Film Noir
Before taking this class I was not really sure exactly what Film Noir was. I knew that they were all black and white films, but I was not sure what distinguished Film Noir from other black and white films. Film Noir means black film in french. Film Noir's were mostly made in American between the years of the 1940s-1950s. Specifically 1941-1958. It is hard to define this genre. I read that the french were the first to recognize a movement in American film at this time before and after WWII. What I have noticed is that the films usually have something to do with crime, corruption, a femme fatal, some type of love triangle confusion, and death. the main female character always seems to be scheming and have a few tricks up her sleeve, unlike women in movies after this period that just sat their and looked pretty.In the strange love of MarthaIvers , Martha is the ultimate femme fatal, she manipulates the people around her and intimidates her husband into doing what she wants, and she lives in fear that everyone will find out that she killed her aunt. Or in Sunset BLVD Norma Desmond is in such an illusion that she is still a big star that she ends up killing poorGillis . I have really enjoyed watching these films, this is my favorite genre so far. I really liked the Maltese Falcon, I think that this movie had every part of thequintisential aspects of film noir all wrapped up in one movie. Sam spade was the hero cop that solves the crime, Mr. Gutman was the criminal that was chasing the falcon that Sam Spade was trying to capture and Mrs. Brigid O'Shaughnessy was the femme fatal who was in trouble with Gutman and wanted the falcon, but most of all almost took Sam Spade down.
Before taking this class I was not really sure exactly what Film Noir was. I knew that they were all black and white films, but I was not sure what distinguished Film Noir from other black and white films. Film Noir means black film in french. Film Noir's were mostly made in American between the years of the 1940s-1950s. Specifically 1941-1958. It is hard to define this genre. I read that the french were the first to recognize a movement in American film at this time before and after WWII. What I have noticed is that the films usually have something to do with crime, corruption, a femme fatal, some type of love triangle confusion, and death. the main female character always seems to be scheming and have a few tricks up her sleeve, unlike women in movies after this period that just sat their and looked pretty.In the strange love of MarthaIvers , Martha is the ultimate femme fatal, she manipulates the people around her and intimidates her husband into doing what she wants, and she lives in fear that everyone will find out that she killed her aunt. Or in Sunset BLVD Norma Desmond is in such an illusion that she is still a big star that she ends up killing poorGillis . I have really enjoyed watching these films, this is my favorite genre so far. I really liked the Maltese Falcon, I think that this movie had every part of thequintisential aspects of film noir all wrapped up in one movie. Sam spade was the hero cop that solves the crime, Mr. Gutman was the criminal that was chasing the falcon that Sam Spade was trying to capture and Mrs. Brigid O'Shaughnessy was the femme fatal who was in trouble with Gutman and wanted the falcon, but most of all almost took Sam Spade down.
