Generic Conventions
Camera and Composition
Within a Film Noir there are a lot of different camera angles and use of composition makes them more interesting to watch. A common camera angle used in a film noir is low angle shots as they make the object or the character appear more powerful, this is commonly used for the femme-fatal and the anti hero as it shows there level of power they have as the film progresses. Dutch angle shots are also used a lot to give a sense of unease for the characters,they are shots which are slightly tilted instead of being vertical or horizontal. Another common camera angle is framing.
Editing
The most common convention of noir films, is that it starts at the end and uses flashbacks to tell the story. Most scenes a shot during day but use dark filters as it is cheaper. In films like 'Black Dalia' which have been made recently they are shown in colour but use dull filters to create as sense of fear and make the audience feel uneasy. There is not much editing in film noir as they did not have the money or technology at the time, so most of the editing is done using filters.
Sound
the music in noir films is mostly used to create a sense of uneasiness or create tension. The common type of music used is jazz as it is quite downbeat and at the time people were scared of jazz and the people that played it which were black. Most if not all noir films use silence to create supsense. Usually during flashbacks there is a voice over of the everyman. The music is usually made by instruments as they did not have the technology in the 1940's.
Mise-en-scene
The common setting of a film noir is an urban location and dark alleys. The use of urban locations shows that it is more realistic as the setting is just a everyday location. The lighting is one of the most important parts of a film noir as for the visual style they use low key lighting. A common convention is the use of venetian blinds, as the light shines through and crates a shadow on a characters face giving a mysterious atmosphere. Another common prop using is cigerrettes and smoke to show danger and mainly as the dangers of smoking was not know then.
Characters
In a film noir the common characters are:
Editing
The most common convention of noir films, is that it starts at the end and uses flashbacks to tell the story. Most scenes a shot during day but use dark filters as it is cheaper. In films like 'Black Dalia' which have been made recently they are shown in colour but use dull filters to create as sense of fear and make the audience feel uneasy. There is not much editing in film noir as they did not have the money or technology at the time, so most of the editing is done using filters.
Sound
the music in noir films is mostly used to create a sense of uneasiness or create tension. The common type of music used is jazz as it is quite downbeat and at the time people were scared of jazz and the people that played it which were black. Most if not all noir films use silence to create supsense. Usually during flashbacks there is a voice over of the everyman. The music is usually made by instruments as they did not have the technology in the 1940's.
Mise-en-scene
The common setting of a film noir is an urban location and dark alleys. The use of urban locations shows that it is more realistic as the setting is just a everyday location. The lighting is one of the most important parts of a film noir as for the visual style they use low key lighting. A common convention is the use of venetian blinds, as the light shines through and crates a shadow on a characters face giving a mysterious atmosphere. Another common prop using is cigerrettes and smoke to show danger and mainly as the dangers of smoking was not know then.
Characters
In a film noir the common characters are:
- The everyman(Anti-hero)
- The femme-fatal
- The girl next door
- the henchman/henchmen
- Villan
there are variety of other characters and there are few which are used a lot such as:
- Detectives
- Gangsters
- Police/corrupted
- beautiful women
- assassins
The everyman is usually a white american in his late 30's, so the audience can relate to him and imagine they are in the action as well, this is because the audience is most likely to be white americans in there late 30's. The everyman is always tricked or seduced in some way by the femme-fatal so she can get the everyman to commit crimes to benefit them.
Narrative
The plot of film noire mostly start at then end with the everyman, and he has flashbacks to tell his story of how he ended up in some sort of bad situation. Some common narratives consist of:
- Murder
- drugs
- gangsters
- sexual obsession
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