Cigarette smoke, dark, alleys, and linear shafts of light seeping through half-closed venetian blinds--these are the visual elements we typically associate with film noir. More often, however, the genre can be defined thematically, usually relating to the protagonist’s futile efforts against forces out of their control (Defining Film Noir). The world portrayed by these films does not make much sense and there is no apparent rhyme or reason behind the inevitable twists and turns. This atmosphere of uncertainty is intensified by the use of a restricted point of view. We experience the narrative through the eyes and voice of the protagonist, rarely surpassing him in awareness. The protagonist is often motivated by a sense of justice that goes …show more content…
The line separating good from evil disappears in a fog of moral ambiguity. At the peak of its popularity, all of these thematic elements were conveyed visually without color--caught somewhere between the absolutes of black and white. This does not always have to be the case, as Chinatown (Polanski, 1974) demonstrates. The film, shot in color, is set in 1937 in drought stricken Los Angeles. It follows private investigator, J. J. Gittes as he attempts to uncover an adulterous affair at the request of one of his clients. The case is soon complicated by a stolen identity, an apparent murder, and a dangerous cocktail of secrets and lies leading to an unexpected twist. Chinatown breathes new life into the genre of film noir and uses its conventions as a foundation for further thematic …show more content…
One could argue that this deviation would automatically prohibit Chinatown’s placement within the genre. After all, film noir literally translates to “black film.” Considering the genre as a medium for the expression of dark themes, however, color in Chinatown serves as an enhancement. We feel more connected to the story and characters because we see them in a way that more closely resembles our everyday lives. In many ways, color takes on a life of its own, serving both realistic and symbolic functions. For example, color is used boldly for the first and only time in the final scene of the film [02:03:45]. Jake drives into Chinatown and passes two neon sign, one of which is only half-lit. This place is foreign an unkempt, a reminder of the life that Jake left behind. Throughout the rest of the film, color is used carefully and in moderation to reflect both the physical and political setting. Browns and yellows dominate in nearly every scene. This color scheme establishes and intensifies this idea of desolation caused by the drought. Warm colors are often used to convey warmth and safety, but in this situation, they signal the exact opposite. Color itself is deceptive--a quality shared by many other sources throughout the