I

Extended Essay

Films Femme Fatales and Feminists - To what extent do differences between Film Noir
and Neo Noir reflect the ideologies of Postfeminism?

Word Count: 3,937

II
Abstract
Society undoubtedly greatly influences film, and vice versa. In many ways, the roles
that people play in society are the same roles that are reflected in film. The Noir genre is
an especially interesting one, because the character archetypes within both Film Noir and
Neo Noir are unique, and their characters may also then offer a unique reflection of society
at the time. Film Noir and Neo Noir are two similar genres, appearing during two different
time periods, one in the mid 1900s, and one beginning in the late 1900s onwards. Film
Noir and Neo Noir, despite being grouped under Noir, do have differences. This essays
purpose is to reflect on the changes between these two time periods and compare how
they may have influenced or have been influenced by changes in society.
More specifically, this essay aims to look at a specific archetype in Noir, the femme
fatale, and reflect on how the character has evolved throughout changes in society. To look
at how the femme fatale character has changed, it is necessary to look at how a womans
role in society has also changed, namely through feminist movements during that time,
leaving me with the question: To what extent do differences between Film Noir and Neo
Noir reflect the ideologies of Postfeminism? To find an answer, I picked six different films
from the two genres, and analysed the femme fatales in each one. I also offered a brief
history of feminism, especially during the 20th century, and related it back to the films. I
mainly focused on the fate and motivations of femme fatales and how they relate to
feminism, and my conclusion offers a connection between the male director and the
negative portrayal of feminists within film.
Word Count: 290

III
Table of Contents

Introduction..p. 1
Noir and Character Archetypes....p. 1
The Femme Fatale and Feminism...p. 2
Feminist Reception of the Femme Fatale...p. 4
Femme Fatales and Contemporary Feminist Movements...p. 5
The Motivations of Femme Fatales..p. 7
The Fate of Femme Fatales..p. 11
Male Directors and The Male Gaze..p. 12
Conclusion...p. 15
Further Questions...p. 16
Bibliography..p.17

!1
Introduction
In watching various classic Film Noir and Neo-Noir film pieces, there were many
influences on the genre by society at the time; particularly, I believe that many films
were influenced a great deal by societys gender roles and relationships between
characters were also a reflection of those in society. After noticing this, I thought about
the changes in the way society behaved between the time period of Film Noir (Early
1940s - Late 1950s) and the time period of Neo-Noir (1970s and later), and wondered
from the perspective of formalist film theory and gender theory whether the changes in
characteristics between these genres reflected the changes in society.
Noir and Character Archetypes
In order to see changes
between these two genres, it is
important to identify key
characteristics and character
archetypes of Noir. All Noir has
the same identifiable
characteristics about it - namely
corrupt protagonists doomed to
fail, complex narratives and
storylines, shots that are visually

Walter, the protagonist of Double Indemnity works as

an insurance agent and tells the story through a
flashback.

black and white (though many Neo-Noir films later opted for shooting in colour), and a
thematically dark storyline (Film Noir, filmsite.org). It is a requirement that the
protagonists in Noir films are morally ambiguous, and may encounter a moral dilemma.

!2
Narratives are sometimes told differently, in the form of a series of flashbacks or nonchronologically; these complex storytelling forms go well with the convoluted nature of
the plots and stories typical in Noir. A film with at least some of these characteristics can
be identified a part of the Noir genre.
In relation to the identifiable characteristic storylines and visual style of Noir films,
films also contain a set of character archetypes which are common between each Noir
film. Without these characters, a Noir film usually cannot be identified as one because
these character archetypes are so integral to both Film Noir and Neo-Noir. The first is
the anti-hero protagonist, a main character with a lot of moral ambiguity. As their title
states, their role of anti-hero suggests that unlike a normal protagonist, protagonists in
Noir are imperfect, struggling characters who audiences relate to.
Another common archetype is The Good Woman. The Good Woman is a typical
woman, having a normal place in her household. This character is in stark contrast to
the dark Noir world: She is not portrayed as being part of the dark, slummy streets of
the urban Noir setting. This character is also a polar opposite of the Femme Fatale, a
third character archetype (Blaser).
The Femme Fatale and Feminism
The Femme Fatale is chiefly a seductive, manipulative woman that seduces the
protagonist for her own monetary or personal gain. She might hold power with objects
such as guns and cigarettes - this is sometimes called phallic power, where unnatural
power is given to a woman through objects. This character archetype is not recently
created, and has appeared in various stories and media in history before film, such as
ancient folktales and stories, in forms like the Siren, Aphrodite, the Sphinx. It has

!3
appeared in film as The Vamp,
a character just as sexually
compelling as the femme fatale,
and has appeared in films such
as The Temptress (1926), Anna
Christie (1930), and Camille
(1936).
The way there are

Kitty, the femme fatale from The Killers.

differences between these

characters in history, there are differences between Film Noirs Femme Fatale and NeoNoirs Femme Fatale. I believe that changes in society, especially womens roles, have
had an influence on the differences in a Femme Fatale. To show this influence, I will
briefly touch on the history of women, referencing post world war gender roles, second
wave feminism, and the ideologies held by postfeminism. The post-WWII gender roles
was an occurrence in which men, upon returning from World War 2, regained their
position within the industrial trades, retaking these positions from women that had taken
them during the war. Many women then became full time homemakers, and were
forced into the role of a housewife within the American family (Gender Roles In A PostWar America.). As a response to these new gender roles, the rise of second wave
feminism began in the 1960s. It focused on sexuality, objectification of women, and
eventually developed into broader topics such as the critiques of capitalism, the
womans role in a family, and equality (Rampton). In relation to second wave feminism,
the term postfeminism was first used when referring to a period after second wave

!4
feminism in the 1970s, when there was an absence of a feminist movement
(Postfeminist). The postfeminist ideology refers to the idea that after a feminist
movement - in this case second wave feminism, equality has been achieved and that
future movements are unnecessary (History And Theory Of Feminism). Andrea Nica
states that: The foundation then, of postfeminist ideology, is theoretically rooted in
sexual empowerment and access to economic resources which defines aspects of
femininity (Nica). Thus, I believe that second-wave feminism and the response of
postfeminism influenced the Noir genre.
To show this influence, I will be comparing six different films. Three films are from
Film Noir, and three are from Neo-Noir. I chose these films not only because they are
good examples and representations of a typical Film Noir or Neo-Noir, but the content,
and especially the roles of the Femme Fatale, pertain to feminism. The three Film Noir
films are Double Indemnity (1944), The Killers (1946), and Detour (1945). The three
Neo-Noir films are Bound (1996), Basic Instinct (1992), and The Last Seduction (1994),
Feminist Reception of the Femme Fatale
Because I wish to analyse the influences of the feminist movements on the Noir
eras, I believe that it is imperative to see the feminist reception of the Noir genre and the
femme fatale character archetype. I will discuss the feminist reception of the Neo-Noir
femme fatale because of its relevance to the postfeminist way of thought at the time of
its conception, and at the time of its popularity.
One of the most basic elements of a femme fatale is that they use their sexuality
for their own personal gain. This is common between both Film Noir and Neo-Noir, and
is a major basis when discussing postfeminist ideologies. There are different ways to

!5
view whether sexuality of femme fatales reflect postfeminist beliefs: If postfeminism is
seen as an idea of both empowerment and independence in sexuality, the concept of
femme fatales using their sexuality to achieve their goals perfectly reflects these
ideologies; the femme fatales, in their sexual nature, can use their tools to their
advantage (Nica).This then begs the question: Is using sexuality to overpower men in
order to achieve their goals a reflection of postfeminism? In four of the six films I
watched, the femme fatales use their power of seduction not only for their gain, but also
to overpower the men in
the process. Indeed,
Phyllis in Double
Indemnity, Violet in Bound,
Catherine in Basic Instinct
and Bridget in The Last
Seduction put the men

Catherine from Basic Instinct kills a man in the opening

scene.

closest to them in danger

and oftentimes kill them. This simply does not reflect the ideas of postfeminism - as
stated earlier, this ideology refers to the achievement of equality between the man and
the woman, thus the idea of woman using her sexuality to overpower and victimise man
is a contradiction to the theorised equality that has been achieved, leading to a negative
reception of the femme fatale with feminists.
Femme Fatales and Contemporary Feminist Movements
Besides the victimisation of men being a wrongful representation of
postfeminism, another topic worthy of discussion is femme fatales frequent deviation

!6
from the normalcy of society. In Detour, The Killers, and The Last Seduction, Vera, Kitty,
and Bridget respectively deviate
from their roles within society. Vera
is an independent, unafraid woman
who exudes masculine traits and
does not have a typical household
job. Kitty, likewise, appears to live
off a man leading a shady lifestyle,

Violet and Corky at the end of Bound.

while Bridget, from the perspective of characters in the story, appears out of nowhere
and lives alone. In Bound and Basic Instinct, there is another recurring phenomenon
different from the norm; both Violet and Bridget are open to homosexuality and have a
lesbian lover, opposing the popular idea of heterosexuality at the time.
These deviations from the societal norms can be used to argue that the femme
fatale is perhaps merely a function of male paranoia (Lindop 11); film making and
directing is a male dominated field - only one woman has won an academy award for
best director in eighty seven award ceremonies (Academy Award Best Director
Winners). Male directed films may then have bias towards male gender and
perspective. Thus, this possible male paranoia explains why the fatal woman does not
exist as part of normal society. Women such as Vera, Kitty and Bridget all exist as a
response from men who see the upsurge of feminist movements, and create these
deadly characters to scare men and women from feminism, while suggesting that men
and women both should stay faithful to their families. Another difference from society to
note is that many femme fatales are unmarried characters, which suggests that, despite

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supposedly reflecting the equality between men and women, the femme fatale acts as a
warning to men against the threat of single feminist women.
Violet and Catherines homosexuality could also be viewed as manifestations of
male anxiety of being left out in a domestic sphere, which is becoming increasingly
more justified as technology such as sperm banks develop. These women may be
representations of feminists from a male perspective, as a component of postfeminism
is the embracement of homosexual romance (Lindop 57). These women are written as
femme fatales because they represent a relationship in which the male is unnecessary,
and ergo must be dangerous and feared by men. The threat of womens equality and
embracement of homosexuality may lead men into believing that they are in danger of
losing their positions of power in patriarchal society, and thus they create a sense of
danger revolving around feminists.
Now that I have introduced femme fatales, how they relate to the time periods of
contemporary feminist movements, how actual feminists received them and felt about
them in culture, compared the films I chose in terms of how they relate to the various
ideologies of postfeminism, I will now choose to focus on comparing the differences
between these films and what inferences can be made from these differences. I will first
identify all of the differences in the films, then analyse these differences.
The Motivations of Femme Fatales
My first comparisons will compare motivations of the femme fatales between
chosen films. Phyllis, the femme
fatale in Double Indemnity, decides
to murder her husband and take out

!8
the life insurance in his name. Thus, Phyllis motivation is economic gain. In The Killers,
Kitty and Big Jim are the ones who want to escape with money from the gangs bank
robbery, and plot to get away with the
money. This would again, be a case

Bridget from The Last Seduction escapes with the

money

of motivation due to economic gain.

In the third Film Noir, Detour, Vera originally wants to blackmail Al for no discernible
reason, but finds motivation after realising that there could be monetary gain involved
should she continue to blackmail him. Thus, all three of these films contain financial
motivation, which seems to be in accordance to the femme fatale archetype.
The second three set of films, from Neo-Noir, contain femme fatales from Bound,
Basic Instinct, and The Last Seduction. Bounds Violet is motivated by money as she
hatches a plot herself to steal money from the mafia. In Basic Instinct there is the first
case of difference from motivation due to money found in all of the previous examples.
The femme fatale, Catherine, seemingly kills men for no reason other than to play out
her own stories. She seems to simply enjoy seducing those around her, for no gain
financially (though she is exerting her own sexual power over male weakness). Finally,
Bridget in The Last Seduction brings about return to normalcy, where she leaves her
husband for the money that he made, and manipulates those around her to secure that
money. It should, then be understood that there might be differences in the ways
economic gain is achieved between a Film Noir and Neo-Noir femme fatale.
The first important point to note here is that the only film which does not relate
the femme fatales motivation to financial or economic gains is Basic Instinct. Even then,
this can be said to be significant, as it relates to the postfeminist belief of independence

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in sexuality, wherein Catherine is purely using her sexuality for her own pleasure, and
Catherine herself represents the sexual independence a feminist would have. It must be
kept in mind that, as I said earlier, many of these films are made from a male
perspective; thus, while the sexual independence might make sense with the
postfeminist ideology, the films will still to some extent be influenced by being directed
from a male perspective. This is why the sexual independence of Catherine is not
something empowering, nor is it about her freedom as a woman. Rather, it is for her to
fulfil some sort of sick desire to murder the men she sleeps with, which male directors
may have created out of the fear of socio-cultural implications on the importance of men
during that time. Then, how can it be said that this difference in Neo-Noir femme fatales
reflects the postfeminist movement when it is painted in the negative light that its
viewed in?
In terms of the other films, it is no longer enough to purely view their monetary
motivations as reflection of the feminist movement, for economic empowerment is
already a big part of womens empowerment, no matter the time period. Hence, it may
be more apt to go a bit deeper and look at the differences in which these financial gains
are achieved in order to see how these reflect the historical context and the feminist
movement.
To begin with, I will start by looking at how these women achieve monetary gains,
whether by themselves or by other people. Phyllis and Kitty both need male
counterparts to even create a plan to get money in their respective stories, and while
Vera in Detour did not need Al to create her plan, she still needs him to help her execute

!10
it. In summary, the femme fatales in the three Film Noir films needed a man to achieve
their economic empowerment.
This economic empowerment in the Neo-Noir films, however, is achieved in a
different fashion. Both femme fatales in Bound and The Last Seduction create their
plans on their own. In Bound, no male counterpart is even necessary as Violet enlists
her homosexual lover, Corky, to help her execute their plan. In The Last Seduction,
Bridgets original plan involves manipulating Mike. When things fall apart, however, she
kills both men by herself, achieving her financial gain independently. This comparison
then shows that in the Film Noir films, men are needed at some point for the womens
gain while in Neo-Noir, the men were either unnecessary, or they were outright
manipulated and overpowered. To make this relevant to postfeminism, one can suggest
that one of the main points of postfeminism is the belief of independence and economic
empowerment, and because the femme fatales in Neo-Noir do not require men for
economic gain, this is related to the belief that women are independent economically.
Through the lack of men necessary, male directors have once again shed a
negative light on independent women and economics empowerment. Despite the
women gaining financially, the men are the ones who originally hold this economic
independence, meaning that it is fundamentally unnatural for women to hold this money,
and they need to try and take power from the men through immoral fashions. Hence,
even though women are portrayed in these films as gaining financial independence,
they are still painted as being dangerous to society and men especially; these femme
fatale feminists are implied to not naturally have financial independence, and by being
independent and empowered, the are dangerous to the men around them.

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The Fate of Femme Fatales
The second comparison I will make here is the fate of the femme fatales in all of
these films; referring to whether they
eventually escape with their crime, or they
dont. Again, I will begin by looking at the
three Film Noir films. Detours Vera and
Double Indemnitys Phyllis, in the end, are
killed by whoever they manipulate or
seduce. In The Killers, Kitty does not end
up dying, but it is implied that she does

Al accidentally strangles Vera at the end of

Detour

not escape with her crime, for her

husband does not exonerate her before dying.
Femme fatales deaths arent found in the Neo-Noir counterparts. Bounds Violet,
Basic Instincts Catherine and The Last Seductions Bridget all escape with their crimes.
Violet not only manages to escape with money, but also with her love interest, Corky.
Catherine also manages to escape; Bridget, by taking matters into her own hands and
manipulating those around her, also eventually get away with the money.
Now, before moving analysing this other comparison, it is useful to take a look at
the Hays code, or The Motion Picture Production Code of 1930. The Hays code were a
set of guidelines applied to all films, or motion pictures, from 1930 to around 1968. The
set of guidelines were put in place as a way to positively influence those who consumed
film as a form of entertainment, as they were a set of moral guidelines that were
deemed good by the industry. Specifically, I would like to draw attention to the first

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general principle No picture shall be produced that will lower the moral standards of
those who see it. Hence the sympathy of the audience should never be thrown to the
side of crime, wrongdoing, evil or sin. (The Motion Picture Production Code of 1930)
So, to put this in context of Noir, the Hays code was in effect during the period of Film
Noir, but not neo Noir. The aforementioned principle then also explains why femme
fatales during the Film Noir time period wouldnt get away with their crime, for their
manipulation was not to be glorified.
So if the femme fatales in Film Noir are eventually overpowered by men, why do
the directors of Neo-Noir choose for their femme fatales not to do so, and even go as far
as to have their femme fatales overpower their men? One reason that can be suggested
is that along with the feminist movement, male directors would like to portray their
femme fatales, who to an extent have qualities of a feminist, as dangerous characters
not only in the film, but in society. The portrayal of an independent feminist woman as
dangerous in the film makes those viewing these films also think of these independent
women as dangerous to society in real life. The femme fatales cunningness that makes
it possible for her to get away with her crimes can be seen as a comparison to the
independence of the feminist movement. From this comparison, when the femme
fatales overpower any men in these films, the filmmakers could be trying to suggest that
these feminists are trying to do the same thing in real life and are dangers to not only
men, but the patriarchal society.
Male Directors and The Male Gaze
While these male directors during this time period have portrayed feminists as
femme fatales through the plot, they have also done this comparison through technical

!13
means. As I mentioned earlier, the femme fatales are portrayed as very sexual,
seductive characters who are eventually revealed to be dangerous. Showing this
sexuality relates to a facet of gender theory, the Male Gaze Theory, a theory observed
by Laura Mulvey, in her work Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema. She writes that
the determining male gaze projects its fantasy on the female figure which is styled
accordingly. In their traditional exhibitionist role women are meant to be looked at and
displayed, with their appearance coded for strong visual and erotic impact, so that they
can be said to connote to-be-looked-at-ness(Mulvey 837). A common example of the
form of the male gaze is the tilting of the camera starting from the womens feet, to
mimic a male viewing a female figure. To justify my idea that male directors sexualise
femme fatales to reflect feminist sexual independence, the films chosen all have
examples of the male gaze.

Phyllis, first seen in a bathrobe.

We tilt up Phyllis body as she walks

down the stairs.

!14

When we first see Vera, the camera goes

from a close up to a full body shot.

The swede literally gazes at Kitty.

This famous scene of Catherine crossing

her legs is the definition of male gaze.

Vera lies on the sofa in a robe smoking,

giving her phallic power.

Though not the femme fatale, Roxy is subject

to male gaze: we tilts up as she walks down.

We tilt up Violets body the first time we see

her.

!15

A full body shot of Bridget with a cigarette that also gives her the
previously mentioned phallic power.

Conclusion
I will now refocus on the original question of how, or whether I can even conclude
that the differences from these comparisons reflect postfeminist ideas. To start, it can be
noted that many of these women do show qualities that reflect the ideologies of
postfeminism. For example: sexual and economic empowerment and economic
independence, domestic independence, and even the lack of need for a man in the
domestic sphere due to the womans homosexuality. However, these are generally
negatively portrayed - the sexually empowered women in Neo-Noir use their sexuality to
victimise and overpower men while those in Film Noir are eventually overpowered by
men, the economic gains are unnatural - they are immorally taken from men rather than
earned themselves, and a homosexual woman is a threat to the men around her.
Further, the victimisation of men does not reflect the idea of equality. This, along with
noting that feminists themselves do not receive these feminist femme fatales well (as
noted above) leads to the conclusion that even though these Neo-Noir fatal women

!16
definitely show aspects of postfeminism that set them apart from their Film Noir
counterparts, they do not reflect postfeminist ideas. The males fear of being made
irrelevant with the increasing prominence of feminism, as well as male directors
dominating the film industry, leads to femme fatales that inaccurately portray an
independent woman, making her seem a danger to society.
Further Questions
To further extend this conclusion, there are still certain questions that can be
asked, especially from the perspectives of women who view these films. Do women who
view these films also subconsciously associate their independence with being harmful
to society? Despite being shown negatively, could these films perhaps still empower
women and somehow aid the feminist movement? Beyond that, it can also be
questioned if it was the intention of directors to create these connections. Were these
directors all just recreating what other Neo-Noir directors were doing? Were these
femme fatales created by directors intentionally, or were they merely a product of
society at the time?
Word Count: 3,939

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Works Cited
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Blaser, 1996, http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/noir/np06good.html. Accessed 1 Aug. 2016.
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Postfeminist. Dictionary.com, http://www.dictionary.com/browse/postfeminist. Accessed 2
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