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1. The Naked City Film Noir Essay
During the era of film noir, which encompasses the time period of the early 1940s to the late 1950s, featured numerous films that emphasized cynical
attitudes and sexual motivations. However, Jules Dassin's 1948 film, The Naked City, stood out amongst its competition. The film's style ignores the
usual expressiveness of noir characters, and replaces them with professional, dialed–in detectives. In comparison, another film noir movie, The Maltese
Falcon, directed by John Hutson and released in 1941, casted a stereotypical noir protagonist Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart), in the sense that Spade
is a tarnished hero who is not bound by the normal rules of morality. The Naked City was a truly unique in which it was able to focus on the theme of
fakeness...show more content...
The film opens with an extreme long shot camera angle, which depicts a vast area from a great distance of New York City. Interestingly, the
movie was not filmed in any studio lots or soundstage. In fact, hidden cameras were used to film much of the street action. These cameras were
used to capture the essence of the city itself. Many of hidden cameras shot from a long distance, therefore capturing an entire area of action. The
narrator of the film, Mark Hellinger, who was also the producer, poses several philosophical thoughts about the city while the lights are turning off
at the respected area; "Does money ever sleep, I wonder [referring to the main floor of a large bank at night deserted]? Does a machine become
tired [referring to night lights being casted over silent machines]? Or a song [empty street lit by only a few lights]? Does stone ever feel weariness
[panning up to see a flat, monumental surface rising to the sky]?" Later in the film, Mark Hellinger states "and even this [referring to the two men
walking to the edge of the pier], too, can be called routine in a city of eight million people." I believe this was extremely important for Hellinger to
highlight, to show that anyone can be doing anything, and that, in essence, creates
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2. Film Noir Research Paper
Film Noir's Effect on Modern Cinema
High heels click on wet pavement, shady detectives stand in the shadows, shots ring out through the cold, dark city night–just another moment in film
noir. These seedy, almost underground films are considered to be some of the best and most influential pictures in the history of Hollywood by
anyone's standards, most certainly some of the darkest. Even though the glory days of film noir have long passed and given way to big budget
productions, their influence and effect on the industry can be felt and seen throughout the movies of today.
The term film noir is a French term literally meaning, black cinema. During the second world war occupying Germans would control what pictures the
people of...show more content...
Such as the character of Sam Spade (played by Humphrey Bogart) in The Maltese Falcon (1941), who is himself being pursued by police after the
mysterious death of his partner. In pursuit of a gold encrusted statue of a falcon, the woman who asks him to go after turns out to be his enemy the
entire time, using her fierce sexuality to lure him along and manipulate his actions [3]. In the end, instead of the classic ?getting the girl? scenario so
common in Hollywood, Spade simply turns her over the authorities, condemning her to prison and possibly even death. There are rarely happy endings
in film noirs, especially with characters such as these.
The other most noted character to be birthed from noir is that of the femme fatale, or spider woman. She is often extremely sexual, and tries to control
men (often the private eye/anti hero) to do their bidding [2]. In 1944?s Double Indemnity, Barbara Stanwyck plays Phyllis Dietrichson the wife of a
wealthy man with a hefty life insurance policy. Throughout the film she coerces and manipulates the film?s main character, an insurance salesman
named Walter Neff (played by Fred MacMurray) into carrying out the murder and disposal of her husband to gain the money from his life insurance
policy [3]. However, she only wants to kill him in the end to have the money to herself?but alas this is film noir and the film ends
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3. Film Noir: Fact Or Fiction?
The term 'film noir' stems from the French meaning 'dark film' with 'dark' meaning sinister or dreadful. The term originated from French critics
such as Raymond Borde and Etineene Chuameton. Before the outbreak of World War Two french film goers were used to films like The Wizard of
Oz coming from American studios so you can imagine their shock when post war cinema from America were full of films such as Double Indemnity,
The Postman Always Rings Twice, Vertigo, Murder My Sweet. Most French critics noted that several of these films that were realised were based on
hard boiled detective fiction crime novels by writers like Raymond Chandler, Dashiel Hammett and James M. Cain. In France, books by these writers
were published under the heading
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4. Film Noir Films Analysis
The 1940's were a time of war and then prosperity for Americans, not only in wealth but in a chance for a better education and social economic
status. Films went from patriotic during the war to a more realistic portrayal towards the end of the war in 1945. By the second half of the 1940's,
with an injection of expatriate directors trained in the German visual evocation of emotion to the French poetic realistic films, a new style of films
were about to emerge. A similar change was also happening in reality, from the hope of the formation of the United Nations to the start of the Cold
War. Film noir movies, a genre disassociated with the war was made in the 1940's. This genre reflected how Hollywood felt during the challenges of
the war and post–war. It had somber dark plots, untrustworthy femme fatales and cynical heroes. The movies were set in low key lights and seedy,
smoky rooms. In the films, the women were seen as "glamorous and dangerous" who wanted power and wealth, where as the men were depicted as
weak and were not able to be a hero. The minor characters were traumatized by violence and sex. In Woman in a Window and Scarlet Street, the lead
male is traumatized by a beautiful woman. The film, Mildred Pierce, follows a housewife from a restaurant worker to one that owns several restaurants.
...show more content...
None of these films portrayed discrimination and racism as systematic, but rather the villain was psychopathic or the issue wasn't really confronted at
all. The two racism related films mentioned above had white people playing the leads, as blacks who could pass as white. These films, as well as the
film noir movies, very often had a happy ending. Despite the logical conclusion, in keeping with the imagery in the film, should be less than happy,
even they couldn't escape the social, political, and economic landscape of the
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5. Film Noir
"Film Noir" is a term that has been up for debate for an extended time period. Film Noir is French for "Black Film", it was used to describe a
proportion of American films that reached a French audience for the first time after World War II. These American movies depicted or expressed the
feelings of this time period. The world was going through a dark and gloomy time. It analyzed the social aspects and it was evident in films in various
ways. The movies characterized as "Film Noir" shared themes of social failure, fatal attraction, and criminal perversity. Casablanca, Double Indemnity,
and Postman Always Rings Twice are just a few films known as Classic Noir. AlthoughFilm Noir can fit into many categories of genres like: crime
genre, thriller,
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6. Essay on The Hays Code in Film Noir
The Hays Code in Film Noir
The Motion Picture Production Code, commonly known as the Hays Code, was adopted in March 1930, though it was not truly enforced until four
years later in 1934. This set of rules had tremendously influenced the way Hollywood movies were made for a number of years. This code was
based on the ethics and norms if that time. There were three main principals of the Hays Code. The first was no picture shall be produced that will
lower the moral standard of those who see it. What was meant by this was that sympathy should not be portrayed towards crimes, wrongdoings, evil or
sins. The second stated that only a correct standard of living could be presented that are only subject to the requirements of drama and...show more
content...
One of the main things they had to work around was that there could be no implicit sex between Brigid and Spade. This restriction has to do with
the second application which regulates the presents of sex. It was required that the sanctity of the institution of marriage and the home should be
upheld. Since the two were not married, the code restricted them from inferring that any sort of sex relationship was a common and an accepted
practice. Spades relationship with Effie, his secretary, needed to be kept to a level that would not imply that he had any sort of sexual relationship
with her as well. Although the Hays code acknowledges that adultery type situations are acceptable only if they are necessary to the plot material, it
should in no way be explicitly treated, justified, or presented in an attractive way. All the regulations regarding sex in the Hays Code, made it
extremely difficult for film noir since one of the main themes of film noir involves sexual motivation. In particular it held back the notorious femme
fatale from exuding her sexually upon men with the intent of making her own personal gains.
One of the staples of the film noir is the hardboiled detective that is utterly out of control in many aspects of his life. Several elements of Spade's
character had to be altered to meet the code consequently and ultimately weakened his character. His drinking had to be kept to
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7. Film Noir Vs. Gangster Film
The main difference between film noir and the gangster film lies in the disposition of the protagonist. The protagonist in film noir often is more
introverted and passive than the typical lead gangster. Additionally, it is typically the gangster who is causing conflict that moves the plot opposed to the
film noir lead who is often the victim to his situation. Another importance distinction between the two genres is the focus on the past vs. the present.
Film noir usually revolve around some past event. For example, in Double Indemnity, the film opens with a man confessing to murder, then the
narrative follows how he got to that point. This differs from gangster films in that gangster films often include lots of talk about the future;
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8. Film Noir Research Paper
Film noir– meaning "black film" or "dark film" in French– is an established genre of film which normally comprises the elements of crime, mystery,
and drama. These films were produced from the early 1940s to the late 1950s.
Before the term "film noir" was coined by film critics, these pictures were referred to as "melodramas". They were dark, bold, adult–oriented. Movie
audiences responded to them with excitement, as did writers and directors, eager to bring more of these stories to Hollywood.
Film noir is typically characterized by its unique visual style. They are normally in black and white, with low–key lighting, imbalanced composition,
and the use of extreme high or low camera angles. Other techniques that can be noticed include the
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9. Film Noir: The Cinematic Conventions Of Film Noir
The cinematic conventions of Film noir became prevalent in the Pre–Code Hollywood era of the 1930s, and as well as influencing generations of
filmmakers across the decades it has remained a genre to which directors and writers keep coming back. A key to its success are its unique visual
style. The washed out colour palette and slow movement of the camera both bring an uneasy tension to the world it portrays. It is a world that runs
parallel to the every day one, but within it lies deceit, heartbreak and murder. Our heroes are down on their luck police officials and dames in despair,
each with their own unique set of flaws that are only highlighted by their surroundings. New York, LA and Paris, are a few of the cities that provide
the landscape
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10. The History of Film Noir Essay
The History of Film Noir
Film Noir literally means 'Black Film'. This term was first coined by French film critic Nino Frank, who noticed a trend in the darkness of themes in
many American films that constituted wartime cinema.
Classic film noir developed during the 1940's during and after World War two, taking advantage of the post war zeitgeist of anxiety, pessimism and
suspicion. Mistrust, fear, paranoia, and bleakness is obvious in noir, it reflects the cold war period when the threat of nuclear annihilation was ever
present.
The categorisation of noir is very difficult to propose, The term 'Film Noir' was not recognised in the industry or by the audiences in the 1940's, for
example it...show more content...
The classic characteristics of a Male personality in a film noir is moody, melancholy, cynical and hard hearted. He will almost always fall for the
heartless, double crossing, mysterious and manipulative 'Femme Fatal'
He will also be involved with the other classic noir characters including : petty criminals, sociopaths, gangsters, villains and the innocent 'girl next door'
character.
Some of the first film noirs are as follows
Её Maltese Falcon (1941)
Её Murder, My Sweet (1944)
Её Double Indemnity (1944)
Её Laura (1944)

11. Её The Woman In The Window (1944)
When Kathie Moffett (Greer) shoots her admirer, Whit Sterling (Douglas), a big time gambler, and absconds with $40,000 of his money, Sterling
hires a private detective Jeff Bailey (Mitchum) to find her. Bailey leaves New York and catches up with Kathie in Mexico. Kathie denies taking the
money and after falling for her charms, Bailey notifies Sterling that he could not find her.
The film has a fair amount of double crossing Bailey double crossing Stirling and Kathie double crossing both men. She is the classic 'Femme Fatal'
I have decided on a ten minute scene in which Jeff Bailey meets Kathie Moffett for the first time.
The scene begins with a voice over from Bailey, he tells us (the audience) that he will wait in a cafГ© until he finds her. The cafГ© he chooses
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12. Film Noir Fiction Analysis
How to Write Noir Fiction
The Merriam–Webster Dictionary (n.d) defines noir as "crime fiction featuring hard–boiled[,] cynical characters and bleak[,] sleazy settings." However,
it could be asserted that "claustrophobic" would be a better descriptor, in place of "sleazy." Noir comes from "film noir," which means "black cinema,"
and was a term coined in France in reference to a particular subset of Hollywood films that were permeated with previously unseen levels of cynicism
or disillusionment (Hoerneman, n.d.), this cynicism is generally attributed to post–war dynamics, after the end of World War II. Noir tends to refer to
the claustrophobic, gritty atmosphere and intense shadows of the 40s film noir classics as much as it refers to the cynicism and almost inherent
heaviness...show more content...
As a writer, it is subgenres like noir that fascinate me. There's this set of defining features, and within that set of defining features there's this limitless
variance and potential. The quickest way to gain an overview, of any genre, is to watch movies that fall into that genre, and in that vein, my forays into
the noir genre have been primarily to the tune of noir that had been immortalized on film.
A classic example of film noir is Bob Rafelson's 1946 film, The Postman Always Rings Twice, which employs a plot driven by a wife's affair and
follows the wife and her lover as they plot the murder of her husband. Some examples of movies that fall inside the classification of "noir" –– but
which aren't 40s era film noir –– are Ridley Scott's 1982 science–fiction noir, Blade Runner, Doug Liman's 2002 action/adventure noir, The Bourne
Identity, and Richard Williams' 1988 urban–fantastic noir, Who Framed Roger Rabbit. On first glance, none of these films are related, in fact, they
don't seem to have much in common (except for
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13. Film Noir Analysis
With its tone and specific style, Film Noir has become one of the prominent elements that helped shape the American cinema. Within film noir, drama,
romance, thriller, and crime are the main genres that can be seen in noir films. From all this amalgamation of genres, the topic of whether film noir is a
genre or not does seem interesting, but it is particularly the themes and the style that seems to generate this conversation. Film noir itself can be seen as
more of a film movement than a genre.
Paul Schrader mentions how it presents a "specific period of film history, portraying the world of dark, slick city streets, crime, and corruption." If this
were to be about genres, this description would generally belong in the crime category. Noir...show more content...
These include cars, cafes, offices, and trains, and the films would typically come up with public places in order to emphasize how crimes can
happen to anyone at any time and place. The intro of Robert Siodmak's 1946 film "The Killers" places two hitmen in a diner with a customer and two
workers, and the intensity ensues right when the hitmen warn them of their violence, until Swede is killed. In "Detour," the cafГ© was presented as a
place of reflection for the main character, but "The Killers" presents it as a more dangerous place. The movie does not start straight from the diner, but
the outdoor area just right outside the diner, and that establishes the tone and the state of that part of town, with obscure lights, silhouettes of the
hitmen, night setting, and fog. Even in such a confined space like a diner, certain imagery like the hitmen and their guns would elicit feeling of
intimidation and tension from the rest of the characters and also the audience, especially when one of the hitmen hides behind the window and sticks
his gun out, just in case Swede enters. The imagery of places and characters thus reminds the viewers that the outward appearances are not what they
actually seem, and one would have to look deeply to understand the full
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14. Film Noir's Influence On American Films
After World War II, the American motion picture studios began releasing films shot in black and white, with a high contrast style known as Film Noir.
Though the roots of this style of film was greatly influenced by the German Expressionist movement in film during the late 1910–early 1920's, and
films that resembled this style were made prior to the war, including the early films by Fritz Lang, a German director who fled Germany prior to the
war to work in America, this film style would become prevalent during the post WWII era. Besides the shadowed lighting style and the psychologically
expressive mise–en–scГЁne, the film noir plot–lines often surrounded crime dramas and were greatly influenced by the pulp fiction novels of the
period by authors like Dashiell Hammett and...show more content...
In 1949, RCA introduced the 45 RPM single vinyl record. The LP prevailed for as the format used for albums and collections of songs, while the
45 RPM records dominated releases of single songs. During the 1950's, Top 40 or Contemporary Hits, a format of the top hits on the Billboard
Magazine best selling charts, became one of the most popular radio formats, and DJ gravitated toward the 45 RPM singles. The were less expensive
than the LP's and and they appealed to a younger audience. This movement toward a younger audience was helped in 1954 by the introduction of the
pocket transistor radio by Regency.
The LP sold well during the fifties, mostly to fans of high fidelity music who wanted longer cuts, like jazz or classical records. Starting in 1956, FM
radio and 33 1/3 RPM LP's would move into stereo sound, where there would be two separate coordinated channels of music. When music was not the
predominant programming, then sound quality was not as important to audiences, but as music came to rule the airwaves, FM radio drew in new
listeners because of its high–fidelity sound
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15. Film Noir Film Techniques And Techniques
The film is full of noir mise–en–scene conventions. For example, the tilted angles to create disorientation and hint at the fatalistic nightmare theme
are used brilliantly. Lighting was used beautifully. For example, the use of shadows are used to the ultimate effect in some scenes. The tilted, high
and low angles are also used very effectively in many other scenes. Low angled shots to help show dominance and high angles to show vulnerable or
powerless characters. The use of props and makeup is also used very well, with the men wearing suits, trench coats and top hats and the woman
wearing bright lipstick and dresses. The set/location tended to be very noir conventional with sets occurring at bars, streets, apartments and
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16. Analysis Of Film Noir
Film noir is described as being a piece of crime drama that involves the use of specific narrative elements and film elements. Through the use of these
elements, countless individuals are entertained by the pure drama. Film noir, represents crime examples that many individuals in the United States
could relate to; especially those that were living post war in the1950s. From French roots, the term film noir has a literal meaning of "dark film". "Dark
film" is an acceptable coined term for noir, because it represents a character that is in their darkest time and is manipulated by a femme fatale
character. The noir also having a very sinister story line is also a reason for it being dark. According to the knowledgeable Richard Schickel, "despite
its Frenchified name, [noir] is a truly American form". Mainly film noir is created for the American audiences because during...show more content...
In every noir, there has to be a femme fatale, because without this controlling antagonist, there would be no existence of noir. The femme fatale
character is an attractive female in the film who is manipulative and will ruin the male protagonist's life. In addition Encyclopedia Britannica explains
how, "the women of film noir often evoke sympathy, as they are frequently victims of emotional or physical abuse, with such victimization providing
impetus for their vengeance". They are intelligible enough to make it seem as if they are the victim, but in reality they make the male antagonist their
victim. For this reason, she is the main attraction of the dark side of noir. Failure does not coincide with her desires, so she will not let failure take
over her. Lastly, the idea of writers and directors creating this character influenced American culture. Before World War II, men had too much control
over females. Post World War II, women were becoming more and more independent and less submissive to
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17. Noir Film Essay
The sequence illustrates the dominant features of the Noir film style. Some common elements found in Noir films are: the anti–hero protagonist, the
femme fatale, taut or no–nonsense dialogue, and high–contrast mise–en–scГЁne. It can be seen that the sequence leads audience to the climax of the
story plot, as Maxim faces an obstacle when he is attempting to resolve his own issues, thus he must own up to the consequences of his actions and
stop running from the memory of what he has done, indicating a breaking change in the audience's perception of Maxim. Therefore, the sequence
fulfils the "anti–hero" part of the Noir film plot. In the clip, it can also be seen that the director applied continuity editing. This editing method involves
point–of–view shot and shot/reverse–shot....show more content...
The entire sequence is shot in Rebecca's shack, which is dark and musty, and there is little light coming from the windows because of the rainy
weather. This brings focus and light to only the two main characters in the room and the area that Rebecca walked through before she died, making the
rest of the room dark and mysterious; fulfilling the high–contrast mise–en–scГЁne.On the other hand, one can also argue that the film is based on a
rhetorical theme in relation to the ways in which Mrs. De Winter strives to gain equal rights. The film represents women and feminism in some unique
ways. As an example, the film shows that women are a romantic entertainer, but the issue they have is that they break away from responsibilities at
home and with the
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18. Film Noir: A Classic Film Noir
I have to say right from the word go that this is classic film noir in true Hollywood style, and as detective films go might just be the best acted, best
scripted and best directed whodunnit you will ever have the privilege of watching. Bogart plays private eye Phillip Marlowe, hired by a dying old man
with two beautiful, but uncontrollable daughters.
One daughter is Carmen – played superbly by Martha Vickers– who is being blackmailed, which Marlowe is hired to deal with the blackmailer. He
hardly gets the chance though, because the bad guy gets killed off very quickly, thopugh Marlowe senses that this is just the start of things. He is
attracted to, but also supicious of the other daughter Vivien – Lauren Bacall at her best – and the film...show more content...
There are some who think that Hawks over–complicated things, but if you concentrate you can follow it, even if it it is pretty convoluted at times.
The not incomprehensible story actually unfolds at a frantic pace, and you find yourself able to forgive the odd strange occurrence like Carmen
suddenly being inside Marlowe's apartment, and though not the easiest of stories to follow, the occasional moments when Marlowe explains things do
make a big difference. To my mind, even though this movie is now 71 years old, modern directors could take lessons from it in how make this genre
of film edge–of–your–seat exciting.
Hawks makes perfect use of a tremendously droll dialogue, a fantastic adaptation job from the Chandler book, and the two stars have some fabulous
verbal jousts, including some of the most memorable of verbal exchanges in which they talk about the sport of kings – horse racing – treating the
audiences to all kinds of hidden meanings behind their words, and one phone–call between the pair that is truly
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19. Film Noir: The Maltese falcon Essay
Film Noir was extremely trendy during the 1940's. People were captivated by the way it expresses a mood of disillusionment and indistinctness
between good and evil. Film Noir have key elements; crime, mystery, an anti–hero, femme fatale, and chiaroscuro lighting and camera angles. The
Maltese Falcon is an example of film noir because of the usage of camera angles, lighting and ominous settings, as well as sinister characters as Samuel
Spade, the anti–hero on a quest for meaning, who encounters the death of his partner but does not show any signs of remorse but instead for his greed
for riches.
All throughout The Maltese Falcon the camera angles change with the character. Camera angles and lighting affected the mood of the scene; scenes in
...show more content...
There were only a few inhabitants on the sidewalks at one point in time; creating a deserted and mystifying scene; when characters walked on the
rain–slicked ground, their footsteps could be hear echoing through the vacant city. When the characters were not outside they were in shabby and dimly
lit apartments and hotel rooms. Spade spent the majority of his time in hotel rooms and apartments gathering his information about the Maltese Falcon,
by visiting the people who knew anything about the falcon. The eerie settings added to the mystery of where the falcon could be.
The Maltese Falcon contained many different types of characters. Spade was a protagonist. While on the other hand Kasper Gutman, Joel Cairo, and
Wilmer were antagonists and Brigid O'Shaughnessy was a femme fatale. Each of the characters portrays characteristics of Film Noir.
Spade is known as an anti–hero, "a protagonist who lacks the attributes that make a heroic figure, as nobility of mind and spirit, a life or attitude
marked by action or purpose." (dictionary.com) Spade plays by his own rules and is tough and a bit radical, he doesn't seem to be upset that his
partner is dead. But instead tells his secretary to remove his name from the window and put Samuel Spade, instead of Spade and Archer. A hero would
not do remove the name because brings suspicion
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20. Movie Noir : Film Noir
#1
Film Noir is a film genre that has a very distinct style and mood. But what exactly this style and mood are seems to vary from scholar to scholar.
Like all genres, different people have different feelings about what makes or does not make a film noir. In this essay, I will be analyzing film noir
definitions from Naremore, Harvey, and Borde and Chaumeton; to understand how each party views film noir in their own subjective way.
In Naremore's book, he describes film noir as a genre that is very hard to define, as it was named by film critics instead of film–makers, and the name
was established well after the most definitive noir films had been made (11). Naremore seems to have a very fluid definition of noir. But for the sake
of this...show more content...
Naremore does speak of the social and political elements of film noir in his book, but the definition he underlined for us in the introduction was about
style and period.
Fortunately, Sylvia Harvey touches on the social aspects of film noir. She especially points at how film noir comments on working culture in America
and its dark side. People went from working for themselves, to working for corporations, and thus became isolated which led them to risky behavior to
escape the mundanity of their day to day lives (26). Double Indemnity, she writes, follows this thought process well. Walter Neff, she says, began his
non–business relationship with Phyllis Dietrichson as a "means of escape from the boredom and frustration of a routinised [sic] and alienated
existence" (27). Usually women were the scapegoat in the working man's quest for liveliness.
I think Harvey has a valid point about film noir's commentary on American working culture, and a deadly form of escapism. But, I think her saying
that it is the fault of the women in the films is erroneous. Perhaps in Double Indemnity, it is fair to say that Walter Neff would not have turned to the
dark side had it not been for his infatuation with Phyllis. But with film noir as a whole? In Detour, we have a
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