Neo-Noir Protagonist, Post 8

     Noir’s protagonist, film noir or neo-noir, are always associated with corruption. Both protagonists in the “The Kidnapper Bell” by Jim Pascoe and in “City of Commerce” by Neal Pollack are comprised of the down-and-out, morally corrupted, and all the known noir elements that showcase the unhealthy side of human life. Pascoe and Pollack immediately reveal their protagonist to be unscrupulous. Jim and Nick are obsessed in the fact that they are self serving and need to please their obsessions. Obsessions that lead them to entangling themselves in a very complex plot, yet both protagonists are able to walk away from these malignant events, but by no means altering their immoral compasses. Jim goes home and lays down next to his wife, trying to think of an explanation of how the bell ended up with him and what to say to his wife about the bell, yet when he is about to wake up his nights experience has not phased him. Parallel to Nick, who slightly thinks about his wife and career as he is driving out of the City of Commerce whose main focus and is on his next poker hand.  Based on Pascoe and Pollack short stories, neo-noir protagonists embody the classic film noir protagonist with an unscrupulous twist.

Noir and not so noir

     This is a little challenging, since all stories, a least I felt, did not completely fit the noir mold. However out of the four stories, I would have to say that Robert Ferrigino’s The Hour When the Ship Comes in, would best fit the mold of neo-noir. The story line begins when the protagonist is dying and slowly takes you through his condemned journey. This short story give an ambiance of noir, where as Brian Ascalon Roley’s story was a little more hard insinuate presents of neo noir. I had a hard time to finding noir elements in Kinship, this story of revenge, had me thinking what made it neo-noir? My guess that the saved sinner inflicting premeditated harm to another is what made the cut for this story to be featured in this book. I did enjoy reading all four stories but all weren’t so obvious of the film noir, the location was prominent, femme fatale was not so present, but you can feel the change to neo-noir in all these stories. The perverse attraction to demoralized human qualities is very evident in all the stories, which them so appealing and exciting.

 

Method VS Junction, Post 7

    The Method by Janet Fitch, hands down. I would recommend this story to anyone. Reading the story through the female protagonist felt like film noir and the best element that film noir has to offer. The way Fitch so elegantly composed her protagonist’s cynical attitude gave the protagonist the most defining feature and most attractive feature. The neo noir was very evident in the protagonist being a female and the way she did not get caught in the end. I was surprised that I actually liked this short story. Another element I liked about this story was that the “femme fatale” was played by a man! The way Fitch completely flip the script through this story was brilliant. There were so many elements that made this short story very appealing, like the way Fitch played out the stereotyped L.A. Midwest struggling starlet   in her protagonist, Holly. The ending of the story, I would have to say was very amusing, I especially liked the part of the story when she kneels down and still continues to talk to the contorted corpse whispering, ‘“I’m I good enough now, Richard?”’ What a monster.

     Morocco Junction was an interesting read because it had me wondering what different possible twists the story would have since both film noir and neo noir tend to have unforeseen twist , but the thoughts that I had where far more dramatic than the actual twists the story had. However, Patt Morrison did describe some typical stereotyping features in the help. The story was intriguing but had a subtle film and neo noir shock factor. Morocco Junction did have a stereotype of the millionaire, the way Morrison described how Eloise Davis killed herself so that her family would not be talked about. I can so see this happening in Beverly Hills.

     The two stories where intriguing in their own way. The Method in my opinion had more suspense and excitement along with having film noir element, which I enjoyed. Morocco Junction was more of a quiet version of neo noir and what I liked about that story was I could see that type of story unfolding in Beverly Hills

Film Noir VS Neo-Noir, Post 6

     The most common element between film noir and neo-noir is the criminal element. Crime is very evident in, Emory Holmes II’s, Dangerous Days and Denise Hamilton’s Midnight in Silicon Alley short stories. Homles opens his story by describing an urban setting filled with characters that have a great chance to be exposed to violence on a daily basis. Hamilton on the other hand immediately places you on the scene of violence. The protagonists in both the neo-noir stories are not the most honorable men, similar to that of the anti-hero protagonist found in film noir. Holmes and Hamilton also give the impression that the setting to their stories are taking place at night in an urban setting with the criminal activity taking place, which again can be found in film noir. Another element is murder and a detective role, Homles’ detective role is given to his protagonist, trying to solve his friend’s murder, where as Hamilton’s protagonist is murdered before he can even figure out who set him up. There is however some notable differences between this type of new noir from the classic noir stories, for instance the narrator and time period.

     The biggest notable difference between the two noir styles would have to be the lack of a relationship between the protagonist and the reader. When reading Double Indemnity the reader could feel as if they are part of the story through the narrator unlike the neo-noir where the reader definitely feels they are just being told a story. Another difference is the time period of neo-noir which is evident and is more current versus film noir which seem to take place in the past. Neo-noir is a little more relevant than film noir. An intriguing element that is also noticeable was in Holmes’ story, which was a little more vulgar than Hamilton’s story a big difference from film noir, which has to do to censoring.

     The femme fatale is of course present in both the noirs the role in neo-noir is not as strong as a character those from film noir, kind of sad to not be able to see how manipulative she can be in neo-noir.

     Both types of noirs give the thrill and suspension which keeps the reader hooked however I seem to favor the old classic film noir. Letting the reader’s imagination run wild, which for some of us can be more thrilling. Neo-noir has a more relevant feeling due to the time period of story settings, but lays it all out there and does not let the reader come to conclusions. As far as the femme fatale role I would have loved to have also felt the growth of hatred towards her in neo-noir, her role was cut too short unlike film noir. Most of all I really enjoyed building a relationship with the protagonist reminding me that I’m human and capable of having the same feelings and motives he or she was able to act upon, making the story a more horrifying yet suspenseful experience of film noir.

   

Man on Crutches & Film Noir Flashback, Post 4

   The opening credits scene for Double Indemnity was ingeniously done. The opening score of course sets the tone of the movie however without the image of the dark figure of a man hobbling with crutches towards you, one could not come to the conclusion, which is an immediate and strong indication of the man with the crutch’s fate. The word vulnerability comes to my mind when seeing this image of this man. Which brings up questions like who is being depicted in this scene? Whose vulnerability are we seeing? These questions are what make this scene powerful. Is it Mr.Nirdlinger/Dietrichson or Walter Huff/Neff vulnerability? I could understand many stating it is Mr. Nirdlinger/Dietrichson walking towards you because after all he is the one that has the broken leg and is the one that gets killed. However, I believe it is Walter dressed as Mr. Nirdlinger/Dietrichson , simply because this novel and film is about him. So it would make more sense for his vulnerability to be displayed in the beginning of the movie. Which is why I think that placing this faceless man in the beginning of the movie is so ingenious, making the audience ask why is this man with crutches being depicted during the credits? The visual impact of this scene is fitting for the movie because, even if you had not read the novel, the symbol of a man with crutches means the film is going to be about this vulnerable looking man.  

     The way you are being told the story through the criminal eyes makes this flashback technique dramatic. The flashback technique builds a relationship between the criminal and the audience, kind of like when you meet someone and them talking to you, you get to know them, which makes the audience more sympathetic and even begin rooting for him to get away with his crimes. In this film the flashback was required since the opening scene started with Walter with a bullet hole and needing to know the events that lead to his known fate. The impending doom and the all-knowing narrator are what help support the need for flashbacks and are characteristics of film noirs. The gloomy feel from this technique used in this film is what made it a film noir.