115px|Two silhouetted figures in The Big Combo. The film's
cinematographer was John Alton, the creator of many of film noir's
iconic images.
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish
Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical
attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period
is generally regarded as stretching from the early 1940s to the late
1950s. Film noir of this era is associated with a low-key
black-and-white visual style that has roots in German Expressionist
cinematography. Many of the prototypical stories and much of the
attitude of classic noir derive from the hardboiled school of crime
fiction that emerged in the United States during the Depression. Film
noir encompasses a range of plots. Though the noir mode was originally
identified with American productions, films now customarily described
as noir have been made around the world. Many pictures released from
the 1960s onward share attributes with film noirs of the classic
period, often treating noir conventions in a self-referential manner.
Such latter-day works in a noir mode are often referred to as
neo-noirs. The tropes of film noir have inspired parody since the
mid-1940s. (more...)
Recently featured: Free State of Galveston – Northrop YF-23 – Cirrus
cloud
Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_noir>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1535:
French explorer Jacques Cartier sailed along the St. Lawrence River
and reached the Iroquois fortified village Hochelaga on the island now
known as Montreal.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Cartier>
1835:
Mexican dragoons dispatched to disarm settlers at Gonzales, Texas,
encountered stiff resistance from a Texian militia in the Battle of
Gonzales, the first armed engagement of the Texas Revolution.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gonzales>
1950:
Peanuts, the syndicated comic strip by Charles M. Schulz, featuring
Charlie Brown and his pet Snoopy, was first published in major
newspapers.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peanuts>
1968:
A peaceful student demonstration in the Tlatelolco area of Mexico City
ended when army and police forces began firing into the crowd.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tlatelolco_massacre>
2009:
During the 121st Session of the International Olympic Committee, Rio de
Janeiro was elected to be the host city of the 2016 Summer Olympics and
Paralympics.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio_de_Janeiro_bid_for_the_2016_Summer_Olympic_and_Paralympic_Games>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
splurge (v):
1. To gush, to flow or move in a rush.
2. To spend (usually money) lavishly or extravagantly
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/splurge>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The ideally non-violent state will be an ordered anarchy. That State is
the best governed which is governed the least.
--Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Mohandas_Karamchand_Gandhi>