Film noir genre breakdown

1. Film Noir
Genre breakdown

15. The Killing (1956) - Stanley Kubrick
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5Rzh8XjzHI
Task
Watch the following film extract and make
notes on the elements of film noir present

16. Noir Elements from the chess scene in The Killing
example paragraph matching exercise:
sets the scene and as Johnny
enters the chess club we suddenly realise
we have been watching his . This
is a classic noir element and disturbs the
viewers sense of reality, asking them to
look at things from a different perspective.
There are lots of in this
and this is made all the clearer by the use
of of all the people in the
chess club and the buildings outside of
the window and the being cast.
long shadows
urban setting
deep focus shots
people smoking
voice over narration
reflection in a mirror

17. Genre or Visual Style
French critic Nino Frank is credited with coining
the term film noir (French for “black film”), in 1946.
Cinema historians and critics defined the noir
canon in the 1970s long after the classic noir
period of the 1940′s and 50′s. Before then film
noirs were referred to as melodramas. Not every
film noir embodies all noir attributes in equal
measure and the question of whether film noir
qualifies as a distinct genre is still debated.

18. While many critics refer to film noir as a genre itself,
others argue that it can be no such thing. While noir is
often associated with an urban setting, many classic noirs
take place in small towns, suburbia, rural areas, or on the
open road; so setting cannot be its genre determinant, as
with the Western. Similarly, while the private eye and the
femme fatale are character types conventionally identified
with noir, the majority of film noirs feature neither; so there
is no character basis for genre designation as with the
gangster film. Nor does film noir rely on anything as
evident as the monstrous or supernatural elements of the
horror film, the speculative leaps of the science fiction
film, or the song-and-dance routines of the musical.

19. Neo-noir
Some believe film noir never really ended, but
continued to evolve and post-1950s films in the
noir tradition are seen as part of a continuity with
classic noir. A majority however, regard noir films
made outside the classic era to not be genuine
film noirs. They regard true film noir as belonging
to a specific time and place and subsequent films
that evoke noir elements are referred to as “neo-
noir.”

20. Can you think of any Neo-Noir films (modern
day films with elements of film noir) ? Give
some examples from these films to support
your choices.Task

21. Neo-Noir Examples
• Blue Velvet (1986)
• Nightcrawler (2014)
• Memento (2000)
• SE7EN (1995)
• The Usual Suspects (1995)
• Drive (2011)
• Blade Runner (1982)
• Taxi Driver (1976)
• L.A. Confidential (1997)
• Fargo (1996)
• Sin City (2005)
• The Long Goodbye (1973)
• Watchmen (2009)
• The Dark Knight (2008)
• Mulholland Drive (2001)
• Chinatown (1974)
http://filmmakeriq.com/2010/08/ultimate-filmmakers-guide-to-film-noir/

22. This Friday you will watch a film called Double Indemnity.
See how many of the noir characteristics we’ve covered
this lesson you can identify while watching and with a little
online research afterwards.
Write up these examples on your blog and, if you want to,
try to find clips online and embed them in your blog
alongside your writing.
Task