Spring 2012 American Noir 1
Noir...is the long drop off the short pier and the wrong man and the wrong woman in perfect misalliance. It’s the nightmare of flawed souls with big dreams and the precise how and why of the all-time sure thing that goes bad. — James Ellroy
Professor: William Howarth ([email protected]) Classes: Thu 1:30-4:20 pm, 207 Frist Campus Center Web site: http://www.princeton.edu/~howarth/302 Office Hours: by appointment, Thu 11:00 am-1:00 pm
Requirements Readings: required (30-200 pp); optional for extra credit/higher grades. Films: view weekly in your web browser; see also Archive for extra credit. Journals: 12 weekly entries (500-1,000 words), your thoughts on course content. Final: an original project of your choice, related to course content.
01 Introduction Origins of noir: gothic, expressionism, photojournalism, pulp fiction, studios. Links to online sites and files, distributed in advance.
02 The Maltese Falcon Hallmarks of noir style: cynical, erotic, political, morally complex. Novel: Dashiell Hammett (1930); Script/film: Hammett & John Houston (1941)
03 Casablanca Hollywood goes to war; noir and Fascism; anti-hero and femme fatale. Play: Murray Burnett (1938); Script/film: J/P Epstein, Michael Curtiz (1942)
04 Murder, My Sweet (Farewell, My Lovely) Violence, crime, alienation: the studio system as cultural gatekeeper, 1933-45. Novel: Raymond Chandler (1940); Script/film: J. Paxton, Edward Dymtryk (1944)
Journal entries 1-4 due on March 2 at 5:00 pm.
05 The Postman Always Rings Twice Noir in popular cinema: obsession; gender/sexuality; nihilism. Novel: James Cain (1934); Script/film: H. Ruskin, N. Busch, Tay Garnett (1946)
06 Out of the Past (Build My Gallows High) Culture wars, 1946-50: noir and the Hollywood blacklist. Novel: "Geoffrey Homes" (1946), Script/film: Homes, Jacques Tourneur (1947)
Spring Break, March 17-25 Spring 2012 American Noir 2
07 The Naked City Postwar influences: documentary and European neo-realism. Story: Malvin Wald (1947); Script/film: A. Maltz, M. Wald, Jules Dassin (1948)
08 The Asphalt Jungle Postwar caper/crime films; the capitalist critique; noir mainstreamed. Novel: W. R. Burnett (1949) Script/film: B. Maddow, John Huston (1950) [reserves]
Journal entries 5-8 due on 6 April at 5:00 pm
09 Rear Window Narrative experiments; psychological thrillers; feminism. Story: Cornell Woolrich (1942); Script/film: J. Hayes, Alfred Hitchcock (1954)
10 Bad Day at Black Rock Noir as social commentary; adaptation to Western landscape. Story: Howard Breslin (1953); Script/film: D. McGuire, John Sturges (1955)
11 Chinatown Neo-Noir 1: Reinvention, homage, original screenplays. Script: Robert Towne (1973); film Roman Polanski (1974)
12 L. A. Confidential Neo-Noir 2: Celebrity culture, organized crime, tabloid journalism. Novel: James Ellroy (1990); Script/film, Curtis Hanson (1997)
Journal Entries 9-12 due on May 4 at 5:00 pm
Final Project due on May 21 at 5:00 pm
Using your Journal entries as a guide, create an original project of your choice.
Possibilities include an essay, critical reviews, interviews, slide show, script, short film....
Tip: use the resources listed in the Archive
Advice to the right is from famed crime author, Leonard Elmore