The 1930’s and ’40’s, dystopian and dysfunctional worlds pushed films and books towards a certain direction – melancholy, pessimism and alienation. Polytomaic conceptions of the linguistic and stylistic worlds where chiaroscuroed cities were stylised as allegorical, atmospherically decorated books and films.
The contagious mood infected protagonists and villains. This mood suggested that modernity corrupted the modern individual. Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler were the pioneers of noir books that mirrored the age of American writers writing during the Great Depression. In doing so, these books and films comment critically on the politics on the city where the economy offers little prospects.
Similar economic circumstances have arisen worldwide in 2010, here’s hoping for a resurgence of noir novels and films.
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