Why did I become a film critic? Because I love films. Not all films, mind - I didn't become a film critic so I could review Death to Smoochy. But I love a good film, a film that evokes strong emotions in me, that takes me to a glamorous place of escapist fantasy or comments on life in a way I find meaningful and compelling.
More importantly, I like a film that caters to my personal tastes. Of course, over the years I've found those personal tastes harder and harder to define. What kinds of films do I like? I liked Boyhood, for sure, but does that mean I have an unconditional love for all independent American cinema? Hell no. Men, Women & Children saw to that. I loved The Babadook, but was that because it was a good bit of horror cinema, or was it because it was the only good bit of horror cinema amid a sea of Annabelle-scented turge? I'd say the latter.
I love films, but not all films - and most of the films I love, I love because they do something new, they surprise me with unheard of delights and dramas, prompt genuine laughter or fear. And finally, most importantly, I don't love a film just because it's covering a subject matter or genre I like, I love a film because it's a good film by my own standards. I liked 2001: A Space Odyssey, I disliked Interstellar. Do they cover a similar subject? Yes. Are they both similar and a world apart? Of course. Writing, acting, directing, sound design, and that implacable element some people call "magic", are just some of the factors I use to determine the good from the bad, the star-spangled from the stinkers. For the most part, genre doesn't really enter into the equation.
However. I pride myself on being a man of contradictions, and one these is the fact that there is a genre which I'm more likely to look upon favourably, to ignore that voice in the back of my head shouting "bad acting! shoddy character development! would you LOOK at that mise-en-scéne?" and just enjoy the experience.
 |
| L.A. Confidential - Great film, but suffers from a distinct lack of rain and serial killers. |
It's the neo-noir, in case you hadn't guessed from the title, although it's a very specific kind of neo-noir I have in mind. For the unaware, the neo-noir genre takes elements from the film noirs of the 1940s and 50s - crime, violence, the main character being a bit of a dick - and pops them in a modern environment. L.A. Confidential would be a prime candidate, even though it's a period piece, since it twists our perception of genre into something new and original (with brains, sex appeal, and Kevin Spacey).
But as much as I liked that film, it's not exactly what I'm thinking of when I try and pinpoint my favourite genre. It needs to be gloomier, less glamour and fizz but still with a level of smart, professional polish. It's almost always the kind of film with a serial killer in it, but it's not the serial killer film, that's something else. Mine has to have policemen and detectives working hard to "crack the case", but with an extra element of something...different.
 |
| Community - The perfect parody? |
Hmm. So you know that Community episode with the Ass-Crack Bandit? Basically that. Blue filter? Check. A perpetual environment of rain? Check. Press conferences, red herrings, chases down dark alleyways and through crummy apartment buildings? Check check check. I prefer it when it's set in a small town (à la Twin Peaks) but that's not always necessary - cities can be even more oppressive, particularly when it's Seattle. Oh, and the protagonist has to become too involved in the case, and his superiors have to sit him down and have "the talk" where they recommend they should drop the case and take a fishing holiday or something.
So maybe it shouldn't be called the neo-noir but rather "rain-soaked police-procedural psychological neo-noir thriller". Or RSPPPNNT, if you're feeling lazy. Which I am.
The Community episode was a play on David Fincher's Zodiac, and I think that's one of the prime examples of a good RSPPPNNT. Layers of mystery, atmosphere, well-developed characters, they're all there, despite the omittance of a few key conditions, namely San Francisco being too damn pretty. Actually, if you combined it with Se7en's silly weather forecast and slick visual style you'd probably have genre perfection.
 |
| Insomnia - Al Pacino's haggard face is a thing of beauty. The unhappier the protagonist, the better. |
I suppose some more examples would include Insomnia, The Pledge, and even Red Dragon in its more sensible moments. Insomnia is a personal favourite of mine, despite not featuring a single drop of rain or press conference. You've got a main character - played by Al Pacino no less - with unresolved issues, drafted in to "solve the case" in a small Alaskan town, who, after a healthy incident of buddy-murder, gets way too involved with local serial killer Robin Williams. The town is in perpetual daylight but this actually adds to the atmosphere, especially since there's more fog than a Wham! music video.
Come to think about it, my fondness for RSPPPNNT might stem from excessive TV-watching. The genre goes back a while, but I suspect my first proper exposure was the original (and superior) Danish version of The Killing. That ticked every box, with a palpable atmosphere of gloom and mystery (helped along by the fact that it's always fucking raining in Denmark). I'd also watched Red Riding, a Channel 4 series about the Yorkshire Ripper, which would have been perfect if it had made an ounce of sense. You could also include True Detective in my categorisation as well, although I think it's far too self-reflexive to take away genre pleasures.
 |
| Heavy Rain - the news vans, the sirens, the floodlights. ALL CRUCIAL. |
Finally, there was David Cage's bizarre video game Heavy Rain, which paid homage to the genre through the filter of its quick time event gameplay. While not entirely successful, it at least tried to scratch the RSPPPNNT itch, although it was hampered by a) being fifteen hours long, b) having some truly awful dialogue, and c) lacking a scene where the main character makes a map of the killer's activity using pins and string, then stands back with his hands on his hips and goes "huh".
Yes, I haven't been outside in a while, but I'm one step closer to finding the perfect film, refining my personal tastes, and cracking this case once and for all.
