Your research question or thesis: what this video essay will be about.
- How has fashion and costuming been key to selling femme fatale to the audience?
- How has the male gaze led femme fatales and female leads to become fashion focused / fashion icons?
- A woman is only worth the attention in a Noir if she’s mysterious and conventionally attractive, or perhaps her blouse accentuates her figure a little too nicely for a stranger not to notice. Women of importance in noir seem to fit a trend, having fashion or looks that usually differentiate them from the other women in the cast. Think about Phyllis in Double Indemnity, where the housekeeper or the daughter are both dressed in dark outfits to not stand out — meanwhile, Phyllis is often dressed in white or something with bright white accents to make her pop out on screen.
- This trend has also been found in contemporary media, such as Pulp Fiction, and Bioshock Infinity (Maybe Blade Runner?)
What topics and subjects you would like to conduct research on to develop that question/thesis.
- This is more of a costuming and intention-based topic. I want to look at how women in a handful of movies are visually displayed and how they’re meant to draw in the eye — And in turn how these examples might have affected the femme fatale or general fashion trends
- How has fashion been influenced by Noir, mens vs womens fashion
Which course readings are likely to be useful in supporting this thesis or answering this question.
- I don’t remember if any of the readings mention costuming in specific, but definitely will look to use Dickos’ “Women in Noir”
- Peterson’s “Visual Motifs in Noir”
Which films (from the course and beyond) you intend to use to specify and clarify your argument.
- Scarlet Street
- Sunset Boulevard
- Double Indemnity
- Pulp fiction
- Perhaps Maltese Falcon?
This is looking good; no concerns from my end. Keep going! 🙂