If the term film noir was originally coined by French critics and cinephiles in the immediate postwar era to describe what was perceived as a predominantly American genre (Hollywood adaptations of hard-boiled detective fiction), France is also the only country outside the US to have built up a large, consistent and ongoing body of crime films (or “polars”) which frequently garner critical recognition while generating popular appeal. In addition to providing students with the proper analytical and technical tools for studying and teaching film, the main purpose of the course is to explore the evolution and scope of French crime cinema, emphasizing key historical phases and subgenres:

silent era serials

colonial proto-noir in the 30s

post-WW2 psychological thrillers

iconic gangster flicks in the 50s

the Nouvelle Vague’s infatuation with and redefinition of the genre in the early 60s

the stylized, male-dominated microcosm of Melville and the social commentaries of C. Chabrol’s films in the 70s

postmodern neo-noir in the 80s-90s

documentary-infused “polar” that paved the way for a popular trend in TV crime series

recent developments or current avatars.

An effort will be made to isolate and define a possible set of specificities in noir à la française, but more generally we will discuss issues of ethics, ideology, gender, sexuality, violence, or spectatorship, through a variety of critical lenses (psychoanalysis, socio-historical and cultural context, aesthetics, politics, gender…). Filmmakers considered should include Feuillade, Duvivier, Clouzot, Becker, Dassin, Godard, Truffaut, Melville, Chabrol, Corneau, Beineix, Miller, Tavernier, Nicloux, Audiard.