Darkness in Film

Film noir is a french label on an American phenomenon in the 40s. Literally it means Black Film. In postwar France, the french had the opportunity to watch a lot of American movies in the 40s. The term Film Noir is said to have been coined by Nino Frank in 1946 post-World War II Paris. There were similarities between this type of film and prewar movies as well as the literature called roman noir or black book. Though the term was widely used in France, it didn't quote reach the mouths of contemporary America. Noir films came about during World War 2 in the econimic boom of America. It was inspired by the literature of the time as well as the previous film history. The literature of the 30s was mainly hardboiled crime novels different in content, tone and style as the noir books of the 40s. Noir of the 40s added a sense of realism to the detective genre. The hero of the story was as much a traditional hero as he was an anti-hero. The main female was named the femme fatale, a promiscuous, intelligent dark woman not only with sexual powers but strong ambitions. The action was violent usually consisting of a murder and the language was cut down and exchange of verbal wit between characters.

This style spilled onto the screen. One of the main techniques on film was the low lighting usually depicting the darkness felt in the characters and the world surrounding them. The use of night and shadows emphasized the cold and darkness in the atmosphere. We usually hear a voice over narration over the action and the end of the film is usually the beginning. Wide angle cinematography helped make the space distorted and made the audience feel disoriented. Images were no longer horizontal but now were vertical giving an unsettling feeling. The world is often shown as a prison and to incorporate this feeling image metaphors were used such as venetian blinds or smoke to show loneliness. Many film historians believed noir began with The Maltese Falcon (1941) and ended with Touch of Evil (1958). Other examples of classic noir are: Double Indemnity (1944); Detour (1945); The Big Sleep (1946); White Heat (1949); D.O.A. (1950); Gun Crazy (1950); and Kiss Me Deadly (1955).

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