The differeces between film noir and neo noir

Film noir and neo noir are films that date to the early 1940”s and continue into the twenty fist century.  You could say that a film noir and a neo noir will have similar but different elements; they both have a protagonist, corruption, cynical stories, flashback, and a voice over narrators, murder and a femme fatale. The difference will be that film noir is made in black and white, it has low-key lighting, filmed mostly at night, and the femme fatale is more seductive. Where neo noir is made in color; there will be some black and white scenes. More violence, nudity and harsher language, the emergence of a serial killer and the femme fatale is more independent, less reliable on men and it portrayed as pure evil and intelligent woman.

Let’s compare” Double Indemnity” a classic film noir and “Fight Club” a neo noir. With Double Indemnity you use your imagination. Sex is just a passionate kiss. If someone were to get shot it is not graphite. Its femme fatale is more evil, her seductive and sexuality is her main weapon in weaving her web around a man.  Now Fight Club a movie about a white collar male who forms a fight club underground. Fight Club will leave little for your imagination. The language is strong; there is sex, nudity, violence, bloody scenes. The femme fatale in Fight Club is a complete nut case that has a filthy mouth, not beautiful.

In Heather Fireman article she quotes “Noir is not just noir anymore-its evocative power is a kind of vernacular to deal with the condition of modern culture.”  I agree with what she said that noir is not just noir anymore, the kind of language neo noir uses is not enjoyable. 

Blog #5

                                       Dark City: Film Noir and Fiction

 Review of Double Indemnity (1944)

                                          By Christine Lui and Karl Hill

As I was reading, Christine Lui and Karl Hill review on the movie Double Indemnity. I came across one section of the article that caught my attention, it was how they had stated that beside there being a femme fatale there was also a homme fatale. A “homme fatale" would be the male equivalent of a "femme fatale". This was my first impression of Walter Huff in the movie and in the book. He was a man who needed to be in control of the situation, a charmer, some what cocky, felt that he was smarter then everyone else. There were times that he seemed to be pusher.

When Walter Huff had gone to the house of one of the client, he had charmed his way inside, once inside he met Mrs. Phyllis Nirdlinger. He states his business on; why he is there at the same time he is trying to push for Mr. Nirdlinger to renew the policy. As he was leaving he took Phyllis into his arm and kisses her taking control. Both the book and the movie, tells and shows how Walter takes control of the situation with the murder of Mr. Nirdlinger. Telling Phyllis that it must go this way, if not then it won’t work.

Walter Huff the homme fatale of Double Indemnity, using his charm just like a femme fatale, will do anything to get what he wants. But at the end dies for it. 

Walter and Phyllis Reunited Again

Walter Huff and Phyllis Nirdlinger are two people who appear to have an obsession for money. Walter Huff the insurance agent who seem to know how the system works when dealing with money. Phyllis Nirdlinger, the seductive women who will do anything for money. Will work together to murder Mr. Nirdlinger. In doing this he must take his trip by train, because a train accident will pay double indemnity. The murder has been committed. Walter and Phyllis do not see each other, due to the fact that Keyes (Walter boss) had a suspicion on who did it. He tells Walter that he suspect the wife and believe she had an accomplice. Walter knew he had to do something before the company starts to put two and two together.

He felt that Phyllis can hang him. So he decided that the only way to do away with her was to kill her. He had a plan to shot her but it back fired, instead he was shot. Keyes informed Walter that they got the two people that shot him, Lola and her boyfriend. Walter then admit to Keyes that he was the one who killed Mr. Nirdlinger, he felt by doing this it would clear Lola name with whom in had fallen in love with. Forgot to tell you Lola is Phyllis stepdaughter. She meet with Walter after her dad’s death, to tell him that she believes Phyllis was the on who killed her dad. Keyes had told Walter that he must give him a statement and that there will be a reservation for him on a steamer.

The last chapter with Walter and Phyllis whom he has come to hate are reunited on the ship unable to return to the U.S. on their way to Mexico. Contemplating suicide by jumping into the water infested by shark. Sitting looking at the sea, Phyllis says “There’s nothing ahead of us, is there Walter.” Walter replies, “No nothing” (p113). Then Phyllis again says, “Walter we’ll have to wait. Till the moon comes up.” Walter replies, “I guess we better have a moon” (pg114). The moon (pg 115).

 I felt that Walter and Phyllis should have had different treatment. They should have gotten a confession from Phyllis. Once they found out that she was invalided. But I guess Keyes know what he was doing when he reunited them. 

Second Thought (blog #3)

Second thought is when someone would start to think that an idea, or a relationship, may not be as good as it sound and are having doubts. How does this fit in with Walter feelings toward Phyllis. There are two unpleasant incidents that show how Walter’s attitude and emotions change. Then there is the final realization that indicates his true emotion.

The first incident is when Walter and Phyllis run into a problem with the husband. The husband was invited to his class reunion. But needed to take the train so that the plan can work, he refused. So Phyllis comes up with an idea, which was to crash the car. This way he had to take the train. Walter was not happy and got short-tempered with her. You had a sense of feeling that Walters’s attitude has changed; she was not following the plan. The other is, the day of the murder. The dirty deed was done and they were on there way home. Walter was telling Phyllis how to drive and she did not like that. They had a heated discussion to where Phyllis told him “Get out! Get out! (53). Again, you get the sense that the feeling they had toward each other is now starting to dissipate.

 The final realization is when Walter is at home putting the final touch on the plan. He then starts to think and knew what he has done was wrong by quoting “I had killed a man. I killed a man to get a woman. I had put myself in her power, so there was one person in the world that could point a finger at me, and I would die. I had done all that for her, and I never wanted to see her again as long as I lived” (54).

A man falls for a beautiful woman. She then convinces him to do a dirty deed. He then realize that it was all for nothing and takes the fall for it.    

Double Indemnity

In the article “Notes on Film Noir,” the author Paul Shrader describes the femme fatale “as a frustrated and deviant, half predator, half prey, detached yet ensnared, she manipulative and is ready to trade shots with anyone”.  With this statement, the reading does fit the film noir aspect. You read about a successful insurance salesman, Walter Huff, who happened to go out of his way to visit a client regarding renewing his policy. He then meets the wife, Phyllis Nirdlinger, a beautiful femme fatale, who will convince the insurance agent to commit her crime by murdering her husband in return she will promise him sex and money. The agent then fells for the femme fatale and agree to help her, knowing that he will risk losing his job. In the beginning of the story, you will read how Phyllis makes you believe that she is not an intelligent woman and does not know how to go by murdering her husband. You will also read how she, in her own way seduce Walter with her charm telling him that when they first meet she like how he went on talking about the insurance. With this manipulation, you will later read how she got Walter hooked. She is a good femme fatale, attractive and  has a destructive effect on Walter.

L.A Confindential (The Neo-Nior 90s article)

L.A. Confidential is a film noir that describe the corruption in Los Angeles in the 1950”s. It is ruled by corrupt politicians and the police who control the activities of the city for their own personal greed. The cops are sworn to uphold the law, and seek redemption in their search for the truth. In the Nite Owl Massacre, there are three very different not-yet-hero cops who are brought together to investigation the massacre. They all have different personalities with unique motivations. They search for the clues; their investigations begin to overlap until it becomes clear that each is after the same thing. In the process they will face their own evils and seek amends.

Bud White, is a cop who prone to violence. At times he takes the law into his own hands. Ed Exley, also a cop, seeks justice by abiding by the law. The golden boy of the police force turns his back on his fellow cops who are corrupt, ignoring the "brotherhood" and loyalty of the L.A. cops. Then there is Jack Vincennes a slick and likable narcotic detective always looking for fame and a quick buck by associating with a journalist.  The three protagonists are initially not heroes, but rather abuse women, take bribes and seek power. However, they are seen as L.A.'s finest-sworn to uphold the law and all three of them seek redemption bringing justice to Los Angeles. Now there is Lynn Bracken (a Veronica Lake look a like) the femme fatale who both Exley and White have an eye for. She is a prostitute who tends to help Bud White mend his errors.

L.A Confidential may not be in black and white but however many themes are still present. Such like immense corruption based on greed and ambition, the constant search for the truth in spite of its danger. The style of the car they drive, the style of the cloths they wear, and the storyline.