Robert Aldrich (August 9, 1918 to December 5, 1983) was a socially well-connected and famous filmmaker; his credits include Whatever Happened to Baby Jane (1962), The Dirty Dozen (1967) and The Longest Yard (1974). Our attention was caught by an earlier movie Aldrich directed though, the film noir classic, Kiss Me Deadly (1955.) Critics call this film "a crucial influence on what would become the French new wave."
That movie got us wondering, what IS film noir, exactly? Is it women leaning closely against seemingly cold-hearted men? Is it handsome and inquisitive fellows with no qualms about hurting people to get what they want? Is it tropical scenes of city streets at night? Is it glossy car finishes? Critics might include these details but perhaps the key to cinema noir is the pets. Yes, a pattern emerges in this movie, the canary whose fate we dread to discover, the dog that sleeps with the neglected girlfriend, and the secretary's cat. Yes, in film noir you get to bring your pets to the office. The bad guy's girl Thursday has a Persian, that fatly lounges on the wooden barrier to her desk. Is this scene inserted to extend the movie's playing time? I think not. We have here the final key to film noir --- fluffy noir makes for multidimensional characters.
That movie got us wondering, what IS film noir, exactly? Is it women leaning closely against seemingly cold-hearted men? Is it handsome and inquisitive fellows with no qualms about hurting people to get what they want? Is it tropical scenes of city streets at night? Is it glossy car finishes? Critics might include these details but perhaps the key to cinema noir is the pets. Yes, a pattern emerges in this movie, the canary whose fate we dread to discover, the dog that sleeps with the neglected girlfriend, and the secretary's cat. Yes, in film noir you get to bring your pets to the office. The bad guy's girl Thursday has a Persian, that fatly lounges on the wooden barrier to her desk. Is this scene inserted to extend the movie's playing time? I think not. We have here the final key to film noir --- fluffy noir makes for multidimensional characters.
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