Film Noir

Film Noir is a cinematic term used to describe the Stylish Hollywood crime dramas that emerged from early German Expressionism. The Film Noir period was at its peak during the early 1940’s to the late 1950’s. The films themselves often explored the criminal underworld and explored cynical attitudes and sexual motivation. These films had a unique visual style that helped reflect the mood of the genre, typically to recreate the economic atmosphere at the time. The era is well known for its low key black and white films and borrowed heavily from German Expressionist cinematography. Film noirs use of light and shade emphasised its characters and heightened the gloomy atmosphere that was portrayed in the films. Directors made use of low-key lighting schemes to produce large amounts of contrast and dynamic shadow patterning. Venetian blinds or banisters were employed to cast obscuring shadows on actors to emphasize the characters “darker side.” Although this technique was used a great deal almost to the point were it became cliché, it was a useful device that told the audience something about a character and or scene. It was almost always used to further the plot or character development and was therefore important aspect of the genre.

The Film Noir genre is also known for its use of Dutch, and low angle shots as well as wide-angle lenses, that enhance the audiences perspective of the story. Other devices of disorientation were commonplace in early film noir. Mirrors were used to reflect actors in one or more mirrors implying that the character had multiple levels to them and were not one-dimensional. This augmented the idea that a character could have multiple personalities on a sub conscious level. This made for more dynamic and realistic characters. The lighting used in these types of films furthered this notion. Directors at the time realised the importance of believable and conflicted characters. However, these devices would not have had the same impact on the audience if it had not been for the clever use of light as well as the absence of light. Night-for-night shooting was also used to produce realistic lighting and moody scenes, as opposed to the Hollywood norm of day-for-night that was often employed during early noir production. Directors were beginning to realise the importance of lighting as a way of not only lighting a scene but also adding an element of theatre. Light and shade would highlight certain aspects of the film that would advance the story as well as its characters, which ultimately made for a more successful film.

Film noir is often considered to be a very negative and distrustful genre. Many stories associated with the genre depict characters in impossible and unsympathetic situations. The protagonists themselves struggle against the odds and are frequently in peril. The world, which surrounds these characters, is often portrayed as being overwhelmingly corrupt. Classic films in the film noir genre have been considered to be associated with an era where anxiety and alienation are prevalent in accordance with the aftermath of the Second World War.