noir is also known for its use of low angle, wide angle or Dutch angle shots. The use of extreme close ups are also conventional. Sometimes a close up will be used then the camera will move out to reveal the action. This makes the audience want to see more of the scene. Shots of people reflected in mirrors, through glass or other distorting objects are commonly used and special effects sequences of a sometimes bizarre nature. The conventions of lighting are its low key and there are shadows usually of blinds, stairs, buildings and characters. The use of the shadows creates tension. Male characters in Film Noir are usually lit harshly from one side and this has a dark and moody affect to it whereas females in Film Noir are lit softer.
This photograph is a scene from ‘The Big Combo’ 1955. Having characters outlined in black and not being able to see them was conventional of film noir. It allowed the audience to guess who the characters where especially if they had just been introduced into the film and also it was typically of the murderer to be shown like this at first.
In this photograph the shadow of the blinds connote the man is trapped and is hiding from someone, possibly his enemy.
There are many conventional locations for film noir. Usually the locations are in an urban setting, abandoned warehouse, motel rooms, bars, lounges, nightclubs or dark alleyways. The locations such as abandoned warehouses and dark alleyways are away from the public so they are good hide outs for the villains. Also it makes the audience feel lost and scared. Tall buildings would be used to look threatening. The films are usually set at night to create a secretive and creepy look.
These photographs are from the 2005 film ‘Sin City’. These are examples of an urban setting with the buildings and the femme fatale dressed seductively which are both elements of film noir.
These days there are also neo-noir films which are aware of modern circumstances and technology. Neo-noir films were from the 1970’s onwards. They only have elements of film noir. Modern themes in neo-noir films include identity crises, memory issues and subjectivity. Examples of recent films are ‘Kiss Kiss Bang Bang’, 'Sin City' and ‘Harry Brown’. The film noir genre still influence directors however the films now only contain elements of film noir.
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