Film Noir

Film Noirs were considered as the Hollywood Crime Dramas. These started in the 1940s/1950s where their main style was using low and high key lighting. However their unique genre incorporated mainly low key lighting as this created a dull, mysterious and gloomy effect. It was their primary style. Low key lighting involves mainly back lights to create the shadows.

The light and dark contrasts creates dramatic scenes where one could connote that there may be two personalities in a character which creates that mystery in film noir. This genre have very distinctive an iconic uses of lighting such as light shining through blinds to create a lined effect and banister rods which creates a partial on the character or set.

An Italian word, ‘Chiaroscuro’ means the use of light and dark pictorial representation which was a term to describe film noir’s lighting style. A sub genre from film noir was classic noir where they heavily use the effects of purely black and white cinematography.

Overall, film noir with the use of lighting is accompanied by low and wide angle shots to create ‘dark’ scenes. To enhance this, they shoot through frosted glass, distorting objects or even a couple of mirrors to create reflections of light and characters. Film noir like to use the reality of shooting for example, shooting a night scene at night rather than movies today which are purely are manmade settings.

Film Noir Photo – Big Combo 1955

 From this image you can clearly tell that low key lighting is heavily used because from the background one big back light is used to enhance the silhouette effect of the two characters. It also enhances the smoke around them to create a mysterious and deserted setting which is the main feature in film noir.  

Focusing on the characters, as we can’t see their own features as audience we could connote many things about the storyline and the actors themselves. Using stereotypical views, you could suggest that as the man is wearing a hat could represent richness however this can be ironic as through the shadows he seems to have an inferior presence compared to the woman as he is portrayed smaller. In the same respect, the woman seems to be kept to herself to show nervousness in her character and the setting because of the smoke and casual pose of the man. Overall, lighting in the picture plays an overall effect on how we as the audience connote it.

Momentum – Never Answer the Phone

This scene seems to be quite natural with the use of high key lighting however when the camera used a close up of the face, you could see a distinctive shadow, half was dark and half was brightened by the light. Using film noir’s main features, the light coming through the window was distorted by the curtains which created a softer light emphasising the darkness in the room more. You could connote that the main character has two personalities, one that he is the victim and the other that he has caused trouble and ‘revenge’ is returning back to him. This is the effect that film noir movies create on us as the audience.

As the tattoo is revealed there is a contrast of light and dark shadows, you could connote that as an enigma code it represents both negative and positive attributes. This film was considered as a neo noir as it was quite modern in the actual shooting of it however still creates gloomy mysterious scenes throughout.