Narrative & Characters

Narrative & Characters

Film noirs revolved around flawed and desperate characters in an unforgiving world. Crime, most commonly murder, is a strong element in film noirs - most commonly in the form of murder and blackmail. The storylines of film noirs were often twisting and non-linear, and there were rarely happy or optimistic endings.

The protagonist of film noirs is a disillusioned, hard boiled male, usually taking the form of a private investigator or insurance agents. They are surrounded by pessimism and corruption. Examples include Detective Sam Spade from The Maltese Falcon (1941), Detective Mark McPherson in Laura (1944) and insurance agent Walter Neff in Double Indemnity (1944). He is not your typical film hero in that he is fairly average and conventional rather than exceptional and confident.

A character that the male protagonist encounters is the dangerous “femme fatale” (literally meaning “killer woman”). Recognizable by her shocking red lipstick with its connotations of danger, blonde hair giving a false impression of innocence, glamorous clothes and killer heels, she is typically responsible for leading the protagonist astray. She is over confident, seducing and very attractive, but crime and danger often follow her. Miss Wonderly in The Maltese Falcon (1941), Phyllis Dietrichson in Double Indemnity (1944) and Sue Harvey in Detour (1945) are all classic femme fatales.

Other characters typically found in film noirs are corrupt policemen trying to frame the protagonist like in The Maltese Falcon, and jealous lovers out to seek revenge. There are also domestic women that are not femme fatales, such as wives or girlfriends of the protagonist.
(http://asmedia-mayamathias.blogspot.com/2009/02/codes-conventions-of-film-noir.html)