Characteristics of Film Noir

The Characteristics of Film Noirs are very similar to the German Expressionistic style; the films were shot in low-key lighting, distortion, dark shadows and deep focus.

 Retrieved from Double Indemnity (Wilder, B. 1944)

Retrieved from Sunset Boulevard (Wilder, B. 1950)

The primary moods of film noir are melancholy, alienation, bleakness, disillusionment, disenchantment, pessimism, ambiguity, moral corruption, evil, guilt, desperation and paranoia.

Most Noir films portray the protagonist state of mind, his desires, obsessions and anxieties. The shots usually are the viewpoint of the protagonist and his psychological state of mind. There is usually a twist in the narrative for example the victim might be the hunter or vice versa. There is no happy ending in most noir films. The protagonist of a film lacks the usual characteristics of a typical hero, but is someone whom the audience identifies. The character is often confused or conflicted with ambiguous morals, and lacks courage, honesty, or grace. . The protagonists in film noir were normally driven by their past or by human weakness to repeat former mistakes.The anti-hero can be tough yet sympathetic, or display vulnerable and weak traits.

The main noir element is the female fatal, who is seductive and dangerous; they are portrayed to weaken the male protagonist. During the war years the number of women that join the labour force was unsettling to many Americans, it showed that women are capable to have a powerful image, most noir films portrayed that in the beginning the women took on murderous roles. The films portrayed the predatory sexuality or psychological strength of the female but male dominance was always restored by the film's climax.

Film noir usually takes place in an urban setting, like New York or Los Angeles at bars, clubs or dim light alleys and the weather would usually be rainy. Flashback and flash-forward are also used a lot in Noir films to provide background on current scene, sometimes voice over narration is used. Film noir shows the dark and inhumane side of human nature and doomed love, it emphasizes the brutal, unhealthy, seamy, shadowy, dark and sadistic sides of the human experience. A harsh atmosphere of danger, doubt, anxiety, and suspicion that anything can go wrong, gray area of realism, hopelessness, and defeat are the characteristics of film noir.