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NoirNovels.com - A unique repository for all things noir
What Is Noir?Defining what noir is has proved quite problematic, however it is probably fair to say the term noir was first used in postwar France to describe a particular style of American filmmaking used in the 1940s. For the purposes of NoirNovels.com, I would propose to define noir as a style of fiction which has at its heart a gritty reality, a world where the main characters are imperfect, and are more like anti-heroes than heroes. NoirNovels.com is, however, not a site which lauds cigarette smoking gumshoes and the eponymous femmes fatale. James Ellroy's work has often been based around the seedy, corrupt side of America, particularly Los Angeles. Many of his main characters have been cops, a good many of those have been corrupt, either professionally or morally (and sometimes both). The world in which his characters live is not glossy or appealing, yet his work makes for compulsive reading. Perhaps Ellroy's exploration of the darker side of human nature gives us the freedom to take our own mental journey into the darker sides of our own psyches. Everyone will make their own mind up as to what they consider noir to be. For me, though, it is a dark, gritty, seedy world, populated by corrupt cops, convicts, whores, drug pushers, urban terrorists, junkies and punctuated by murder, petty crime, sex crime and doing time. If you love noir then enjoy the site and feel free to contribute. If you are new to noir, don't be afraid to take the plunge. It may not be pretty, but it's compulsive stuff. |
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