film noir

noun

plural film noirs -ˈnwär(z) How to pronounce film noir (audio) or films noir or films noirs -ˈnwär How to pronounce film noir (audio)
: a type of crime film featuring cynical malevolent characters in a sleazy setting and an ominous atmosphere that is conveyed by shadowy photography and foreboding background music
also : a film of this type

Examples of film noir in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Part instructional video, part film noir, the movie opened with the sound of whistling wind and a shot of rustling vegetation. Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2025 Advertisement His films were often filled with recurrent characters and motifs, and blended film noir darkness, suspense and ensemble casts. Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2025 But Morgan had appeared opposite Jack Webb in the film noir movies Dark City (1950), Appointment with Danger (1951), and Pete Kelly’s Blues (1955), and was an early regular member of Jack Webb's stock company of actors on the original Dragnet radio show. Marc Berman, Forbes, 12 Jan. 2025 If ‘New York, New York’ was a film noir musical, ‘Pennies From Heaven’ is the musical as an art film. Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 3 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for film noir 

Word History

Etymology

French, literally, black film

First Known Use

1930, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of film noir was in 1930

Dictionary Entries Near film noir

Cite this Entry

“Film noir.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/film%20noir. Accessed 23 Jan. 2025.

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