3The Noir Anti-Hero
“You’re trying to make me go soft. Well, you can save your oil, I don’t go soft for anybody.”
(This Gun for Hire)
Not all protagonists in noir films are detectives or nice guys. There are a group of noir films in which the protagonist kills someone or becomes involved in crime. These are the noir genre’s anti-heroes. While the anti-hero is usually defined in standard storytelling as a protagonist who has more of the traits of a “bad guy,” the noir anti-hero usually isn’t a gangster or a psychopath (although there have been some). Instead, he’s more often a character who eventually falls into becoming a murderer or criminal as a result of his decisions and actions rather than circumstances beyond his control.
One of the most ...
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