Film Noir as a Cinematic Style

Film Noir as a cinematic style is more dependent on nonverbal and visual effects than more conventional content oriented films. As Paul Schrader points out, film noir was "first of all a style because it worked out its conflicts visually rather than thematically; because it was aware of its own identity, it was able to create artistic solutions to sociological problems" (13). Film noir films show a "heightened concern for set design, composition, lighting, and camerawork. This narrative technique made not only a film's characters but also its individual world, its mise-en-scene to speak for itself" (Schatz 113). Jules Dassin's 1950 black and white film Night in the City is a perfect example of the film noir mise-en-scene. The film's visual style conveys its meaning, and always serves its theme, characters and conflicts. The sense of desperation and alienation is expressed so vividly by the mise-en-scene that words almost seem superfluous.

The film's protagonist Harry Fabian (Richard Widmark) is in a situation typical of noir anti-heroes. He is trapped in a violent world, and he cannot escape the conventions of that world or the consequences of his actions. Dassin shows Fabian's predicament visually. There are many scenes in which Fabian's face is framed in uneven fragments of light, that look like prison bars behind which he is trapped. And there is no way out for him.

In order to examine the mise-en-scene of this film, a description of the plot and characters

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Category: Film - F