Helen Keller believed, “Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold.”
Film Noir is described in the Gage Canadian Dictionary as, “…a movie that is shot in sombre tones, often set in corrupt, urban environment, and characterized by a mood of cynicism, despair, and fatalism.”
Our city looks like a scene from one of those classics in the genre of Film Noir when a light rain is falling, the raindrops lit by the streetlamps. I’m also reminded of this kind of movie on an October night when the leaves are being carried by the wind along a deserted street.
There is a whole list of films that fit right into the genre of Film Noir. Some of the best that truly define the category are shot in black-and-white, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enhance the mood with color. These are but a few: “The Asphalt Jungle,” “The Big Heat,” “The Maltese Falcon,” and ”The Postman Always Rings Twice.” There is a new variation on the same theme called Contemporary Noir with films such as, “Against All Odds,” “Blade Runner,” “Blue Velvet,” “Cape Fear,” “Chinatown,” “L.A. Confidential,” “Pulp Fiction,” and a whole host of others, including the most recent addition, Frank Miller’s “Sin City.” The violence in some of them is implied while others have the violence right over the edge, right in your face, like the extremely dark and disturbing “Sin City.” The love scenes are usually steamy. For our purposes tonight on the show, though, the best are those that hint at the passion, that have a certain romantic tension. When things heat up, the blinds are drawn, the lights turned down, the door closes, leaving what’s to come to our imagination.
The characters are colorful even if the film is shot in black-and-white. The male lead has a day’s growth of beard, usually comes with a checkered past and, more often than not, is battling some inner demons. These leads are rugged types ready to lend a strong shoulder. They also know the difference between right and wrong and seem not afraid to make that choice.
The female leads are usually mysterious with their own host of issues that need resolving. Some are very strong characters played by strong actresses. Bette Davis comes to mind as the perfect actress to be cast in one of these roles. Mary Astor is another actress to give a strong performance, and let’s not forget Lauren Bacall.
In the Contemporary Noir category, Kim Basinger, Cameron Diaz, and Jessica Biel fit the bill. At first you might be unsure what the real motives are behind the story of the lead actress. The bad guys, however, are just that. They seem to have no redeeming qualities. The writers and directors want to create a clear boundary between the two opposing sides. Peter Lorre made a great villain. He fits the description perfectly and so did Edward G. Robinson. There is something about the male lead that suggests he could momentarily cross over in order to get the job done.
Tonight at 9, a tribute to the genre since October 3rd marked the anniversary of the premiere of “The Maltese Falcon.” I’ll be featuring some thoughts on Humphrey Bogart’s best film moments and his romance with Lauren Bacall.
Raymond Chandler in his 1940 “The Simple Art Of Murder” wrote, “Down these mean streets a man must go who is not himself mean.“
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Don Jackson
