Film Noir emerged in the era following World War II. Its attributes typically paint a dark picture for the viewer – dark rooms, dark alleys, dimly lit detective offices and rain-reflecting roads. These films have fast and witty dialogue; dialogue that is, from an objectives standpoint, quite unnatural. I found that although this film was certainly stylistically different from other films we have viewed, the major difference is this fashion in which the characters communicate with one another. This contrast is particularly evident when compared to a French New Wave film – a genre that strongly focuses on realistic conversation, in my opinion. I will be analyzing this film from the film noir genre perspective
The first article I read was a review by Bill Thompson of Bill's Movie Emporium. Thompson talks about how Chinatown was made after Film Noir was already dead and because of this, the film presents itself as both homage and a contemporary take on the genre. He points out the apparent fact that it is not in black and white like it’s Noir ancestors but reaffirms is genre-entitlement for it’s classic plot, dialogue and character standards.
The second article I read was by Hunter Cordaiy, entitled “Through a Dark Lens, Darkly: Teaching Chinatown. In this article, Cordaiy claims the film to be “one of the most complexly layered narratives of recent cinema” and describes it as a reconstruction of a noir story. Cordaiy adds that the film deceives and seduces its audience much like film’s characters behave towards one another.
These two articles agree that Chinatown indeed follows the tradition of noir cinema but certainly adds ingredients to the formula. One example, as Thompson puts it, is the lack of subtlety seen in 40s and 50s noir films; sex is no longer something implied – it happens. Cordaiy also comments on the abundance of violence this movie packs, however notes that all fight and action scenes are done in typical noir tradition.
Personally, this was a film I wanted to enjoy from the get-go. I’m a huge Jack Nicholson fan, and his performance was nothing short of specatacular. The supporting roles were as well noteworthy. Like all noir films, the plot and story-sequence can seem a bit muddy upon first watch, and I would recommend follow-up viewing for anyone who has seen this. I agree with Thompson in the sense that the film followed typical Film Noir rules but also knew when to contemporize aspects and push the limitations set by its predecessors.
References
Cordaiy, H. (2009). Through a lens, darkly: teaching chinatown. Screen Education, (54), 119-124.
Thompson, R. (2009, March 8). Chinatown (1974). Bill’s Movie Emporium. http://billsmovieemporium.wordpress.com/2009/03/08/r eview-chinatown-1974/
No comments:
Post a Comment