The dark alleyway, the morally ambiguous hero. The sexy, confident and manipulative Femme Fatale. A gritty universe that exists outside the rules, not to mention notice, of normal society. Lies, double crosses and twisted seduction.

Any of these things sound familiar?

These are some of the elements that make the classic Film Noir, and these are the elements that rock my socks. They also just happen to be elements that can be found in the Buffy'verse. Or, more notably, on Angel.

"Are You Now or Have You Ever Been," episode two of season two. The 1950's flashback, where we introduced the hotel. That still stands out to me as just like "Innocence." An extraordinary piece of work. Sort of explaining to me what a truly classic [film] noir the show can be. - Joss Whedon

 

Film Noir is French for Dark Film. But really, Film Noir is all about the grey. Moral decisions in the world of noir are rarely, if ever, a simple thing. Noir characters might well have a defined moral objective in mind, but the way they get there isn't always as moral as most people would maybe like.

Lilah, the sexy, confident and manipulative Femme Fatale to Wesley's morally ambiguous hero sums it up well in the season four episode Habeas Corpses:

Wesley: There is a line, Lilah. Black and white. Good and evil.
Lilah: Funny thing about black and white. You mix it together and you get grey. It doesn't matter how much white you try and put back in, you're never gonna get anything but grey.

Almost all our Buffy'verse characters have their own personal shades of grey.

 

Noir stories usually tell the tale of people trapped in a situation they did not want, often a situation they did not create, striving against random uncaring fate, and usually doomed.

Angel, the morally ambiguous hero who used to spend an awful lot of his time in dark alleyways, acknowledges this in the season five episode Power Play:

Angel: It's true. We're in a machine. That machine's gonna be here long after our bodies are dust. But the senior partners will always exist in one form or another because mankind is weak...We can't bring down the senior partners, but for one bright, shining moment, we can show them that they don't own us.

 

There are more elements that make up the classic Film Noir. There's the trademark low-key lighting, the high-contrast monochrome colours, the dramatic shadows. Not to mention all the flawed and desperate characters in their unforgiving worlds.

So here's what you do: You go get yourself a copy of some of the classic Film Noir examples, as well as a few of the more modern versions. You watch them, several times over. Then you marvel at the Noiry Goodness and write some Noiry Buffy'verse fic. Then you post it, making sure to tick The Zone Noir tick box when you do.

I heartily recommend The Big Sleep (1946) starring Humphry Bogart and Lauren Bacall. To this day the fast moving plot, the Whedonesque snappy dialogue, and the undeniable chemistry of Bogart and Bacall (who married in real life soon after filming) make it one of my favourite films in the genre. Infact, one of my favourite films of all time.

More contemporary films like Dick Tracy (1990), which manages to survive having Madonna cast as the femme fatale, L.A. Confidential(1997) and Sin City(2005) also rock my suitably noirish socks.