Pulp noir is a subgenre influenced by various "noir" genres, as well as pulp fiction genres; particularly the hard-boiled genres which help give rise to film noir.Influences of Film Noir - American Pulps Pulp noir is marked by its use of classic noir techniques, but with urban influences. Various media include film, illustrations, photographs and videogames.
In film Whereas film noir directly involves characters living bleak existences to accomplish a goal with odds against them, pulp noir often portrays a grittier, one-man army. Typically, the main character has no distinguishing abilities, but can hold ground against seemingly impossible odds. Pulp noir locations are often seedy, run-down and degraded urban landscapes, where the lack of law, morals and even the proliferation of crime and drugs are common themes. Another common trend in pulp noir is the glorification and/or demonization of its urban locations.
Examples Cat People (1942)Black & White & Noir: American Pulp Modernism - Google Books (pgs.11-12) Double Indemnity (1944)Black & White & Noir: America's Pulp Modernism on JSTOR Laura (1944) Detour (1945) Hangover Square (1945) Gilda (1946) The Killers (1946) Nightmare Alley (1947) Out of the Past (1947) The Naked City (1948) Thieves Highway (1949)Ten Great Movies for Placemakers —— Project for Public Spaces No Way Out (1950) Night and the City (1950) The Big Heat (1953) Niagara (1953) 99 River Street (1953)99 River Street - Trailers From Hell Pickup on South Street (1953)The Paris Review - Revisiting "Pickup on South Street" - Paris ReviewThe Criterion Channel's November 2021 Lineup|Current|The Criterion Collection Killer's Kiss (1955)The Criterion Channel's July 2023 Lineup|Current|The Criterion Collection Kiss Me Deadly (1955) Touch of Evil (1958)How Orson Welles Recharged the Pulpy Crime Genre With ‘Touch of Evil’|Collider The Crimson Kimono (1959)The Criterion Channel’s November 2024 Lineup|Current|The Criterion Collection Shock Corridor (1963)Noir nightmare 'Shock Corridor' ramps up the pulp and reminds us: We're all a little wacky —— Film Noir Blonde Bonnie and Clyde (1967)Bonnie and Clyde Movies: A History of the Criminal Duo in Film|Decider Batman (1989)Why 'Batman,' Not 'Star Wars,' Was The Box Office Blockbuster That Ruined Hollywood - Forbes Dick Tracy (1990)15 June, 1990, an exceptionally unhinged day in Hollywood history - Little White LiesPassionate About Pulp: Revisiting Dick Tracy (1990) - Criminal Element The Rocketeer (1991)Creating a Pulp and Noir Heroverse for the Big Screen - The Loftus Party Pulp Fiction (1994) Million Dollar Baby (2004) Sin City (2005)Sin City (2005) - Roger Ebert.com The Paperboy (2012)Movie Review: What The Paperboy Says (Or Doesn't) About Sex in The South - D Magazine The Wild Goose Lake (2019) Awesome Trailer for the Chinese Pulp Noir Gangster Thriller THE WILD GOOSE LAKE —— GeekTyrant
In other media Some illustrations and photographs are described as being pulp noir. Recently, some video games, such as the Max Payne third-person shooter series, have been portrayed in a film noir style, using heavy, gritty, dirty urban themes. SF Weekly journalist Matt Smith used the term to describe the act of "sprinting to the crime scene, skidding on my heels, and yelling at everyone and nobody in particular: 'Who's in charge here?'" Noir You See It, Noir You Don't|Matt Smith|SF Weekly
See also Neo-noir Pulp magazines Vulgar auteurism Arthouse action film B-movie
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