I can remember in the past taking note of certain movies that just seemed to be rather dark to me, not necessarily so much just the content of the film, but rather the setting, lighting, mood etc were all also dark with lots of shadows. I can remember this kind of bothering me. Several mysteries or cop movies come to mind when I think of films that have that element of shadowy, dark lighting throughout them. Now, come to find out, this is film noir. While at first it was the noticeably dim lighting that first struck me about this genre, such as in the movie Sunset Boulevard, after learning more about the genre, this is far from its most interesting characteristic.

Voice over narration, dramatic camera angles, and a focus on flawed characters are also elements that distinguish this genre from other period films. The narration and the dramatic camera angles were the most obvious elements, however the focus on flawed characters was most interesting to me. There were never heroes in these films. While they may have been a character that you could identify with or a main character to follow, there was never a hero. Everyone was flawed. I think this partially has to do with the time in which these films were made and the things that were happening in the world at the time. Most of these films were made during or around WWII, when there was a definite distrust for human nature and society as a whole. Often the world of film imitates, if not exaggerates, what is happening in the real world at the time. The world was a dark place filled with flawed people in need of healing, and that is what is reflected in this genre of film very well. I also think this particular movie probably portrays the attitude of Hollywood at the time well. In the movie it is portrayed as very fickle and fake (not unlike Hollywood today) but as also a drastic contrast from the real world. A forced happiness. An exaggerated joy, that was not very present in the world at this time.