film noir

American  

[nwahr] / nwɑr /

noun

1. a motion picture with an often grim urban setting, photographed in somber tones and permeated by a feeling of disillusionment, pessimism, and despair.

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film noir British  

/ nwɑː /

noun

1. a gangster thriller, made esp in the 1940s in Hollywood characterized by contrasty lighting and often somewhat impenetrable plots

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Etymology

Origin of film noir

1955–60; < French: literally, black film

Example Sentences

As his deceit becomes apparent, the music shifts from crisp hip-hop beats to a hard-boiled film noir crescendo.

From BBC • Mar. 26, 2026

Having named the genre, the French can claim a special connection to that loose collection of cinematic tropes we call film noir.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 21, 2026

The contemporary film noir story, which just wrapped production, stars Garcia as a private eye who operates like a 1940s Raymond Chandleresque detective in present day Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 5, 2025

But even that doesn’t seem fitting for works that nod to centuries-old chant music and film noir.

From New York Times • Nov. 15, 2024

Here it’s considered archaic, a throwback to film noir that taught us to associate it with some of cinema’s immortal screen goddesses – Lauren Bacall, Ava Gardner, Barbara Stanwyck, Joan Crawford.

From Salon • Oct. 1, 2024