Textual analysis of three different Neo-Noir OTS's

A few words I have learnt and will use to analyse the films :

Chiaroscuro- is the contrast between dark and light, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also used in cinematography to indicate extreme low-key lighting to create distinct areas of light and darkness in films, especially in black and white films. Much of the celebrated Film Noir tradition relies on techniques Toland perfected in the early thirties that are related to chiaroscuro (though high-key lighting, stage lighting, frontal lighting, and other effects are interspersed in ways that diminish the chiaroscuro claim).

Monochrome- is the different shades of one colour. Neutral colours in monochrome images are called grayscale or black and white. "Monochromatic light" refers to light of a narrow frequency.

Verisimilitude- is the quality and sense of realism in something.

Firstly I thought of the things we traditionally see in Film Noirs. A quick outline being :

Narrative- crime, tragedy, sex and violence (but decreased a little, not so harshly shown).

Characters- Femme Fatale, anti-hero, investigator / law enforcement person, antagonist, protagonist.

Mise-en-scene- Harsh lighting, chiaroscuro, monochrome, dystopian(everythings bad/bleak) areas and urban locations, seedy bars, casinos and hotels.Shadows, costumes are suits and smart looking clothes for men and seductive glamorous clothes for women, with dramatic make-up, dark eyes and red lips.

Sound- Orchestral music, silence, eerie music, no lyrics, jazzy feel to it, heightened exaggerated unnatural sound effects.

Editing- Some lingering shots, sometimes quick cuts to make more tense.

Camera - Long shots to show the characters, close-ups to increase tension.

I decided to do my first analysis on Microsoft word as a type of table to show it in a different way, to make it a bit more interesting to look at. I then saved it, re-opened it on paint, saved it again and then uploaded it as a picture.   
                                                                                  The traditional
                                                                                    Femme Fatale

Red Riding  (2009) (a television series of 3 feature length episodes- this particular one being set in 1974)

 

Is a British Channel 4 production (based on David Peace's novel series) about a youngster journalist who is looking to try and solve the increasingly vexing case of a serial killer on the loose. It starts with a panning upwards from the earth (or could have been water). Muffling non-diegetic music encloses the audiences senses, the long lingering shot of the angel girl (photo on the left), that hints (using imagery) of something sinister, is not conventional of Film Noir, as usually enigma is used with the crime event and is not usually revealed straight away in the OTS.The angel wings are white, contrasting deeply with the darkness and bad weather, also contrasting with the meaning of how angels would be in a bright and happy place, rather than a gloomy one.

Iconography is used with props such as the anti-hero smoking a cigarette and holding a gun, both popular signifiers of Film Noir, the anti-hero being an obvious type of character. The narrative is similar of Film Noir, crime - a girl gone missing, her description being relaid by the detectives/newsreaders. The depressing storyline of a missing child not being what you would usually see in a Film Noir. The location being the rural, rainy and vast Yorkshire Moors, a huge difference between the urban areas that Film Noir would usually opt for. The main character (photo on the right) is the protagonist and anti-hero, the reason being because he had mucked up and failed in some way, a hidden secret that the audience are intrigued to know about. The OTS ending on a burning coffin with his deceased dads name on the front.

The non-diegetic guitar music, which is not stereotypically Film Noir, is very relaxing and combines with the calm feeling and look of the sets and locations. Conventional voice-overs are used, which is the anti-hero telling his narrative, instantly making the audience side with him, a near persistent narrative element that is associated with the Film Noir genre. The colour tones of the OTS are desaturated, almost sepia looking, dull browns that are monochrome, reflecting and signifying the 70's era that it was set in. The editing techniques used, being simple quick cuts, fade in and fade outs, keep the pace going and the audience's attention fixated on it.

Blade Runner (1982 - Directed by Ridley Scott)

Is about a blade runner, Deckard, who has to track down and terminate 4 replicants who hijacked a ship in space and have returned to earth seeking their maker.

Similarities to Film Noir :

• Urban landscape, settings and sets.
• A non-diegetic amplified heart beat noise (that sounds like it could be actually in the scene, increasing the suspense in the scene).
• Light (that looks artificial) is coming through the windows, creating harsh contrasted shadows.
• Harrison Ford plays the detective, the anti-hero (but he doesn't actually appear in the OTS).
• The scene in which the interview/interrogation takes place is very tense, cigarettes and the smoke being produced is a popular and iconic prop used in Film Noir that adds on to the mysteriousness of the character, the way that he stands taller and the low camera angle giving him the power.
• The thriller and drama side of the genre of the film fits in with how Film Noir was based around these things, and crime of course.
• The grey tones that look slightly blue look similar to the colour tones and contrasts of black and white in Film Noir. 
• The two characters are not very important to the narrative - one of them being the obvious bad guy, the henchman of the antagonist. They are introducing us to the film, the more important characters, the anti-hero and femme fatale etc being introduced further into the film.
• Lastly, the fan on the ceiling spins threateningly over the two tense looking characters, enclosing the attention on them, framing a few of the shots, something that looks very familiar in Film Noir.

The ways in which it is not similar to Film Noir :

• It is set in the future (2019), its main genre type being science fiction.
• Flying cars - not a sense of realism.
• Weird electronic sounding non-diegetic music (sounds like machinery and modern), which is not traditional of Film Noir, but fits in more with the time that the film is set.
• The way sounds are mixed.

Most of the clip of the OTS of Blade Runner that I found on YouTube -