Touch of Evil (1958)

This film directed by and starring Orson Welles (who you might know as the director of Citizen Kane, the guy who narrated the famous radio broadcast of War of the Worlds, and/or the voice of Unicron in the 1986 animated Transformers movie) is a pretty important movie if for no other reason than for the opening scene. Did you notice how many cuts were in that scene? If not, watch it again (click here) and check it out. That scene would have been so freaking hard to shoot. I salute all the actors and crew who worked on it.

I (Josh) have personally loved this film for some time but didn't use to think of it as a film noir (mostly because Charlton Heston's character seems too good and heroic to be the protagonist of a noir) but since it shows up on so many lists of best film noirs, we thought we'd show it and see what you think. Is it a noir or is it not? Why?

Also, I would like to point out right now that Heston's portrayal of a Mexican is rivaled only by John Wayne's performance as the Mongolian conquerer Ghengis Kahn. Also, Orson Welles is very fat in this movie (if you didn't notice).

Asphalt Jungle (1950)

This ensemble heist film, based on the novel by W.R. Burnett, starred Sterling Hayden, Jean Hagen, Sam Jaffe, Louis Calhern, and James Whitmore. Oh yeah, and some no-name actress named Marilyn Monroe (her name wasn't on the poster because she wasn't as big as all those other guys). I see this film as the Ocean's Eleven of its day: a bunch of big name actors star in a movie about a group of people trying to steal stuff.

What did you think of the movie? In what ways was it noir? In what ways did it deviate from the usual noir conventions?

What did you learn from this film that will help you write your own screenplays?

What worked for you in the film? What did not?

And I keep writing to make this post be as long as the long poster to the left. Just a little bit longer ... a little longer ....

There. Now, comment!

BLAST of SILENCE (1961)

You've watched a lot of films so far.  Some of you watch two noirs a day at school - along with the films you need to watch at home.  Good job.  You're getting those film watching calluses on your eyes.  Film watching isn't always easy - much to the surprise of the world, it can be hard work.  Especially when it's not from a genre or time period you are used to.  It takes a lot of energy, focus, and thought.  And, it can take some getting used to.  Getting a film degree in college was more time consuming and demanding than my roommates' majors in engineering and plant biology.  They were shocked with how much more energy and time I had to put in compared to them.  The filmmaker's path isn't an easy one, but it is freaking cool.  Just like an author has to be well-read, a filmmaker has to be well-watched. Like I mentioned in class, for every one western Tarantino makes, he probably watches 500 westerns (which, so far he's only made one - but almost all his films have heavy western influences - the more westerns you watch the more westerns you realize he's watched - it's pretty cool).  That dude is well-watched.  Get him in an interview where he discusses movies, and you can tell.  So, bear with us as we study important films from the genre.  I bet you Mr. Chris Nolan, king of Neo-Noir, has seen all the films we've watch, and hundreds more.  Keep going into each film with eager minds ready to think, learn, grow.  Minds ripe with creativity.

Ok, enough with the spiel, onto Blast of Silence.  

Narration.  That's something we hear a lot of in this film.  Narration that isn't really the protagonist's thoughts, rather narration that talks to the protagonist - but the protagonist doesn't hear it... or does he.

Narration is one of the key traits of film noir, but in this movie it's different.  It's almost as if the narrator is another character completely.  It is another voice actor.  Did that bending of that element of the genre work for you?  Why do you think the filmmakers chose to do it in that way?

Wow, there is so much to this film.  Better than I've seen a lot of slick modern action films about assassins, this one shows the reality of the deep loneliness in the life of someone with that line of work.  Being alone.  Alone.  Alone.  That was a reoccurring theme.   And, it showed the emotional complexity one in the killin' business's life is.  Could you imagine how awkward it would be to run into old playmates from your childhood, them asking what you do for a living, wanting to catch up with you?  How would you answer, how could you?  They can never really get to know you.  They can only know the lies, the cover up stories.  Not the real you. Loneliness.  Never having that special someone in your life you can fully connect with, bear your soul to.  Always having to keep your guard up, never sharing too much.  But that's the way he liked it, being alone.  Or was it?  His narrator kept saying so, but what do you think?

It's fun to see how these classics influence contemporary cinema.  The complexity of being a hitman who unexpectedly runs into old friends is very reminiscent of one of my favorite dark comedies of the 90s: Grosse Point Blank.  Here's the trailer, give it a look-see, you'll love it: GROSSE POINT BLANK TRAILER.  I've seen Grosse Point on some neo-noir lists, it didn't dawn on me before that it could fit into that genre, but now I see why.   If I were a gambling man, I'd be willing to bet anything the writers of this movie had seen Blast of Silence.

Tell me your thoughts on Blast of Silence.  Did you like it?  Why or why not?  How noiry is it, in your opinion?

What benefit do you see could come from fully, intensely understanding the genre, even if you're film in the end bends some of the rules?

"The MALTESE FALCON (1941), see."

All right.  You've done.  You've officially watched the FIRST film noir ever.  Feel good about yourself.  Feel more legit as you grow in your noir studies.  It's always an impressive thing when a young person can say they've seen a film classic - and this is an important film (plus, you can feel awesome every time you use the phone by the office and look at the Maltese Falcon poster above it).

What'd you think? Does it deserve to be on a top ten noir list? Why or why not? What characteristics of typical noir does it have? Which does it lack? What did you learn that will help you write your noir screenplay?

This is the film that is typically used as an example when people explain what a Mac Guffen is? What was the Mac Guffen in this movie? What did you learn from the film about the nature of a Mac Guffen and how you might use Mac Guffens in your scripts?

Film Noir Extra Credit or Make-up Work

If you missed a day of class (when we were studying film noir) or would simply like some extra credit, then you can do one of the following:

• Do research on film noir and learn something about film noir or about a film noir movie that we haven't already learned in discussed in class. Comment below and state your name, how much time you researched for, what you learned, and why what you learned matters.
• Watch a film noir we didn't watch in class and write a comment below in which you state your name, the name of the movie, the ways in the which the movie is a typical film noir and the ways in which it isn't, what you learned from the movie that will help you write your film noir script, and anything else you feel is important.
• Do some other activity approved by Josh or Will. Report on said activity in a comment below.

Film Noir at Home

For this assignment, you need to watch a Film Noir at home that we didn't watch in class. Do a google search for "best film noirs" or "best neo noirs" to find lists of films you can watch. Make sure to approve the movie with Josh or Will to make sure we aren't planning to watch it in class.

After you watch the film, write a review of it as a comment on this post. In your review, tell us your name, the name of the film you watched, a very basic plot synopsis, and whether you think other members of the class should watch it (and why). Write about ways in the which the film was a typical film noir and ways it which it deviated from the typical film noir characteristics. Write about any ways in which the film helped you develop your idea for the film noir you will write in this class.

Please watch your film and post on this by September 9 to get full credit.

Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard is cited in most people's top ten film noir lists. Some people even put it at the very top of their lists. I know we haven't watched a lot of film noir's yet but, from what we've seen so far, do you feel they are right to do so? Is it that great of a movie? Why or why not? Were there certain portions of the film that worked better for you than others?

What typical aspects of film noir were present? Which were not? What did you learn that will help you write your own film noir?

Someone might also want to do research on Billy Wilder himself. He's considered by historians to be a pretty important filmmaker so it'd be good to know more about him. What did you learn about his life and career that helps you better understand what's going on or being said in this film? Is this film typical or atypical of Wilder's style and stories? How so? What do you think this film is saying about the filmmaking industry itself?

Kiss Me Deadly (1955)

I am really curious what you all thought of Kiss Me Deadly. Watching an entire feature length film noir from the 50's may have been a new experience for some of us. Did you find it engaging the whole time? Only parts? What sections of the film / scenes were working for you? What wasn't? Why?

And how about Mike Hammer's very manly signature double slap?

What typical aspects of film noir did you notice in this film? Which were not present?

What specific things did you learn from this film that will help you as you write your own film noir?

This film uses a writing device that comes up a lot in film noir but which we didn't talk about in class yet. It is called "MacGuffen". Some of you might want to do some research to find out what a "MacGuffen" is and report on that in your comment. Then, start a conversation about the MacGuffen in this film: what was the MacGuffen? How was it used to create/build drama? How does the uses of a MacGuffen in this film a good or bad example of how MacGuffens usually work?

Also, you might think about the fact that this film was made during the Cold War. It deals with issues very relevant to the Cold War era. We are all young enough that we don't remember how frightening it was to live with the constant fear that the Soviet Union might bomb us today. How can this film help us understand better how people felt during the Cold War? How might people's reaction to this movie been different when it was shown in the Cold War verses when we watch it now?

So, go ahead and comment below. And remember ... don't open the box.

Imperfect (2012)

Today in class, we watched our first film! The first film of the first Genre Studies and Writing class ever. It is a grand event that shall be remembered for generations.

We watched "Imperfect". A short film noir. It's a little bit longer than the 12 pages we will be writing in our class but it is a good reference for us because it is a short. We can use it as a good or bad example (depending on what you thought of it) of the sort of film noir we might write in this class.

"Imperfect" is not a classic film noir (it was made in 2012, not the 40's and 50's) so I am wondering how true you think it is to what we've learned about the film noir genre in this class. Which elements of film noir does it have? Which does it not have? Did you think it was a good movie? Why? Did you hate it? Why? Or did you just think it was OK? Why?

What did you learn that you will use to help you write a sweet film noir in this class?

Film Noir Research

OK, here's the first blog post for our new class: Genre Studies and Writing. We're kicking off the trimester with a study of Film Noir. Before we watch our first Noir film, we want to make sure that we all know what Noir is all about. That context will help us appreciate the films more. So, in class, you were each assigned a few research questions related to Film Noir. Do some research, answer those questions, and then respond to this post. In your response, write each of your questions and what your research revealed in the way of answers. Please also provide links to the sources you used.

Most of us will probably instinctually go to google to research and that's fine. But before you try google, please give this new resource a chance. Visit http://pioneer.uen.org/k12/ and log in (get the login info from me in class) and then click on the link that says EBSCO and use the search engine there to search for articles that might answer your research questions. When you search, though, be sure to slick the box that says "full text".

Ready ... set ... RESEARCH!