Film Noir Lighting

In Film Noir, Low-key lighting is used to create moody, dark and dramatic atmospheres. Film Noir has been described as a world of night and shadows, therefore, Low-key lighting captures this world perfectly, allowing directors to create a world of mystery, uncertainly and suspense. This has been done nicely in the clip below, from the film, Sin City.

Technically, this clip is from a neo-noir film, but neo-noir films use the same aspects of lighting as Film noir does because it is influenced by the genre, the only difference being, that it was made after the 1960's, the modernized storyline and the technology used to make it. In this clip, it shows one of the main protagonists, Marv, fighting Kevin, who killed Marv's sweetheart.

The use of Chiaroscuro lighting in the clip is significant to identify it as a form of film noir. This also creates a mysterious and tense atmosphere. Through this use of low-key lighting, a heightened sense of alienation which is felt by the audience. It is hard to depict whether it is day or night as Low-key lighting is used similarly throughout the film. They are able to create an ambiguous world through their use of Chiaroscuro lighting, portraying characters in the clip as morally ambiguous, specifically, the protagonist to show that even heroes are always flawed. In order to attain low-key lighting, less to no fillers are used, with one key light and a back light, which have been used here. A back light has been used for illumination and silhouettes, in order to depict the fast paced movement of the characters. Only a small amount of filler lights have been used in order to depict the aggressive (Marv) and absent (Kevin) expressions of the characters.