Of Dimes and Dames - The Mesmerizing World of Film Noirs

Welcome to the world of film noirs – a world infested by two-bit thugs and crooked cops, anti-heroes with a thing for cynical wisecracks, platinum blondes ready to take a good man on a bad ride, femme fatales in the garb of damsels in distress, shabby joints where men of dubious intents plot shady deals over cheap whiskey and cigarettes, seedy hotel rooms where love is just another word. This is a dark, dark world where you get greed, lust, betrayal, double crosses and murder in plenty – a world devoid of the so called good things of life.

A silhouetted man in dark overalls and hat; his shadows are large enough to be twice his size; smoke emanating from a half-burnt cigarette casually dangling from his mouth; near empty street engulfed in darkness; a solitary lamppost hardly managing to provide even a modicum of illumination; a sense of gloom and fatalism pervading the environ such that you know something very bad is going to happen very soon…

Welcome to the world of film noirs – a world infested by two-bit thugs and crooked cops, anti-heroes with a thing for cynical wisecracks, platinum blondes ready to take a good man on a bad ride, femme fatales in the garb of damsels in distress, shabby joints where men of dubious intents plot shady deals over cheap whiskey and cigarettes, seedy hotel rooms where love is just another word. This is a dark, dark world where you get greed, lust, betrayal, double crosses and murder in plenty – a world devoid of the so called good things of life. And to say that I find the sinful world of film noirs mesmerizing and intoxicating in equal measures would be an understatement.

Film noir is everything stated above and much more. As Mr. Eddie Muller aptly summed up in his essay at GreenCine, “Film Noir is the flip side of the all-American success story.” Film noirs form the perfect counterpoint to wartime and post-World War II America. On a historical standpoint, this was a time of fast money and faster morals. And this in turn formed the basis for a new found maturity and development in American cinema – a defining period that stretched the then censor board to its edge by presenting morally ambiguous tales in direct contrast to feel-good “Good wins over Evil” or “…and so they lived happily ever after” stories.

The most amazing aspect about this quintessentially American genre was that the creators of movies belonging to this genre weren’t conscious of the contribution that they would end up leaving, or for that matter didn’t deliberately intend to do something markedly different; it was more of a spontaneous reaction to the times they were living in. Coined by French film critics in the late 1940’s, the literal meaning of the phrase is ‘black movie’. Even though the origins of the genre lied in German Expressionism and American B-movies of the 20’s and 30’s, and themes typified by the genre continue to be made even today, they are however better known as proto-noirs and post-noirs, respectively. The classic Noir-era, on the other hand, has been largely accepted to have lasted only a couple of decades – 40’s and 50’s.

Interestingly a number of critics refuse to call film noirs a genre per se; rather, they prefer to call it a combination of type, theme, tone and style. And they do have a point, because if we look closely, we’ll find film noirs encompassing a whole range of genres, including psychological dramas, crime thrillers, romantic mysteres, detective movies, gangster films, melodramas et al. It would be dicey to accept or reject a movie as noir for the simple reason that its scope is too wide to be limited by a list of parameters. The noir-status is thus as much defined by the story as much as by how the story is told.

Even though, as I mentioned above, it is often difficult to distinctly classify film noirs because they overlap with a host of genres, there do exist a number of iconic elements and attributes which we immediately associate with this particular genre. The first and foremost of these is high-contrast black-and-white cinematography, or an interplay between light and shadows, better known as chiaroscuro. Film noirs are known for their moody, downbeat, bleak, nihilistic atmosphere, and this got specifically highlighted, in large effects, due to the high contrast images, oblique camera angles, silhouettes, shadows and point-of-view (POV) shots. Another facet or archetype typically associated with movies belonging to this genre is hard-boiled dialogues laced with cynicism, disillusionment and bitterness. The plots were often Byzantine in nature, making complex use of flashbacks. Further, a number of film noirs were psychological in nature, thus requiring the use of voice-overs. Doomed anti-heroes or wisecracking Private Investigators and dangerously beautiful, albeit back-stabbing, femme fatales were two of the most iconic identifiers of the genre, though a number of noir movies had neither.

Filmmakers usually associated with this genre include Billy Wilder, Otto Preminger, Orson Welles, Fritz Lang, John Huston, Nicholas Ray, Jacques Tourneur, Robert Siodmak, etc. Interestingly, a number of them were émigrés. Pulp fiction formed a favourite source, and thus masters like Raymond Chandler, James M. Cain, Dashielle Hammett and Mickey Spillane were the most adapted novelists.

I can’t say I’ve watched ‘em all, but I’ve watched a few good ones nonetheless. I'd like to recommend the following 10 film noirs to neophytes willing to explore this legendary movie genre.

Listed below (in the order of their year of release)

Casablanca (1942, dir. Michael Curtiz)

The general populace might call it one of the greatest tales of romance ever seen on screen, but for me it was film noir all right. A laconic, embittered, deeply cynical anti-hero who sticks out his neck for nobody, and of all the gin joints in all the world, a devastatingly beautiful lady out of his past lands in his. I’d say this is classic noir.

Double Indemnity (1944, dir. Billy Wilder) A cynical, smooth-talking insurance agent gets seduced into killing a blonde bombshell’s husband. One of the most arresting depictions of the classic noir template. Promise of dame and dimes can really make even the most intelligent of men do bad or stupid things, or as in this case, both. Not surprisingly, he neither gets the lady nor the loot. Laura (1944) Whoever thought a girl could be more enigmatic and captivating when dead than when she was alive! A cop, investigating the alleged murder of a young and beautiful socialite, ends up getting seduced by the dead girl’s portrait. From there on things can only get dark and obsessive. Throw in a few ambiguous characters and a dark atmosphere, and voila, you have a delicious noir.

The Killers (1946, dir. Robert Siodmak)

A former pugilist meekly surrenders to his assassins one dark night. An insurance agent, investigating the ensuing payment of a paltry sum ends up uncovering the double cross to end all double crosses. And before long he is apprised of Kitty Collins, arguably one of the most iconic, lethally beautiful femme fatale ever seen on screen, the mere acquaintance with whom can get you in trouble, or worse, get you killed.

Out of the Past (1947, dir. Jacques Tourneur)

You may escape many a thing, but you can’t ever escape your past, especially ones that can be officially described with the epithets sordid and seedy. A laconic former private investigator, who made the fatal mistake of taking a dangerously beautiful femme fatale to be a damsel in distress, has only one way to clean up his past mess – by messing up some more.

The Asphalt Jungle (1950, dir. John Huston)

It was supposed to be the perfect bank robbery; but then, aren’t they all? What starts as a supposedly fool-proof plan and a veteran crook’s last big deal, soon starts going haywire at the first given opportunity. A dark and nihilistic examination of the fickleness of human existence, the crook learns the hard way that savouring a thing of beauty for that extra second might be the difference between freedom and jail.

In A Lonely Place (1950, dir. Nicholas Ray)

A terse and claustrophobic psychological thriller, this could very well be the cinematic equivalent of Camus’ Outsider. Doesn’t matter if you are guilty or not, if you don’t show enough grief or sorrow, you’re bloody well worse than a criminal. A fading screenwriter, given to violent paroxysms, learns this hypocritical norm of society the hard way.

Sunset Boulevard (1950, dir. Billy Wilder)

If there ever was a more unflinching, shiver-inducing, pungently cynical insider’s look into the hollow dream factory called Hollywood, this is it. A two-bit screenwriter lands up into the house of a once famous, now forgotten, screen goddess, and from there on things get bad… very bad. Here’s to your close-up.

Ace in the Hole (1951, dir. Billy Wilder)

If you ever thought journalists are one ethical bunch, think again; as they say, there’s no news like bad news. If there isn’t a scoop, feel free to create one. Perhaps one of the most scathing attacks on the news hungry world of yellow journalism. If you’re in the papers, you gotta be famous – doesn’t matter if you pay for it with your life.

Les Diabolique (Fr, 1955, dir. Henry-Georges Clouzot)

This movie proved that the French weren’t just good at coining terms (read ‘film noir’), they were good at dabbling in them too. A naïve wife, a brute of a husband, a cunning vixen, a cold blooded murder that might not have taken place in the first place – what more could one ask for? Bring ‘em on.

Listed below are 10 neo-noirs to savour:

A Bout de Soufflé/Breathless (Fr, 1960, dir. Jean-Luc Godard)

Many people considered film noirs as nothing more than B-movies; French intellectuals disagreed vehemently. Hence the brilliant movie that literally kick-started the iconoclastic French New Wave movement is also one of the greatest homages ever paid to the iconic American genre.

Psycho (1960, dir. Alfred Hitchcock)

Comprising of one of the most famous murder sequences ever filmed on screen, this was not just an incredibly dark extrapolation of methods into madness, it also comprised of one of the most unforgettable MacGuffins ever concocted. Looking for some surprises? Welcome to Bates’ Motel. And to think of it, it was all for Mommy.

Tirez Sur Le Pianiste/Shoot the Piano Player (Fr, 1960, dir. Francois Truffaut)

With the classic story of a good man on the run, at its disposal, the movie forms a fascinating blend of the American genre with freewheeling French sensibilities. Never before has a movie been more genre-bending or comprised of such delectable humourous asides, references or conversations.

Kapurush/The Coward (Ind, 1965, dir. Satyajit Ray)

A movie screenwriter, while on a trip, ends up in the house of a wealthy man married to his former fiancé. Then he didn’t have the courage to marry her; alas, now all he has is lots of still burning flame and a very cold lady. A dark and compelling character study, it proved that the era of film noirs might have ended more than a decade back, but its influence was still more palpable than ever before even half-way across the globe.

Chinatown (1974, dir. Roman Polanski)

The secret recipe for a terrific noir movie – a cynical, wisecracking P.I. with morals to match, and a blond seductress hiding a deadly secret. The movie didn’t just have one hell of a plot, it also had a truly memorable climax. Is it ironic or plain simple coincidence, that there’s a Chinatown in every major city of the world?

Raging Bull (1980, dir. Martin Scorsese)

Once Eminem wondered, if you ever had an opportunity, would you take it, or would you let it just go. Well, here’s a man who chose the second option. A great pugilist in the making, he throws it all and shows us what not to do with your life. A brilliant character study ensues. As they say, if things can go wrong, they usually do.

Basic Instinct (1992, dir. Paul Verhoeven)

If you haven’t been living in Mars for the last couple of decades, I’m sure you know how a certain drop-dead-beauty once uncrossed her legs while lighting a cigarette. The detective who arrested her in the first place, ends up falling to her inescapable charm hook, line and sinker. But then, had I been in his place, I’m sure I wouldn’t have acted differently either.

White (Pol, 1994, dir. Krzystof Kieslowsli)

Watching this black comedy you might wonder why the hell the movie goes by the name ‘White’. But then the colour white also stands for equality, and by spinning an elaborate and stupendous scheme, a humiliated man gets even with his vixen of a wife in spectacular fashion. Revenge sure is a dish best served cold.

Memento (2000, dir. Christopher Nolan)

Want to test your analytical abilities? Watch this mind-bending thriller. Narrated in reverse direction, the labyrinthine tale of a man, suffering from short term memory loss, trying to avenge his wife’s murder, will leave you dumbfounded – both literally and figuratively. Throw in a slippery con man and a venomous femme fatale, and you have one of the most devilishly inventive thrillers ever made.

The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001, dir. Joel and Ethan Coen)

If you ever wondered what wry humour meant, watch this brilliant black comedy and a marvellous recreation of 40’s noir. A laconic barber, with an adulterous wife and promise of lots of dough, commits a murder, and then commits a few more. Ironically he ends up paying for a crime he never committed. That's the irony for you!