L.a Confidential Film Noir Essay - 978 Words

The Key Conventions Of Film Noir In L.A Confidential L.A Confidential (Curtis Hanson, 1997) is a neo-noir film about a shooting at an all night diner and the three Las Angeles policeman who investigate in their own unique ways. It is based on the book by James Ellroy and after a very well adapted screenplay, won nine academy awards. It starred actors with big names like Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce and Danny Devito, which made it a very high earning film. The Narrative or storyline is much the same as any other film noir movie. It has a ‘hard boiled cop (Russell Crowe) who we grow attached to. The narrative of any film must have certain ‘key conventions which are apparent for the audience to tell the genre of the film. The†¦show more content†¦Danny Devito is perfect in this role because he has quite a seedy voice this is good to illustrate the sleaziness of film-noir, it shows the real voice of L.A. The setting of film noir is usually quite cheap. This is used effectively to actually show the dark tacky parts of society where film-noir usually takes place. There is not a lot of light in these films and they are often set on location. A seedy underworld is often present in film-noir movies, where all the bad or undesirable parts of society are exposed. Things like drugs, alcohol, murder and corruption. In my analysis I will be looking at a scene near the end of the film where Bud White and Ed Exeley take part in a shootout at the victory motel. The narrative conveys very common noir aspects here; the shootout takes place in a very dark room. The only light comes from outside. This shows the mood of the scene to be sinister and bleak. It puts the audience in a scared state as the shadows can conceal anything. It is also hard to see what White and Exeley are doing. The shadows are very menacing because they use a chiaroscuro lighting effect. This means that the rooms, people and settings are hidden from view by shadows. The blinds over the window cast strong grid shadowing over the characters showing uncertainty and anxiety. This lighting is very common in film-noir films as it shows the seediness of the settings. TheShow MoreRelatedElements of Film Noir between the Movies Maltese Falcon, Chinatown, and L.A. Confidential572 Words   |  2 Pagesof the elements of Film Noir between the movies Maltese Falcon, Chinatown, and L.A. Confidential. This will also discuss if Chinatown and L.A. Confidential remain true to the classical form or if they are in the baroque level of genre. This essay will also identify these discussions using examples for each film. Maltese Falcon could be explained more precisely as transitional films that mark limitations amongst true film noir and film that may have some elements or none noir. Maltese Falcon presentsRead MoreBaz Luhrmann s The Great Gatsby934 Words   |  4 Pagesthis semester, we have watched a variety of films. 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The screenwriter is a student in University of California, Irvine who has studying Noir film for several months. The protagonist, is a freelancer journalist, is influence by the several films such as L.A Confidential, which creates the press as greedyRead More Dames, Coppers, and Crooks: A L:ook At Film Noir Essay2891 Words   |  12 PagesCrooks: A Look At Film Noir nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Film noir is a style of black and white American films that first evolved in the 1940s, became prominent in the post-war era, and lasted in a classic â€Å"Golden Age† period until about 1960. Frank Nino, a French film critic, first coined the label film noir, which literally means black film or cinema, in 1946. Nino noticed the trend of how â€Å"dark† and black the looks and themes were of many American crime and detective films released in FranceRead More Christopher Nolans Memento Essay5013 Words   |  21 Pagesarray of commercial triumphs (The Mummy Returns) and disappointments (Pearl Harbor). It was heartening to film fans that a classic sleeper could still find room in a marketplace filled with bloated extravaganzas nurtured by gray-suited Hollywood greedheads. Unbenost to the gray-suits, the per-screen average for writer/director Christopher Nolans Memento -- a challenging art-house noir made for $5 million and released by a novice dis tributor -- was but $2 less than the per-screen average of Pearl