Film Noir as a Style and Genre

I suppose film noir can be referred to as a style more than a genre since, as Shrader puts it, “it worked out its conflicts visually rather than thematically” (63). What characterizes film noir more than anything are the stylistic elements that have become film noir hallmarks. Shrader mentions that most American critics prefer to examine film from a sociological or ideological perspective. They are lacking when it comes to more objective stylistic criticism. According to Shrader, “American critics have always been slow on the uptake when it comes to visual style” (63).  As a student of cinematography, it is refreshing to see a criticism that focuses more on visual style and technique than sociological impact. Truly, the visual style more than any other element is what signifies film noir.  The low-key lighting and use of a gritty, realistic, night-for-night technique give film noir a visual style all its own. Additionally classically “incorrect” compositions help to give film noir an uncomfortable and claustrophobic aesthetic. The style makes heavy use of the extreme high-angle, claustrophobic framing devices, bizarre, off-angle compositions, and oblique and vertical lines. These directorial choices lend themselves to the film noir aesthetic that has become so codified in the American cinema.

Yet for all of Shrader’s points about film noir as a style, it seems to me that it is undeniably a genre. While it is easily recognizable by its stylistic elements, there are certain themes, characters, and motifs that make film noir into more than just a visual style. Shrader credits Raymond Durgnat, who wrote of eleven essential themes that classify film noir. While his list is not exhaustive, many film noir movie share one or multiple of these characteristics, proving that film noir is not simply linked by a visual style. These eleven themes are “Crime as a Social Criticism”, “On the Run”, “Private Eyes and Adventurers”, “Middle Class Murder”, “Portraits and Doubles”, “Sexual Pathology”, “Psychopaths”, “Hostages to Fortune”, “Blacks and Reds”, and “Guignol , Horror, and Fantasy”.  The themes given by Durgnat prove that film noir encapsulates a related group of thematic and plot characteristics in addition to visual elements. Not to mention the fact that the conventions of the film noir genre have been codified into American cinema to the point that they are instantly recognizable. This to me is the true test of a genre; if its elements have become so recognizable that there is instant connotation in the mind of viewer upon seeing the film.