Film Noir

Visual Style Film Noir tends to use dramatic shadows, stark contrast, low-key lighting, and black-and-white rather than colours, with the typical film shot in a 10:1 ratio of dark to light (typical movie is 3:1 ratio). Many films noirs were shot on location in cities, nighttime shooting was common to get that really dark look. Shadows of venetian blinds, dramatically cast upon an actor's face as he or she looks out a window, are a commonly used visual in film noir. Other things common in film noir include shots of people in mirrors, shots through a glass, and multiple exposures. Film noir is also known for its use of low angle shots, wide-angle lenses, and skewed, or Dutch angle shots. Other devices of disorientation relatively common in film noir include shots of people reflected in one or more mirrors; shots through curved or frosted glass or other distorting objects and special effects sequences of a sometimes bizarre nature. Night-for-night shooting, as opposed to the Hollywood norm of day-for-night, was often employed. From the mid-1940s

forward, location shooting became increasingly frequent in noir. Many films noirs were shot on location in cities, nighttime shooting was common to get that really dark look.

Narrative Devices

Film noirs tend to have unusually convoluted story lines, frequently involving flashbacks and other editing techniques that disrupt and sometimes obscure the narrative sequence. Framing the entire primary narrative as a flashback is also a standard device. Voiceover narration, sometimes used as a structuring device, came to be seen as a noir hallmark; while classic noir is generally associated with first-person narration.

CharactersOne of the main characteristics of film noir is that the main character is often not much of a hero, but more of an anti-hero. This detective is regularly trapped into doing some extremely bad stuff and is left to get himself out of trouble and start his life again. He is usually depresses and spend a lot of time walking through dark cities at night wearing a fedora (hat). The story was often told from the view of the hard-boiled detective and it was not unusual to begin the film with a scene from the end of the plot, with a flashback to the beginning of the entire story for him to tell.

CharactersAnother main character that existed in almost every film noir was the ‘female fatale’, a typical blonde woman whose name was usually trouble. These women have guns and are extremely powerful, misleading and just plain mean. They always seemed to manage to trick the hard-boiled detective into falling in love with them, to just completely reject him at the last second and make his life a misery. Many different characters take play in the noire genre. The most commonly associated are: Detective (hard boiled flawed hero), Femme Fatal, Gangsters, Protagonist, Down and out writer, Criminal (Petty and extreme) and Corrupt Police.

IconographyThe typical iconography of film noir is a bad girl, with a gun, silhouettes and chiaroscuro lighting. Smoking is also a typical shot from film noir also a mixed silhouette effect, smoking is a tradition in all film noir films. Black, shiny body car with white tires are headlights beaming into the night-time mist, this is a classic car that would be seen in many film nor films. A man with a black hat, holding a gun while the light is shining through the blinds is a classic shot in film noir.

IconographyThe chiaroscuro lighting creates a contrast between light and dark. The typical location of a noir film is usually set in abandoned areas such as warehouses and empty streets. Darkness, gloom and fog are normally associated with film noir too, giving a mysteries and risky feeling.

Costume aspects such as guns, red lipstick ,trilby hats, smart suits with ties, trench coats, cigarettes, and smart polished shoes are also linked with this genre.

Within these types of films, the regular use canted angles and low lighting add to the gloomy feeling of this genre, heavy, jazz music is normally used within the noir films to give the film an edge of complexity, but mystery as well.

SettingTypically set in the 1940s and 50s. Film Noir is often associated with an urban setting, a few cities usually include New York, Chicago, San Francisco, these are normally the location of the typical/standard films. Nightclubs, casinos/gambling dens, bars and lounges are very commonly used in this scene of action. The peaks of an large number of film noir take place often industrial settings like factories, power plants and train yards. Some films, such as White Heat, which is set in a chemical plant, have a famous explosive conclusion, and in noir, it is always night and it always rains. The sets usually have a gloomy feel. Film noir often takes place indoors in spaces with low-key lighting. Blinds often unclear windows. Exterior scenes include streets alleys, dark and wet. Flashing neon signs were also a popular thing to use in film noir and these type of sets were partially due to war time scarcity. Story locations are urban and the characters will often be seen in murky streets, cheap, big city apartments or hotel rooms. Abandoned warehouses are also seen in this film noir characteristic. Some film noirs are produced in a semi documentary style. These movies are based on real events, usually crime or surveillance. They are set in urban areas and are deliberately made to feel realistic. Many of these are filmed in the locations where the actual event took place in real life.