Neo-Noir: Contemporary Film Noir From Chinatown to The Dark Knight

(Paperback)

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A world-weary detective, a seductive femme fatale, a mysterious murder - these elements of classic film noir live again in more recent hardboiled detective films from Chinatown to Sin City. But the themes of noir have also spilled over into gangster movies, as well as creating new genres including psycho-noir (Memento), techno-noir (The Matrix) and superhero-noir (The Dark Knight). Neo-Noir shows how new noir films have drawn upon contemporary social and historical events as well as the latest technological advances in filmmaking to put a new spin on a classic genre.

Reviews

Neo-Noir is a fascinating look at the way an established genre has evolved to embrace modern styles and mores. By picking films that are both clear re-interpretations of the old school and those that depart from the definitions of the accepted genre, Keesey invokes opinion and creates a need to re-examine the language and morality of recent films in a way that not only relates to the old but treats it as a weapon to engage with the new. Films you are familiar with gain new perspectives and there are plenty of others that you'll want to seek out -- Leo White * kamera.co.uk *

Author Bio

Douglas Keesey is a professor of film and literature at California Polytechnic State University. His published books include Neo-Noir: Contemporary Film Noir from Chinatown to The Dark Knight (Kamera Books) as well as Catherine Breillat, Don DeLillo, Erotic Cinema, Peter Greenaway, and Paul Verhoeven.