Guys who talk out of the sides of their mouths, calling women “broads” and “dames.” Detectives, crime, forbidden love, doomed lives. Dark alleys, sympathetic bad guys, strong and dangerous women, stark lighting, trapped characters and dim settings are all signs you might be watching a film noir.
These sophisticated films of the 1950s highlight the noir sensibility and the femme fatale.
Audrey Totter’s tough as nails persona radiated through the screen. Starting as a radio actor in Chicago and New York, she became a respected film actor with a searing gaze that was perfect for the film noir popular at the time.
Though I haven’t focused on it lately, I also write about films (often classics). I earned a master’s degree in cinema studies, really just for fun. Recently I was accepted into a stable of writers at Film Inquiry and they agreed to let me write a “Beginner’s Guide to Film Noir.” It was great fun…