Cinematography
Film Noir's most obvious distinction is the low key lighting, darkness of the films, the use of shadows, dark settings and smoke. Analysing this snapshot of a film Noir, there is a strong use of the power of shadows, the shadow is used to unsettle the audience, telling you that theres an imminent threat approaching, from this shot you can see that the two characters are scared and nervous making you the audience as well on the edge, then the shadow appears and reinforces the fact that you as well should be scared or nervous.
Film Noir's most obvious distinction is the low key lighting, darkness of the films, the use of shadows, dark settings and smoke. Analysing this snapshot of a film Noir, there is a strong use of the power of shadows, the shadow is used to unsettle the audience, telling you that theres an imminent threat approaching, from this shot you can see that the two characters are scared and nervous making you the audience as well on the edge, then the shadow appears and reinforces the fact that you as well should be scared or nervous.Film noir used a range of obscure shots, such as a dutch tilt, low and high angle shots to make the feeling that something is wrong or something bad is going to happen, deep-focus or depth of field camera work, disorienting visual schemes.
Mise-En-Scene
The backgrounds of Film Noir were dark places, the low key lighting gave the affect of a miserbale, unhappy and depressed place to be. the actual settings tended to be urban areas and suburbia filmed at night. Streets and alley ways being a big area for filming with wet floors, gloomy and bleak areas in the city, using such places as deadend bars were the low lives and criminals of society are, to give the impression and reminder that your not in the most cheerful of places. Hotels and warehouses being a big chunk of filming.
The male actors wore the trench coat, suit and tie, black polished shoes, occasionally a fedora hat but mainly the typical looking middle class hat worn in the 1940's, straight trousers and buckle straps and gel back hair. The reason why this costume design was used is because when you see a man wearing this type of clothing you get the idea in ur head that this man is a detective, it was to re-inforce the conventional look of a detective. Also it was the type of fasion of the time in the 1940's.
The women actors wore the revealing dress accomodating with high heals, this point is important as at the time women did not show off their legs, if a women did show off her legs, it was a big statement. the women had silky long curly hair, lots of makeup, red lipstick and smoked. These type of women of the time looked slutty and had a name which was femme fatale.
Characters
Femme fatale was a massive part of the Noir story line. The meaning of “femme fatale” means “deadly woman.“ Film noir femme fatales are often described as predatory, mysterious, hard-hearted, treacherous, seductive, manipulative, beautiful, desperate, promiscuous, and irresponsible and they lured men in with there sexyness and un-refusable charm. In the films the women would have commited a crime in the past and used the innocent hero guy as a 'fall guy'. the male main character in film Noir wanted to forget his shady past, and had to choose what path to take . The choice would ultimatly be, to follow the dangerous but desirable wishes of these 'killer' women. The traitorous, self-destructive femme fatale who would lead the struggling, disillusioned, and doomed hero into committing murder or some other crime to prove his love to her, or to get her out of the mess she has caused her self in the past. When the major character was a detective, he would become intangled and trapped in an increasingly complex case that would lead to clear evidences of corruption, irresistible love and death. The femme fatale would eventually ultimatly bring both of them to a downfall.
Sound
Meloncholy music such as the use of Downbeat Jazz for sadness and sorrow aswell as deflaiting a situation to the buildup.
Film noir does not contain much sound but most of time holds an eary silence and a quiet background.
Ideology
The women actors wore the revealing dress accomodating with high heals, this point is important as at the time women did not show off their legs, if a women did show off her legs, it was a big statement. the women had silky long curly hair, lots of makeup, red lipstick and smoked. These type of women of the time looked slutty and had a name which was femme fatale.
Characters
Femme fatale was a massive part of the Noir story line. The meaning of “femme fatale” means “deadly woman.“ Film noir femme fatales are often described as predatory, mysterious, hard-hearted, treacherous, seductive, manipulative, beautiful, desperate, promiscuous, and irresponsible and they lured men in with there sexyness and un-refusable charm. In the films the women would have commited a crime in the past and used the innocent hero guy as a 'fall guy'. the male main character in film Noir wanted to forget his shady past, and had to choose what path to take . The choice would ultimatly be, to follow the dangerous but desirable wishes of these 'killer' women. The traitorous, self-destructive femme fatale who would lead the struggling, disillusioned, and doomed hero into committing murder or some other crime to prove his love to her, or to get her out of the mess she has caused her self in the past. When the major character was a detective, he would become intangled and trapped in an increasingly complex case that would lead to clear evidences of corruption, irresistible love and death. The femme fatale would eventually ultimatly bring both of them to a downfall.
Sound
Meloncholy music such as the use of Downbeat Jazz for sadness and sorrow aswell as deflaiting a situation to the buildup.
Film noir does not contain much sound but most of time holds an eary silence and a quiet background.
Ideology
the ideology and message trying to be portrayed by film Noir is that crime is every were, that its not just in the citys or in the sleezy bars, it can be in the house next door when Noir took its storys out of the conventional crime riddin cities and put it into suberbia it took the public by shock. , women can be devious and untrustworthy and dont be so easily lured in because she has a pretty face, that corruption is rife within the legal system due to bent cops and bribed judges which are known well in the film Noir.
Film Noir trys to portray the evils and breakdown in society that is all around us everyday.
No comments:
Post a Comment