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Elements of Film Noir From the French, meaning “black Film” or “Film of the Night”

Elements of Film Noir From the French, meaning “black Film” or “Film of the Night”. HUM 110: Introduction to American Film JC Clapp, North Seattle College. Historical Context. World War II, post-war disillusionment (1940s) Soldiers returning home and women losing their jobs

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Elements of Film Noir From the French, meaning “black Film” or “Film of the Night”

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  1. Elements ofFilm NoirFrom the French, meaning “black Film” or “Film of the Night” HUM 110: Introduction to American FilmJC Clapp, North Seattle College

  2. Historical Context • World War II, post-war disillusionment (1940s) • Soldiers returning home and women losing their jobs • Post-war realism – audiences wanted authenticity and “realistic” • Influence of German Expressionism

  3. Narrative and Themes • Crime/mystery/thriller/gangster genres • “Hard-boiled” pulp fiction detective • No happy endings • Use of flashback and voice-over common • Tight dialogue, witty banter, use of slang • Violent (murder usually, and corruption) • Sexual undertones, suggestive double entendre, verbal sparring • Moral ambiguity, fate • Isolation of cities

  4. Mood and Feeling • Isolation • Claustrophobic • World feels off-balance (constant juxtaposition of light/dark) • Doom • Fear • Betrayal • Hopelessness

  5. Style: Lighting • Traditionally shot on black and white film • Harsh low-key lighting causes stark shadows and silhouettes (the impact of German Expressionism) • Rich, dark blacks with high contrast light – called “chiaroscuro” • Beams of light used as highlights or spotlights • Heavy use of wide-angle lens with deep depth of field • Light used to create vertical, horizontal, or angular lines

  6. Style: Setting and Props • Urban City: sprawling, sordid, seductive, dense, alienating, corrupt, dirty • Dark rooms, night, neon lights • Rain-soaked streets with litter and steam coming from manhole covers • Lavish furnishings in cramped spaces • Back alleyways and back doors • Taxis, bars, apartment buildings • Men in suits and hats, women in dresses • Cigarettes/Smoking

  7. Style: Music • Saxophone solos • Jazz influenced with piano or trumpet

  8. Character: Femme Fatale • a woman: glamorous, sexually available, dangerous, determined, beautiful, strong-willed, scheming, manipulative • Desires wealth/power • Wears revealing or provocative clothes with dark lipstick– has curls, high heels, gloves, fur coats • Smokes seductively • She mixes cocktails, lounges in dressing rooms, and floats around in charge

  9. Character: Conflicted Anti-Hero • single man, usually a detective or private investigator (former cop), psychologically flawed • tough, cynical, morally ambiguous, smug • tempted and seduced by the Femme Fatale • Clean shaven and in a suit and hat

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