Many good things came from participating in the TCM (Turner Classic Movies) Noir Summer online class. Not only did I discover a whole bunch of films I had never seen before, as well as learn a lot about an intriguing style of cinema, but I was also exposed to some very interesting websites dedicated to Film Noir. I never knew there were so many. And now that you’re as informed as I am, I’d like to introduce you to FilmNoirStudies.com. A veritable what’s what of Film Noir, it’s a great place to start your online exploration of the dark side of cinema.
To start, FilmNoirStudies.com offers a beautiful layout with crisp black and white images and lush colored movie posters from the golden age of cinema, thus immediately immersing you in the necessary atmosphere desirable for all things Noir. From the home page you’ll find the usual tabs that lead you to the various other pages for essays, background, history and such. This is where you’ll find the inside dope on one of the most often misunderstood styles in cinematic history. From an in depth timeline to a useful glossary and more, FilmNoirStudies will get you up to speed on just about all you need to appreciate the shadows and double twists of the next intrigue you experience courtesy of the silver screen.
Pact full of information, these pages are dedicated to the discussion and dissection of a particular mode of art that has finally come into its own. Although, Film Noir has been around since the Studio era, the term has only been in regular use since the 1970s, with an increasing appreciation over the ensuing decades culminating with its current celebration through festivals and retrospectives. Whether Noir is a movement, style or genre doesn’t matter here. What does matter is the level of devotion for an art form that in its own time was too easily dismissed as so-called “B” movies. Once you’ve spent sometime sifting through FilmNoirStudies you’ll agree that many a Film Noir has earned its place among the stratosphere of “A” pictures.