Film Noir

The quote I chose was by Kathlyn Bigelow. She said that film noir could be characterized by "a character who is on a downward spiral from which he can not immerse. The more he tries to eradicate the situation, the worse it gets." I feel that this quote describes "Double Indemnity" perfectly. Walter Neff got himself into a mess that he was going to have to ride out to the end. No matter what he thought of doing to either cover up his tracks or get himself out of the situation, it wasn't good enough. The murder he carried out with Phyllis was almost perfect, but as Barton Keyes put it, no murder is perfect. The loose ends and betrayal by Phyllis would eventually lead to Walters downfall.

I think that Joe Lewis' description of a "female fatale" describes Phyllis very well. He says that a "female fatale" is a "woman who is vicious and yet, she can charm you." Phyllis fits this description to the tee. She doesn't come off as the cold blooded murderer she is because of her charm. Even at the end of the movie when we know everything about her and what she has done, you still feel a bit of sadness over her death because of the charm she has given off.

Bellow is a photo of Phyllis looking as innocent and charming as possible:

The movie "Double Indemnity" had great use of scenery music and lighting in its creation of "film noir." There was constantly a feeling despair and anxiety given off by the film. The scenes appeared as being sort of dark and dangerous. Walters narration expressed his feeling of entrapment and remorse at the dark deeds he had committed. I especially liked the scene after Walter and Phyllis dumped the body of her late husband on the train tracks. The car that they were in would not start and it gave the viewers a feeling of urgency. I felt as though they were going to be caught and there was noting they could do about it, but just then Walter leans over and cranks the engine right over.



The film "Memento" is a perfect example of a "neo-noir" movie. The main character in "Memento" has been caught in this "noir" universe with no way out and without deserving it. He struggles to find the killer of his wife even though he must go through so much trouble to do so. Eventually he does end up finding out that he has already taken care of the murder of his wife. He decides that without constantly having something to search for or do everyday that his life would have no more meaning, so he erases the information and sets himself up to find a new target. This never ending circle he puts himself in is definitely a good example of "neo-noir."

Here is a photo of Leonard of Memento holding a photo of himself after killing his Wife's murderer:

Blog Post #1

In order for a movie to be considered noteworthy, the movie must be able to capture its audiences imagination. The movie has to become more than a movie. When the viewer is watching it, they need to feel immersed in the content as though they are in the fictional world that the film has created. The best movies leave their viewers wanting more and I believe that is what makes a movie deserving of an award. 

“A Trip to the Moon” was a really interesting movie. I can tell that a lot of effort went into the making of this movie. The movie sets for “A Trip to the Moon” are really well built and a lot of detail was used. After watching the movie I really wanted to see more. Given the time period of “A Trip to the Moon”, I really feel that the movie is advanced for its time. “A Trip to the Moon” would definitely pass my criteria for a movie deserving of an award. If a remake were made today, I would watch it without hesitation. 

“The Great Train Robbery” was another example of a film that had some pretty advanced effects for its age. The footage on top of the train seemed to be real live footage without any visual editing. The effort put into the making of the film was no doubt enormous. However, the overall story told by “The Great Train Robbery” did not capture my imagination. I feel that it was not as well thought out as “A Trip to the Moon” was. In this sense I would say that “The Great Train Robbery” did not pass my criteria for a movie deserving of an award. 

Two movies I would like to mention that meet my criteria and are from a recent time period are “Tron Legacy” and “The Shawshank Redemption”. First, “Tron Legacy” is a really visually appealing movie. The entire world that we are presented with is so colorful and different from our own. Here is a video clip from "Tron Legacy" that I think shows the visual appeal of the movie: 

 Aside from being captured by the visuals of “Tron”, you are also presented with a great story. The characters in the movie begin mean something to the viewer and the action coupled with the story and visuals make for some great movie watching. Next, “The Shawshank Redemption” is a movie with a deep story. Here is a photo that demonstrates the intense emotion felt in this film: 

 The viewer is made to care deeply about the main actors predicament. Every bad thing that happens to him leaves you wishing it didn’t and praying for revenge. The character progression for the movie gives the viewer a lot of strong feelings toward each character. Each good character lost is painful to the viewer and when justice is finally given to the main character it is very satisfying. Both of these movies have many reasons for passing my criteria for an award deserving movie, and they definitely leave me wanting more from each of them after watching. 

My Interest in Film

I wouldn't call myself an "avid film buff", but I do like movies. I like to watch movies for different reasons, and at different times. Sometimes i'm just in the mood for an action movie, and then other times it's comedy, or a love story. The one thing I like about most movies though, is that they usually tend to have an underlying theme that the director is trying to get across. I like to watch certain movies several times until I can find out what this hidden message or meaning is. I find it to be exciting to understand what it is the directory is trying to say.

Another reason I like to watch movies is to have a good time with people I like to be around. Comedies are usually the films that do this for me. I like to share laughs with friends and family, and create inside jokes that relate to a movie we have just watched. Many times me and my brother, girlfriend, or cousin will quote lines from movies that we have seen and it makes for a good laugh. Other people usually have a hard time understanding what it is we are talking about, but for us it is a nice way of recalling a memory of a fun time we had together watching whatever movie it is we are quoting. Overall, watching movies is a fun way to pass the time and, in some cases, get a little deep thought going while doing it.