Characters and Actors

Tahja Grimes is a talented actor who wanted to play the role of Ivy with no hesitation.

Conventions of Noir

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Detour 9 Frames

One

This 'smokey' scene uses smoke to make the actors hard to see, a technique used to make the audience feel like the scene is supposed to concealed from the law, or even other actors in the film. This scene is lit by one single wall lamp which is a conventional film noir technique. The use of a single light source creates many shadows and light areas, showing  a large contrast in colour or black and white in this case. Unfortunately, the smoke conceals the shadows and highlights created by the single light source. 

Two

The male protagonist is smoking whist playing the piano, this is a major stereotypical technique used in Film noir. The smoke can be used as a metaphorical way to conceal one's true identity. In addition the use of piano music is commonly associated with film noir. The jazz genre is the main type of music in film noir, simply because jazz music was commonly enjoyed at the time of release of the large, well known noir titles like Sunset Boulevard, Double Indemnity and Detour. This was the kind of music played by the main protagonist, who is in a high angle shot; allowing space at the top of the frame for the smoke from the cigarette to be shown. 

Three

This shot shows the Femme fatale and the male protagonist walking down the stairs outside the house. It shows her leading the way and him trailing behind. This shows that she has the dominating role in the 'relationship'. He is also using crutches because he cannot stand upright alone. This also makes him seem like a weaker individual in comparison to the female who takes centre  stage at the front of the shot.

Four

This close up of the mug shows one of the best examples of strong contrasting tones in film noir. It can be seen an object used to signify the characters personalities. In this scene, the male protagonist and the femme fatale are both talking to each other. The cut away to this mug signifies that both the male and the female have a dark side and a light side. The far side of the mug is a reversed version of the front side of the mug (in colour terms), meaning that the female is using her 'darker' side to fool the male's innocent side.

Five

Shot five is a single-source lit shot, which uses a spotlight to light up the faces of the male protagonist and the femme fatale. The sharp light is used to make them stand out from the background, which it does successfully.The light makes the whites look brighter and the darks look darker, further emphasising the film noir convention of having a strong colour contrast.

Six

The three-shot shows three main actors in focus while a conversation is held. This technique is lit by multiple sources of light which are need to ensure the footage is not dark. The venetian blinds in this shot are twisted and distorted. This could signify that things are not as normal, or even that there are problems that are about to arise.   

Seven

The seventh shows a dark shot, which is lit by car light; not industrial filming lights.

Eight

This shot uses another film noir convention, which shows an actor talking to someone behind them, whilst they look ahead, possibly considering their actions or watching something outside.  

Nine

 

This slightly lightened shot shows the male watching into the distance. This stereotypical shot is common in film as the viewer can get the feeling that

Double Indemnity 9 Frames

Neo Noir

A modern take on a Film Noir concept that is marked by a mood of pessimism, fatalism, menace, and cynical characters. This is an 'updated' more modern twist on Film Noir, it's continuing the classic Noir conventions but modernising it for current audiences and preferences.

Here are some examples of Neo Noir Films:

- Play It Again, Sam (1972)

- Black Widow (1987)

- Final Analysis (1992)

- Memento (2000)

- Collateral (2004)

- Brick (2005)

- Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)

- In Bruges (2008)

- Black Swan (2010)

- Drive (2011)