FILM NOIR: CODES AND CONVENTIONS

By George Peek

Noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classical film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s. Film noir of this era is associated with a low-key blackand-white visual style that has roots in German Expressionist cinematography. The term film noir, French for "black film, first applied to Hollywood films by French critic Nino Frank in 1946.Although film noir was originally associated with American productions, films now so described have been made around the world. Many pictures released from the 1960s onward share attributes with film noir of the classical period, and often treat its conventions self-referentially. Some refer to such latter-day works as neo-noir. The clichs of film noir have inspired parody since the mid-1940s.

cinematography
Noir cinematography is often distorted skewed and uncomfortable to look at, to put the viewer at unease. This reflects the tone of noir Low and high angles

Cinematography 2
Extreme close ups

Deep focus

Cinematography 2

Mise-en-scene

Mise-en-scene
Low key lighting and the use of venetian blinds

High contrast images ,dark black and white with some grays

Mise-en-scene
Everyday urban locations

Sound

Editing

Narratives

Characters