Film noir occupies a somewhat unique place in cinema, in that it is one of the most frequently referenced film styles in history and yet many would struggle to accurately define it. It has inspired fans and enthusiasts for decades, but it can be challenging for librarians to build collections around it as there is very little published work from the field of library and information science on the subject.
Lists abound on the internet of the best or most important noir films, and it’s never a bad idea to check out those sources for ideas on which films belong in your core collection. Once past that first step, though, it can be hard to determine which little-known films are worth purchasing, and which are less relevant. There is no perfectly defined film noir “canon,” and developing your collection can seem like a murky prospect. Thus, to begin, you need to think about what you want the scope of your collection to be.
Defining Scope
The “classic” period of American film noir is defined as the 1940s and early 1950s, and it is characterized less by narrative archetypes and more by visual style and philosophical outlook. Film noir used stark, high contrast black and white cinematography to frame stories that presented a darker, more pessimistic view of America and the American dream.
Later films that shared some of these elements are usually not referred to as true film noir, but “neo-noir.” This is an important distinction to remember: while neo-noir films can be excellent additions to a collection of film noir, genre purists would make sure to differentiate between them and the classic noir films. When developing a collection devoted to the genre, librarians should be conscious of that difference and denote their intended scope.
Resources
Librarians looking to develop collections on American film noir may find themselves stymied by the overall lack of bibliographic resources devoted to film noir. Even using this guide, it may be difficult to pinpoint the exact level of collection depth achieved, but it will recommend resources for both classic American film noir as well as American neo-noir in an effort to point librarians to the best collection depth possible.
When developing a genre collection, it is important to have a primary reference source to discover new works and check on their basic metadata. While more general resources like IMDb are certainly useful when building any film collection, it’s never a bad idea to consult a reference source devoted entirely to your genre.
Alain Silver is one of the most respected writers on the subject of film noir, and his team of Elizabeth Ward, James Ursini, Robert Porfirio, and himself have written over a dozen authoritative books on the subject. This comprehensive encyclopedia of film noir garnered much praise from noir enthusiasts when it was first published in 1992, and it has continued to be appreciated through its fourth edition. Bright Lights Film Journal called the book an “ideal guide” to the subject, though academic researchers and librarians developing film noir collections should know that the encyclopedia focuses primarily on the classic period of film noir.
The New York Times
The New York Times has been publishing movie reviews for over 100 years. Its website has all of those reviews available to read, and a dedicated film noir filter makes it extremely easy to find reviews of films in that genre (the earliest of which was published in 1915). This makes the New York Times uniquely well suited for film noir researchers at any level of depth: the paper and its reviewers are well respected, the website makes it easy to find reviews relating to film noir, and most importantly, the majority of those reviews are contemporary reviews of films released in the 1920s-1950s. This means that these reviews, aside from recommending films to the average user, can also provide insight for dedicated researchers into how a film was received at the time, as well as any cultural cues a modern researcher might miss. Therefore, the Times’ movie review page makes sense for any librarian to consult, but especially those academic librarians developing film noir collections.
Video Librarian
It is rare to find resources that review films specifically for an audience of librarians, and not to sound too arrogant, but that is what makes Video Librarian invaluable to librarians developing film collections. Originally a long-running print journal, Video Librarian transitioned to an online-only format in 2020 and continues to publish reviews and essays about film as it relates to librarianship. With a genre page for film noir, this makes Video Librarian just about the only English-language source that can be relied on for continuing reviews of noir films, both classic noir, and neo-noir, that are written for a demographic of librarians. This, naturally, makes it a can’t-miss resource for librarians developing any kind of film noir collection, whether it be for public, private, or academic institutions.
Expanding Definitions
Even if you decide to include neo-noir, there are always more connections to pursue when developing your film noir collection. Video Librarian has tips on neo-noir films that expand the genre, and it can be worth the time to explore films that have noir influences, even if they’re not technically noir themselves. As we already stated, film noir is one of the most influential genres of film ever to exist, and tracing those connections through film history can be an engaging way to highlight your other collections. And if you’re not focusing purely on classic American film noir, remember that the genre is loosely defined and you’re allowed to expand your collection’s scope to newer films with connections to noir.
Genres and film movements like science fiction, French New Wave, crime procedurals, and many more owe a lot to the style and cinematic grammar of film noir, and film noir was itself heavily influenced by German expressionism. Library patrons can learn so much about the overall history of cinema just by studying film noir that it’s always worth having at least some representation of the genre in any media library.