... noir. The protagonists in film noir are normally driven by their past or by human weakness to repeat former mistakes. Film noir is marked by expressionistic lighting, disorienting visual schemes and skewed camera angles, circling cigarette smoke, existential sensibilities, and unbalanced compositions. Settings are ... mystery classic The Maltese Falcon (1941) from a book by Dashiell Hammett. It was famous for Humphrey Bogart's cool, laconic private eye hero Sam Spade in pursuit of crooks greedy for a jewel-encrusted statue, and Mary Astor as the femme fatale. The acting duo of Alan ... ...

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• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: Undergraduate