What makes a Film Noir?

The conventions and codes of a film noir are reflective of the social atmosphere at the time. Film noir encompassed the darkness of the time, catalysing it in its visual and narrative styles, taking on the heart of darkness left by the Second World War. Abraham Polonsky cited it as "An extraordinary, horrible war. Concentration camps, slaughter, atomic bombs, people killed for nothing. That can anybody a little pessimistic."

Film noir possessed a very defining visual style, according to Duncan "When I think of Film Noir, I think of stillness and silence. I think of a pure black screen with tiny pinpricks of white trying to break through". Low-key lighting, shadows (including distortion of characters i.e. Venetian Blind chiaroscuro), stark lighting contrasts and deep-focus cinematography. The manipulation of cinematography was frequent, including unconventional camera angles and panning techniques as well as the simple juxtaposition of key elements in the composition of the shots. The visuals are, succinctly, gloomily shadowed and disorienting.

The narrative conventions of film noir are vast. The storylines of film noirs are generally similar, often taking ideas or entire narratives from the hard-boiled 'pulp' fiction of the era. The films were not expensive to make, reflected by the recycling of sets and storylines. The films adopted bleak, despairing and often melancholy moods, following a protagonist (often something of an anti-hero) on his journey, mixing with the corruption of the police, the greed of the criminal underworld and the vast darkness of everyday society. The heroes were often morally ambiguous, sardonic and simply hard-done-by. They were characterised by gruff, brooding and even sinister portrayals by actors of the era, such as John McGuire and Fred Macmurry.

The Femme Fatale is a notable trademark of the film noir. She is the hero's downfall, appearing as a beautiful, duplicitous women. She starkly contrasts the 'right girl', the love of the hero's life, a reliable and understanding woman, the femme fatale offering nothing but lust and in some cases financial gain. The femme fatale, literally 'deadly woman', double-crosses the protagonist in her own desperation. She is known to have already made her choice, and has no account for who falls in her attempts to fulfill it.

Narrative conventions included elliptical, often non-chronological storylines. Convoluted, complex narratives were commonplace, involving twisting plotlines with flashbacks, sharp acerbic dialogue and first-person protagonist narration.