The Key Conventions Of Film Noir In L.A Confidential
L.A Confidential (Curtis Hanson, 1997) is a neo-noir film about a shooting at an all night diner and the three Las Angeles policeman who investigate in their own unique ways. It is based on the book by James Ellroy and after a very well adapted screenplay, won nine academy awards. It starred actors with big names like Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce and Danny Devito, which made it a very high earning film.
The Narrative or storyline is much the same as any other film noir movie. It has a ‘hard boiled’ cop (Russell Crowe) who we grow attached to. The narrative of any film must have certain ‘key conventions’ which are apparent for the audience to tell the genre of the film. The narrative can be used to provide an explanation as to why the film contains certain things, or why a character does something.
The genre of the film is how we know what kind of film it is. Genre is a French word which literally means type; it shows what category a film comes under. There are certain factors in a genre which will identify it. Things like settings, characters and themes can all be similar in one specific genre.
‘L.A Confidential is in the film noir genre. Other films in this genre are ‘The Big Sleep’, ‘The Maltese Falcon’ and ‘Double Indemnity’. Lighting is very important in film noir. It uses techniques such as chiaroscuro to give the film a darker, more obscured feel. The characters are often similar in film noir. The main protagonist is always some hard boiled cop or investigator who doesn’t always play by the book to get his desired results. There is often a femme fatale; a very pretty woman with whom the main protagonist has a love interest. There will always be bad guys who will try and stop the main protagonist from completing the case.
In L.A Confidential Danny Devito narrates. A narrator is quite common in noir films. The purpose of a narrator is to explain, to the audience, parts of the film which cannot be explained by conversation on screen or visually. A voice over is non- diagetic which means that we can hear it but it is not apparently coming from anywhere on screen. Danny Devito is perfect in this role because he has quite a seedy voice this is good to illustrate the sleaziness of film-noir, it shows the real voice of L.
When reading the novel, it is hard to imagine the story without a narrator at all. It certainly seems essential for the story's make-up to have this witty, sarcastic voice present to describe the sequence of events. Yet, there is a version of Chandler's novel that does not have an audible storyteller, and that version is the 1946 movie directed by Howard Hawks.
The focus of this essay is to study the genre codes and conventions in psychological thrillers which are a very popular ‘sub-genre’ of thriller movies which focuses heavily on its characters and integrates a variety of components from the mystery and drama genre as well as the thriller genre. The target audience for this particular genre would be those who live on adrenaline and love plot twists.
Happiness acts as the center of understanding morality. The pain and the pleasures of life are the ones that determine happiness that an individual have. For Kant, happiness does not provide any moral motive to an individual. Kant believed more in the hypothetical imperative; thus he says that an action whether good or bad that contribute to the happiness of the individual is only good for some purposes (Kant 397). These are either the actions are actual or possible. Therefore, Kant and Aristotle have different takes in happiness, and they describe happiness in different ways as it comes from their theories. Both disagree on happiness’ moral importance since they tend to take happiness as just caused by individual moral actions. These are because happiness is determined by whether someone is feeling painful or has pleasure. Since moral is the virtue that a person holds and which give them their dignity, that is why disagreement on happiness in their theories comes in. My position on this matter is that I also disagree on happiness moral importance. The pleasure causes happiness that individuals face in their life. Hence, the individual morals are never determined by their happiness. I think that it usually is the other way round. The person moral is the one that determines the happiness of an individual. The virtue of the character or the virtue of the thought that one learns in the course of their lives is the one that determines happiness as well. Thus, happiness according to different individuals have different meanings. That is why it cannot be taken such as wealth or education that is similar to
The viewer sees a private eye and beautiful client. First thought, "It’s definitely another Hollywood crime drama." On the surface, Chinatown has all the elements of a film noir: the presence of a beautiful but dangerous woman, otherwise known as the femme fatale, a gritty urban setting, compositional tension (highly contrasting light and dark colors or oblique camera angles), and themes of moral ambiguity and alienation. Chinatown, however, is different. Polanski shot Chinatown with color film, and though his colors do appear especially vivid, color film precludes the contrast intensity that black and white film offers. In addition, Evelyn is not the classic femme fatale. Though Jake mistakes her for her husband’s killer at first, Mrs. Mulwray eventually emerges as the story’s most tragic victim. Yes, Chinatown for the most part conforms to the structure of film noir, but this film departs from the general genre, creating an entirely different element in which Roman Polanksi examines not only big-money corruption and its malignant obsession with money, but also larger, more human themes such as ignorance, authority, and the pervasiveness of evil.
This strength, in particular, influenced my decision to pursue social work as a career because cases will often be complex and I know that changes do not occur overnight and positive results only occur within time. I mastered the strength of being patient because growing up with an older sibling often requires you to learn patience. One aspect I realized was I don’t get frustrated easily and that is because I can be a patient person. The second strength I possess is being empathetic for example when a friend or family member shares something that may not be going to good in their life I like to pretend I am in their shoes, I like to provide empowerment and also be relatable, often times when one of my friends is upset over a situation I tend to get upset as well. I like to look at events through a sociological lens so I can better understand the situation. The last strength I possess is dedication, I feel this will influence my decision to pursue social work because I put my heart and soul into every aspect of my life, for example, I am quite dedicated to my studies, in High School I worked extremely hard to make it into the top ten of my graduating class and by being dedicated to my school work I ended up being number five. I am an extremely dedicated person because I do not like to fail, and I’ll always give it my all until I can no longer do so, I believe I would be a good social worker because I’d be dedicated to my client trying my hardest to provide the best of the
In the Philosophical work, Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle makes claims about happiness being the highest aim and end at which all human activity is directed. He states that happiness is a supreme good, and therefore should be considered the ultimate goal of every action undertaken by an individual. This assertion regarding happiness as a final end, proposes the question, how can a person define and obtain happiness? Aristotle attempts to use his theory of ethics to address this question. His perspective on the supreme good, is that it is a way of life and exhibited in the way we act and that happiness is derived from living a life in accordance with virtues. In this paper I will address Aristotle’s deviance from popular belief regarding what
ChinaTown, directed by Roman Polanski, is a non-traditional hard-nosed detective film made in the 70's. The typical elements of character type are there; J.J. Gittes (a private detective in LA) played by Jack Nicholson is the central character, sharing the spotlight is Fay Dunaway playing the femme fatale Evelyn Mulwray. This film breaks all types of norms when compared to the hard-nosed detective films it is modeled after. The film is filled with allusions to the Big Sleep, especially taken from scenes of Marlowe and Vivian. Chinatown has formal elements indicative that it is going to be in the style of traditional Film Noir hardboiled detective, until you examine the characters' personalities next to the story content.
Kant does not believe reaching happiness is the main goal of life, but instead doing good with a sense of duty is. Kant says, “A good will is good not because of what it effects or accomplishes… it is good only through its willing, i.e., it is good in itself” (Kant, First Section). Kant’s claim is very strong because it doesn’t allow for any adaptations. From this, he creates two imperatives, the hypothetical and the categorical. Following the categorical imperatives is what eventually will make one virtuous because they are universal laws or commands to being
Society’s reliance on smartphones has dramatically changed the way humans interact with one another. In the past, people
Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation was made in between the first two Godfather movies. The Conversation’s story is directly influenced by a combination of Michelangelo Antonioni’s Blow-Up (1966), Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window (1954), and Hermann Hesse’s book Steppenwolf (1927). The film is a character study of Harry Caul (Gene Hackman); Caul is a socially inept man who is a gifted sound surveillance expert working independently for private clients. He approaches his work in a military type fashion, hunting for the best quality recording he can get, while at all times maintaining a mantra to never get personal involved in his assignments. (Cowie, 1989) (Hilditch, 2002) (Ondaatje, 2004)
A genre is a type or category of film (or other work of art) that can be easily identified by specific elements of its plot, setting, mise en scène, character types, or style. (Goodykoontz, 2014) The gangster film is a sub-genre of the broader genre of crime film. A genre main objective is to classify the depiction of entertainment. The genre of my movie is a gangster film. My movie I chose was Scarface. Directed by Brian De Palma.An update of the 1932 film, Scarface (1983) follows gangster Tony Montana and his close friend Manny Ray from their trip on the Cuban Boat Lift for refugees to their arrival in Miami. (Scarface, 1983a)
Individuals who attend college usually achieve higher levels of training than hose who do not attend. Employers may use college degrees as one of the instruments of choice for potential employees, recognizing that levels of higher education indicate a possible higher capacity. Having a college education will offer the individual advantages necessary in today 's competitive job market. A university not only enrich personally, also, it allows influence others with your knowledge and skills; these are benefits for society.
La La Land is American musical romantic comedy-drama movie in 2016. Lalaland written and directed by Damien Chazelle. It stars Ryan Gosling name is Sebastian as a jazz pianist and Emma Stone name is Mia as an aspiring actress in the movie.
The Benefits of Higher Education states it perfectly, “After spending many years learning, people tend to feel happier and more content as they lead educated lives…Consequently, education promotes fulfilling, fuller lifestyles” (¶ 6). The types of jobs a person will be able to acquire after a college education allow more freedom and security, as well as an improved intellect. The naysayers believe that people do not need a four-year degree to acquire a job, but how many good jobs with comprehensive financial benefits do not require a four-year degree? What quality jobs are in store for an individual when they are nineteen or twenty years old with no working experience? Those kinds of jobs tend to have lower salaries with longer work hours. Higher education not only gives students more opportunities but the skills and understanding that allow them to dig deeper into more difficult situations. “After a trip through the world of higher education, you will hopefully be the person who communicates effectively with others in figuring out solutions to complex problems. You will know to ask questions” (Carter ¶ 14). Receiving a higher education will help anyone narrow down their options and help them succeed with life’s constant challenges. Greater numbers
Unlike Plato, Aristotle questions and concludes that virtue does not suffice happiness. His definition of happiness is the activity of the soul in accordance with the most perfect virtue. He believes one must be active and make full use of his/her rational capacities to function well. This perfecting of ones character was Aristotle?s key to happiness.