Introduction
Film noir is one of the filmmaking styles which is characterized by cynical heroes, the use of flashbacks, and stark lighting. The genre was mostly used in American crime dramas after World War II. Noir elements are common in crime-related themes due to their nature. Characters in such movies have the traits that portray investigations of criminal activities. The purpose of this essay is to provide a comparative analysis of two movies by analyzing how the noir elements are presented in them. The noir elements in Carol Reeds’s The Third Man and Jonathan Demme’s The Silence of the Lambs are analyzed based on plots, camera angles and movements, sound, lighting, and characters’ traits and costumes.
Defining Film Noir and Noir Elements
Before finding and comparing noir elements in the two films, it is essential to define this genre. As mentioned above, film noirs usually refer to movies with prevailing crime elements. Also known as ‘dark cinema’ and translated from French as ‘dark film,’ the noir genre is marked by pessimistic mood, menace, fatalism, and mystery. This genre was especially popular in the decade following World War II and tried to honor the memory of its victims and show the horrors of the war. In noir films, characters are usually disoriented and trapped, and elements like corruption, betrayal, jealousy, death, and seduction are integral.
Comparison of The Third Man and The Silence of the Lambs
Noir Elements in the Films’ Plots and Main Characters
As mentioned earlier in the paper, noir elements are typically found in the movies’ plots, so this is the first component of the movies to consider. Overall, it is possible to say that the plots of The Third Man and The Silence of the Lambs portray many elements of film noir. For example, both movies are focused on dark secrets and mystery. While the main character of The Third Man, Holly Martins, tries to solve the death of his childhood friend, he discovers corruption, deception, and penicillin scams (Riegler, 2020). The key theme of The Silence of the Lambs is the philosophy behind murders and an attempt to solve the case of a serial killer with the help of another psychopath (Fuss, 2018). In both movies, the main characters investigate the death cases, have to interview people who might know something, cooperate with the police and detectives, and get into terrifying situations to receive their answers.
Moreover, typical for film noir, there is an element of betrayal in both movies. In The Third Man, the betrayer is the main character’s best friend, Lime, who was considered dead (Riegler, 2020). In addition, there is an element of femme Fatales – Martins’s girlfriend also betrays him to save Lime. In The Silence of the Lambs, it is possible to say that the FBI student Starling and the violent psychopath Dr. Hannibal Lecter betray each other when lying and ruining their promises.
What is more, it is essential to notice that the traits of the key characters perfectly fit film noir. For example, Martins from The Third Man is filled with existential bitterness; despite his good qualities, he is morally questionable, and not all his actions are ethical (Riegler, 2020). He smokes and drinks alcohol (typical noir elements), gets involved in dangerous games, and ends up not getting the woman he loved. In The Silence of the Lambs, Starling is more morally good, but she is chased by her own nightmares that define her actions (Fuss, 2018). Finally, it is evident that the plots and characters of both movies define them as film noir, but the elements are probably more apparent in The Third Man.
Lightning and Sound
Further, lighting and sound techniques also play an important role in film noir. Their main function is to add mystery, scare the audience, and symbolize the emotions and fears of the main characters. In both movies, sound and lighting are effectively used to add the noir element. For instance, The Third Man and The Silence of the Lambs are associated with dimmed lighting components that symbolize American crime, detectives, and gangster stories. In both movies, the more mysterious, scary, or tense a scene is, the less lighting it has. Such a technique allows to convey the tense to the audience. In the most stressful or truth-revealing moments, low key lighting and kicker are used to create dramatic, suspicious, and scary effects; these noir lighting techniques are used excessively in both movies. As for the sounds, some soundtracks of The Third Man refer to the events of the Second World War, while others add tense, mystery, and dark elements, just like in The Silence of the Lambs. To conclude, both movies use noir lightning and sound elements in similar ways.
Camera Angles and Movements
One of the most valuable characteristics of noir movies is camera shots and angles. They are used similarly in the two films to provide the audience with an intense and dramatic mood and tone. Both directors decided to rely on close-up and big close-up shots. Especially in The Silence of the Lambs, such shots create an intense mood, provide interaction between the audience and the character, signify something important, and allow the viewers to feel the emotions of the characters. To establish the location of events or single out the different relationships among the characters and their key roles, long shots are used in both movies. Finally, sharp camera movements or sharp camera approaches to the face of a character allow the viewer to become included in the plot, conveying to them the inevitability and horror of the events shown.
Costumes
Finally, it is essential to discuss the use of costumes in the movies. It is noticeable that in The Third Man and The Silence of the Lambs, the characters are dressed according to the rules of film noir. Both Holly Martins and Clarice Starling wear strict costumes, including white or grey shirts, trousers, and jackets. Sweaters and turtlenecks in calm, sometimes dark colors are chosen by Clarice Starling, while Holly Martins wears a black trench, a tie, and a hat and prefers combining white and black colors. Overall, it is possible to say that the costume rules of film noir are followed in both movies.
Conclusion
To draw a conclusion, one may say that the comparative analysis between the two movies presents an effective application of noir elements in both The Silence of the Lambs and The Third Man. In these two movies, one can easily determine the common plot, camera shots, lighting, sound, and costume elements that make it possible to refer the films to the noir genre. The key traits of the characters and plots are typical for film noir, but it is still noticeable that they are more present in The Third Man.
References
Fuss, D. (2018). Monsters of perversion: Jeffrey Dahmer and The Silence of the Lambs. Media Spectacles, 181–205. Web.
Riegler, T. (2020). The Spy Story Behind The Third Man. Journal of Austrian-American History, 4(1), 1–37. Web.