Film noir independent research

By Fatima Khatun

A French term for ‘Black film’Classic film noir was developed during and after World war II

A style of Black and white American film that first evolved in the 1940s

Expression of mood, style, tone and point of viewRefers to a

historical period of film history

(German expressionism)

Rarely happy endings in Film noir

• The big heat, 1953• Murder, my sweet, 1944• Kiss me deadly, 1955• Out of the past, 1947

Film #1 – Double IndemnityWhat is it about?

This movie is about a charming/flirtatious man named Walter Neff who is an insurance salesman. He loses his heart to a conniving yet attractive married woman named

Phyllis Dietrichson; wife of Mr Dietrichson. She arranges a meeting with Walter and he discovers that her plans are to injure her husband, make a injury claim and murder

him so that she receives the insurance money under her name. He refuses to deal with this kind of business yet cannot help but fall for her flirtatious behaviour and

beauty. So he helps kill her husband for money and to win his wife. Walter soon feels reluctant as his boss named Keyes, constantly mentions that the case may have

many untold business, doubting on the wife saying that she may have some responsibility behind the situation. Therefore, Walter tells Phyllis that he doesn’t want

to be involved anymore. She attempts to shoot him after the first shot which would potentially kill him however claims her love for him. Walter refuses to fall for this trap

and shoots her twice which resulted to her death.

This is a screenshot of a 30 second clip which managed to get my attention. In this scene, Walter and Phyllis were both getting to know each other. Phyllis was getting to know Walter more In terms of his job role and what he provides. In contrast, Walters intentions were quite different as he was attracted to her. This was before the murder was plotted. He asks for her name and what was engraved on her anklet, which was her name. They arrange a meeting for a later time whilst Walter tries his luck in trying to flirt with her. She makes it pretty clear that she is married by mentioning, ‘Suppose you try putting it on my husbands shoulder’, after he mentions that he would bust out crying and put his head on her shoulder, in a fantasizing manner.

Shadows And tones

Parallel lines

Contrast

Black white and grey

In this clip, he was getting a taxi to go home. This moment is a soliloquy as he was speaking to himself, brainstorming about his meeting with her and his personal senses, referring to the street – “A smell of honey suckle all along the street”. This could possibly mean that his journey to meeting Phyllis left a fragrant trail; happiness and admiration; He referred to her as “the red hot poker”. – Poker involves ranking and challenges which may reflect to Phyllis’s character and her games which she is playing with Walter. The terms ‘red hot’ , may suggest that she is unbearably attractive.

This is a screenshot of a 30 second clip of the movie which caught my attention. During this moment of the movie, Walter is leaving the house in disappointment as he discovers her real intentions behind the claim. Nevertheless, he is still besotted over her. The reason as to why I had chosen to focus on this specific scene is because there are a lot of shadows forming around Phyllis, creating a sense of suspense and dark-heartedness. The shadows may act as a concealer of identity, leaving the audience questioning her character. Overall, this scene is a great focus point due to the message it conveys and the artistic perspectives.

My initial response• During this scene in specific, as he was exiting, his shadow formed on the wall. Phyllis was looking at that direction. This image has great Depth of

field. There is greater attention to Walters shadow than Phyllis's head. This imagery gives an impression of authority and a predator finding its prey. This scenery also looks haunting; she isolates herself within shadows therefore her recent scandal has left her isolated with Walters shadows. This would lead to her being reminded about her crime every day when she is alone. Her soft/blurred image may symbolise her vulnerability and remorse. Walters slight crisp-to-soft shadow may suggest to Phyllis that he will be back constantly to haunt her.

How do I feel?• endangered • Paranoid• Suspenseful

What does it remind you of? This clip reminds me of the movie ‘The inspector calls’. The inspector calls is a play written by J.B Priestley which was also made into a movie. I had

watched this exam-based movie and wrote an essay about it for my end of year exams. The inspector calls was written after the first world war and explored a lot of controversy. Likewise to film noir, it referred to a historical period. During this time, The great depression and Holocaust had taken place and there were strong distinctions between the upper and lower classes. The inspector calls was set in 1912 and written in 1945, around the time when film noir evolved. During this era after war, women had earned a more valued place in society.

The inspector calls is based on a wealthy family who were all somehow involved in a killing of a girl named Eva Smith. An unknown man named Inspector Goole had interfered in their celebration, symbolising power and justice. He told everyone that he is an investigator of a murder which involved a girl named Eva. His character portrayed a sense of haunt and power. Similarly to the scene in ‘Double indemnity; the shadow of Walter shows a link with Inspector Goole as they both had made their presence to gain justice and a sense of haunt, reminding everyone about their crimes. Also, The inspector calls movie is also in black and white which could also link to film noir.

Artistic perspectives• The image is mainly grey with some black points• Different textures• Patterns on the door (symmetrical)• Blinds shadows and lighting • Chiaroscuro • Gradient effect of texture – Sharpness to softness

Film #2 – The cabinet of Dr Caligari

The second movie which I had watched was The cabinet of Dr. Caligari by Robert Wiene which was based in the 1920s. This movie was most famous for exploring the German expressionism and was known to be the first true horror movie. A man named Dr Caligari had announced during a fair that there was a figure named Cesare who has been sleeping in a coffin for 23 years since the day he was born. He claimed that his figure knew everyone's future and what would potentially happen in their lives, One man asked , “How long will I live?”. Cesare responded “At first dawn!”. There were three murders which took place however no one managed to gather who it was that committed the crime. A maiden named Jane who was the daughter of Dr Olsen, was looking for her father and was trapped. She was kidnapped by Cesare himself however did not die. Some people had noticed Janes absence and went looking for her and found her on the ground crying. She warned them that it was Cesare but everyone was in doubt as they thought he was sleeping in his box and never leaves. Eventually they capture cesare and kills him. However there is a twist in the end and it turns out that Caligari is the asylum doctor. After Cesares death, Caligari admits to his insane behaviour.

This is during the first scene and also my favourite scene of the movie. There is absolutely no spoken dialogue throughout the movie and it uses a lot of non-diegetic sounds (sounds from original sources within the image). The two men are telling a story to each other and notice this overwhelmingly beautiful yet frightening ray of light shining from within a woman dressed in white. She walks passed them as if she has seen right through them. The reason as to why I had chosen to focus on this scene is because it uses great levels of toning, shadows and contrast. It almost looks as though the scene/image is painted by the shadows. Also, it has great composition. After looking at this still scene, my first impressions were:

-It looks like she is a god-send

-Her vibrant long dress against the jagged background and beside the black-suited man shows contrast; possibly between both characters/social classes/good VS evil/symbol of love

It reminds me of

-The movie ‘The Exorcist’

-Christianity – Jesus Christ’s holy clothing and the scene of him walking on water

-In contrast, It also reminds me of medusa; the long shadows imitating snakes on her head, surrounding her ray

These are the stairs leading to Cesares cabinet. The parallel lines and shadows create interesting patterns which interact together to form a completely different invention. This reminds me of Pablo picasso due to his abstract and crisp art work filled with all kinds of imagination.

Experimental work | Sketches