Film Noir

FILM NOIRFrench for “black film”Typically a Hollywood drama with cynical attitudes and sexual motivationsFilms dated from the early 1940s to the late 1950s

STORYLINESLiterary influence from the American detective novel and crime fictionUsually include convoluted storylines, frequently involving flashbacksMale protagonist usually wished to elude his mysterious past and had to choose which path to take

QUINTESSENTIAL FILMSLaura (1944)The Maltese Falcon (1941)Double Indemnity (1949)Touch of Evil (1958)Dark Passage (1947)Citizen Kane (1941)

LAURALAURA - THE FILM

MOODS Film Noir is less a genre, per se, than it is a mood. They reflected the tensions and anxieties of the post world wars era. Generally, they featured: MelancholyAlienationBleaknessDisillusionmentParanoia

CHARACTERSCentral figure usually private eye or plain-clothes policemanHero is generally flawed, morally questionable, alienatedCriminal motivation often jealousyArchetypes include femme fatale, hardboiled detective, corrupt policeman, jealous husbandSmoking is mandatory

FEMALE DICHOTOMYDutiful, reliable, trustworthy, loving Mysterious, duplicitous, double-crossing, gorgeous, unloving, predatory, unreliable, irresponsible, manipulative (the femme fatale)

FEMME FATALEFrench for “deadly” or “fatal” womanTypically villainous, sometimes anti-heroineRepresents direct attack on traditional womanhood and nuclear familyAn alluring, seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers in bonds of irresistible desire, often leading them to compromising, dangerous, and/or deadly situations

APPEALING ELEMENTS OF FILM NOIRThe male/female relationship and archetypesThe femme fatale and female dichotomyMystery and crimeHow American attitudes are expressed