Storylines Of Film Noir

Typical Film Noir storylines were often detective stories as the atmosphere was dark and frightening, smoke was often used to emphasise the atmosphere.

The prospect of having a woman villain was also common in film noir as she would have used clever, persuasive and manipulative ways to get what she desired; bringing danger and making especially the men around her ignore their values as she wraps them around her little finger. This type of character was named the Femme fatale; this also brought some change among the male and family roles. The Femme Fatale also often has a hatred for men, which is one of their reasons for committing their crimes. This character is usually shot with a low angle shot which means that the audience and the other characters are looking up to her, this gives her more power. While the hero who falls in love with her if shot from a high angle to show that she looks down on him and to portray his lack of power towards her.

Film Noir also plays with the orders of the storyline as it would often end with the same scene it started with such as in "Sunset Boulevard" This makes the audience confused but it also allows the character to take the audience on a journey.

“A woman with a past and a man with no future” Is a phrase that somehow sums up most of the plot of a typical Film Noir movie.

The narrative focuses on a downwards spiral, a streak of bad luck or a wrong decision made by the protagonist. This leads to conflict and getting involved with the wrong people like the femme fatale. This often has to do with murders, drugs and obssession.