Introduction
“First we Dream, then we die”, said Cornell, Woolrich, the father of Film Noir. In fact, “Noir” means dark in French. The general tone of a Film Noir would be gloomy and depressed. The general emotion is also very pessimistic. Sometimes, the main characters might not be absolutely moral in making decisions. They might even lose human nature and good moral values. Generally speaking, Film noir could be considered as both a genre and style. Genre is a French word, which stands for a kind, type or category of a phenomenon. It is often employed as a cinematic approach to designate the various categories of motion picture production. It was emerged between 1941 and 1958. However, from 1960 to 1980, it was more recognized as neo-Noir period. Last, from 1981 onwards, this genre was named as post-modernist Neo-noir period. Throughout the development of film Noir, it is not very difficult to observe that this genre was formed very much upon people’s fear, mistrust, dislocation, bleakness and so on, during the WWII. Later in the cold war, these negative feelings had been deteriorated by the Cold war. As such, the development of classic Film Noir was accelerated very significantly. However, generally speaking, classic Film noir could be critically assessed according to thematic(genre) and stylistic devices.
Three thematic devices
Recent scholars tend to assess the classic film noir through discussing its iconography, fixed character types and narrative patterns. First, it is indisputable that main characters in the film Noir tend to have a mood of dislocation and bleakness. For instance, “the Maltese Falcon” was directed by John Huston in 1941 when the film Noir first emerged. The main character in the film was not solely fighting for fair and justice. It seems that he was quite confused about what he should do. He killed people only for revenges. Also, he would take actions or kill people based on his own mental calculations rather than moral reasoning process. He did not trust his close friends. Secondly, it is obvious that the main characters in Film Noir are usually anti-hero protagonists, even though they might be a “good guy” in nature. In fact, this thematic device is often linked to the war and post war disillusionment. Thirdly, the feeling of alienation or paranoia is also very strong. As the aforementioned, during the war and post-war period, people tend to develop many different kinds of negative moods. It became a phenomenon of postwar realism. In some of the earlier Film Noir such as “Killers”, “Call Northside 777”, etc.
However, aesthetically, Film noir relies very much on shadowy lighting, deep-focus cinematography, sequence shots, disorienting mise-en-scene in order to create a depressing atmosphere and thematic element. From the existentialist’s viewpoint, the film noir could be viewed as a kind of futility in terms of individual actions. The main characters in a Noir often have to make problematic choice between being and nothingness. It could lead to a very weird absurdity in reflecting the main character’s personal life, which might be highly purposeless and meaningless. It would also thematically reflect the arbitrariness of social justice, which is the fundamental reason why the main characters have developed into paranoia, dislocation and other problems.
Three stylistic devices
Apart from the thematic elements, Noir stylistic devices could also be used to assess the films very effectively. First, oblique camera angles and disruptive scenes are often introduced in the film noir, especially at the early stages. The oblique camera angles have even created a “night-for-night” effect in the film of Scarlet street (1945). Besides, the constant opposition of light and shadow would create a dark or doomy atmosphere. For instance, in the film, “Out of the Past”(1948), some of the major scenes are produced in very unique angles with shadows behind. In the background, the shadows of main figures are enlarged to show that there is a conspiracy going on. There is also no fill light in the film, “the big combo” (1955). In the film, “Chinatown”(1974), the shadows of Venetian binds cast upon a wall is an iconic visual style in the Noir.Last, main characters are often asked to be placed in an unconventional position with the shots. It aims to create a disorienting visual schemes.
Women’s role in Noir
However, It is also very true that in classic Film Noir, the style of Noir is more tended to be realism. The sexy women in Film noir are often has a very evil heart. Instead, the problem of patriarchal hierarchy is still existed. But the situation was challenged by the development of Neo-noir. During the war and post-war period, women have actively participated production activity as their male counterparts. The gender stereotype such as the biological inferiority of females has been significantly shaken.
Generally speaking, the destabilization of sex relationships in conventional films also reflect a noir phenomenon of great social disorder. Besides the women empowerment, in my opinion, women characters are deserting some of the stereotypical concept such as sweetheart, caregivers, and so on. Instead, they keep challenges the patriarchal order in the Noir.