Film Noir

Created in the 1910's- 20's, film noir saw the merging of the german expressionism and the italian neo- realism. Two very disimilar ideas but merged to help start the ideas of film noir. The idea was used to help show the inner darkness and feelings of characters not just in the actor, but in the suroundings.

The ideas and influences for the movement was seen in the developments in theater, photography, paintings. these influences may be why people refured to it as painting on screen The idea wasn't originally suited to places like america but was embraced by the europe. However this changed in the 1940-50 when the film noir seemed to take over the american screens and therefore the films of the world. The term was first used by a french critic Nino Frank in 1946 and thus the name was born.

Film Noir was often used in films that had a rather dark tone to them. Often the followed a murder story of some sort. Film makers found that these were films that drew in audiences and were cheap to make due to the lak of needing to touch up of try to enhance the lighting on set and in the editing. Therefore they were made in abundance, and in a space of a decade the craze of film noir as over. However it influences can still be seen in fil today.

Film makers like Billy Wilder double indemnity 1944 directed one of the first big time noir films. One of the most iconic is Touch of evil 1958. A thriller to use a lot of the ideologies of the film noir was a film called Odds Aginst the Tommorow 1959 directed by Robert wise. An all time classic film made after the film noir craze but heavily relied on some if its ideas was Taxi Driver directed be Martine Scorsese 1976. Staring thriller icons such as Al pucino and Jodie Foster. Michel Mann is another director who has frequently used film noir influences in films like Heat. Most recently The dark knight directed by Christopher Nolan. All these films that i have mentioned above are classed as thrillers and all have paid homage to the movment of Film Noir. Its important influence is improssible to deny.