Film Noir: First Draft.

Zachary Swift- Young detective who becomes the centre of his very first case- the Red Dahlia murders, a copycat serial killer who idolises the Black Dahlia case. His girlfriend Peyton Andrews is kidnapped by the killer- so it’s a race against time to try and solve the case and get her back alive. Represented by the colour yellow.

Valencia Van de Wolfe- a trust fund baby who was let down by the legal system, despite having money for the best lawyers- and the fact that she witnessed her parents murder, it was thrown out of court for the lack of evidence. This left her mentally disturbed, and she’s now determined to push the police to their limit. She mutilates her victims and leaves red lipstick marks on their eyes. Represented by the colour red.

Peyton Andrews- An attractive young woman who is kept captive in the apartment of seemingly normal trust fund socialite Valencia Van de Wolfe, bound and slowly tortured.

Sawyer Connolly- Swift’s partner on the case, short temper and wants to catch the ‘Red Dahlia’ killer at all costs- even if it means disregarding Peyton’s safety.

Montage of ZACHARY SWIFT and PEYTON ANDREWS, handy cam effect to represent a home movie. Happy- the film is in colour. Portrays closeness and sets up a feeling for the film. Zachary loves her and would do anything for her. Montage ends as soon as ZACHARY’s eyes open- he has been dreaming. He sits up and flips up his laptop, staring blankly at it. News paper cuttings surround him, we see ‘MURDER’ ‘MISSING’ ‘RED DAHLIA’. Split screen style shot, camera pans to a desk shot of VALENCIA VAN de WOLFE- staring at the camera equally blank, a crumpled picture in her fist.

ZACHARY:
Don’t worry. I’ll get you back.

VALENCIA:
You’re never coming back, and it gets harder everyday.

Though out all of VALENCIA’s scenes- soothing classical music is played underneath. Cut to a close up of VALENCIA handling some photos. The crumpled photo is that of her parents- she flattens it out and moves it to one side. Her nail varnish is red. The other photos are surveillance shots of ZACHARY, some of them with PEYTON- she has ‘X’s across her faces. Match cut to evidence on ZACHARY’s desk- a distinctive diamond earring and a serviette with a ‘kiss’ stain and a phone number in intricate script. There are a number of documents on the table also. Coffee spills over all of the objects on the table- close up ZACHARY’s frustrated face.

SAWYER:
We’re dealing with a murderer here Swift, we don’t even know if it’s anything to do with Peyton- so try and keep a level head. And stop spilling over hot beverages, especially over evidence.

SAWYER THROWS DOWN A MAGAZINE.

ZACHARY:
Forbes?

SAWYER:
I only got it because Valencia van de Wolfe is on the cover.

Volume of music intensifies. Jump cut to an extreme close up of VALENCIA’s bare ear, in the next mid-shot of her polishing a desk, she is wearing the distinctive earring in the other ear. In the background pasted to the wall is random news paper cuttings- the words ‘MURDER’ ‘MISSING’ ‘RED DAHLIA’ surround her and numbers of pictures. She sips red wine. Screws up a picture of ZACHARY and throws it over her shoulder.

Second match cut, ZACHARY throws a coffee soaked napkin in a waste bin. He stares wistfully at a picture of him and PEYTON.

Long shot of VALENCIA walking down her hall. Peyton is tied up, gagged and obviously in pain. She doesn’t talk or move.

Split screen, two telephones. Shot in ‘real time’- VALENCIA dials a number, we hear it ring. ZACHARY picks up at the other end. O.T.S from onlooker’s perspective as he takes the call. Close up on ZACHARY.

Zachary:
Hello?

Valencia:
Hello, am I speaking to Zachary Swift?

Zachary:
Yes, Zach Swift speaking- who is this?

Valencia:
The world needs be cleansed.

Zachary:
Is it you there, Red Dahlia?

Valencia:
I don’t know, what do you think Zach? I only know she doesn’t deserve you.

Zachary:
Give her back, don’t you lay one finger on her!

Valencia:
A speeding offence last year caused a mother and child to die. The corrupt legal system drove her husband to the edge. He killed himself a few months after, if I remember properly? It failed me all the same.

Zachary:
What?

Valencia:
Being the fiancée of a police officer can really get you out of some unfavourable situations.

Zachary:
What?! How do you know about that? I’m going to catch you, and you’re going straight to hell.

Sawyer:
Calm down and turn the bug on! ZACH! That is an order!

Valencia:
The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Farewell Zach.

Valencia clears the line. Close up on Zach smashing the phone on the floor.

RED DAHLIA TITLE CREDITS.

Change of mind!

Our group made a rushed decision to change what genre of film opening we were going to do. From our gangster research, we discovered a type of film called film noir- which are black and white sleek crime thrillers from the forties that went onto influence many neo-noir films of recent years like Sin City (2005), the Coen Brothers' The Man who wasn't There (2001) and Momento (2000).

They are very stylised, and usually filmed with interesting colouring styles- be it completely black and white, filtered colour, or excessive differentiating between periods of time with colour and black and white. The story centers around an alienated 'do-gooder' be it a private eye, detective or simply a law abiding citizen and an anti-hero, making a cat-and-mouse style affair emerge. They nearly always include a femme fatale, murder and jealousy have strong undertones and amnesia is consider parallel to the common cold in film noir films.

Visually, a shot of ventian blades covering a shady character is an iconic shot in the style of film noir and it will definately need to be employed in our piece. Film noir is also known for its use of Dutch angles, low-angle shots, and wide-angle lenses. Other devices of disorientation relatively common in film noir include shots of people reflected in one or more mirrors, shots through curved or frosted glass or other distorting objects and special effects sequences of a sometimes bizarre nature. Night-for-night shooting, as opposed to the Hollywood norm of day-for-night, was often employed. From the mid-1940s forward, location shooting became increasingly frequent in noir.

The tone of a film is everything when it comes to making anything in the style of film noir. It needs to have a completely moody, dark, downbeat setting- even when it seems like the protaginist is winning.

I am really excited about this. We have a first draft of a script that we managed to piece together in a few hours, so hopefully we can create a brilliant project that truly fulfils all the conventions of film noir.