What is Film Noir?  Film Noir – Black Film or Cinema  Coined by French film critics Nino Frank (1946) started this term ○ Observed the ‘dark’, black, and downbeat look of American crime and detective films released in France in 1940’s Maltese Falcon (1941); Murder, My Sweet (1944); Double Indemnity (1944); The Woman in the Window (1944); Laura (1944)

History  Emerged from German Expressionism and Italian Neo-Realism German Expressionism (Post WWI) ○ Dark mood and deeper meaning; symbolism Italian Neo-Realism ○ Documenting stories of poor and working class  American Film Noir combines both Difficult moral/economic condition Shadowing for dark mood  Started in 1940’s Stranger on the Third Floor (1940)

History cont.  Hays Code Heavily affected due to the harsh look it took on American life  Neo-Noir begins in 1950’s Hays Code evaporates Tribute to Noir  Psycho (1960) – first neo-noir  Quinton Tarantino Reservoir Dogs (1992)

History cont.  Neo noir is everywhere; past or present Emulation of Citizen Kane (1941) Raging Bull (1980) L.A. Noire (PS3)

Characters  Hero/Anti-hero Corrupt characters Villains Hard-boiled detectives Cops Gangsters Government agents Sociopaths/killers Crooks War veteran Politicians Petty criminals Average Joes  Morally ambiguous

Characters (cont.)  Women  Dutiful, reliable, trustworthy, loving  Femme Fatale Mysterious, double-crossing, unloving, tough, unreliable, manipulative, desperate ○ Phyllis Dietrichson (Double Indemnity)

Characteristics  Lighting  Deep focus  Interior settings Low-key or single source lighting Venetian blinds  Dark, claustrophobic, gloomy  Distorts time Non-chronological order  Usually has a gun  Femme Fatale  Black and White

Characteristics cont.  Cigarettes/cigars  Costumes Men ○ Fedoras, suits and ties Women ○ Floppy hats, low neckline, makeup

Mood  Dark  Suspenseful  Melancholy  Alienation  Bleakness  Pessimism  Ambiguity  Moral Corruption  Evil  Guilt  Desperation  Paranoia  Disillusionment  Disenchantment

Types of Film Noir  Classic Noir  Neo/Post Noir  Romance Film Noir  Documentary Film Noir  Cyber Film Noir  Prison Film Noir  Menaced – Woman Noir Hitchcock’s Menaced Woman  Imperiled Children Noir  Corruption/Crime Noir  Cross-over Noir  Variation Pseudo Thrillers Animations Horror Westerns Gangster Sci-fi ○ Super hero films Batman; Batman Begins Musical Documentaries

Romance Noir  Deadly femme fatatles  Self-destruction  Examples You Only Live Once (1937) The Letter (1940) Double Indemnity (1944) The Woman in the Window

Test Questions  Film Noir – Dark Film  American pulp fiction – source of most noirs  Maltese Falcon – first noir  Characteristic of Film Noir – low-key lighting  LA Confidential and Fatal Attraction are pseudo-noirs

Test Questions cont.  Film Noir breaks narrative linearity  Hays Code censored nudity, homosexuality, and profanity  Reflects the cynicism of innocence lost at war  Sharp, witty dialogue coincides with comedies  Women posed a threat to traditional values

Test Questions cont.  Femme Fatale tries to destroy the male hero  Film Noir borrows from German Expressionism  Noirs emulate visual style of Citizen Kane  Destabilization of sexual relationships is typical of film noirs

1920’s  Silent film’s were predominant throughout the decade Bigger, costly, more polished ○ Assembly line process  Organized into genres Easily recognizable characteristics Various genres appearing throughout this time

1920’s cont.  Big Five Warner Bros. Pictures (1923) Paramount Studios (1927) RKO (Radio – Keith - Orpheum) Pictures Metro – Golwyn – Mayer (MGM) (1928) Fox (1912) became 20 th Century Fox (1935)  Little Three Universal Pictures United Artists Columbia Pictures

1920’s cont.  Expressionism flourishes after WWI  Silent comedy flourished  Charlie Chaplin  Don Juan (1926) First film with synchronized soundtracks No dialogue  The Jazz Singer (1927) – Warner Bros.  Silent film studios went out of business  1930, silent films disappeared

1920’s cont.  Major Musicals The Broadway Musical ○ First musical/sound film to win Best Picture On With the Show ○ First all color sound musical The Gold Diggers of Broadway ○ The Gold Diggers (1923) remake

1920’s cont.  Academy Awards Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (1927) ○ Wings (1927) – Best Picture ○ Sunrise (1927) – Best Unique and Artistic Picture Only silent films to win Academy Awards ○ Jazz Singer (1927) – special award

1920’s cont.  Technicolor Started out with a 2 color process ○ Green and Red Evolved to a 3 color process in 1932  Technology Cameras on dollies Microphones on booms  Vitaphone Company (1925) Vitaphone – obsolete by 1931 Meant to record music and sound effects