Film Analysis - Detour (1945)

Film analysis - Detour (1945)

Being one of the first films noir, Detour introduces the archetypes of an anti hero (Al) and a femme fatale (Vera). It follows the story of Al who is going to Hollywood to join his girlfriend Sue. He hitchhikes and is picked up by Charles Haskell Jr who later on in their journey has a heart attack and dies. Al carries Charles' body to the side of the road and leaves it there with the belief that he was the reason for Charles' death. Al takes Charles' money, clothes, identification and drives off in his car. He soon picks up hitchhiker and femme fatale Vera who earlier met Haskell and blackmails him by threatening to turn him in.

Detour follows the convention of having a narrative voice over throughout from the protagonist's point of view. At the start the voice over is going on whilst we get a close up of Al's face. The light and dark contrasts allow his eyes to be the lightest part of the shot which creates a sense of mystery and brings in the idea that the eyes are the windows to the soul which can be seen as something negative and also at this point in the film, as foreboding.

Pathetic fallacy is used throughout the film to reflect on character's feelings or create a sense of foreboding. At the start fog is used to create a sense of mystery. It allows the audience to know that something bad is going to happen and so creates an uneasiness. 

Rain is also used later when Al realises that Haskell is dead. This rain creates a depressing atmosphere and makes the film more dark and gloomy. It also foreshadows that something bad is going to follow this death.
"As I drove off, it was still raining and the drops streaked down the windshield like tears."

Detour uses reflections to create suspense. The audience get a sense of foreboding and uneasiness when we see Al's reflection in the car mirror. We know something bad is going to happen and so this creates tension. The reflection is the only thing in the shot that is light and so the dark surrounding adds to the tension and mystery.

When we are first introduced to femme fatale Vera, we see her in a long shot. This allows the audience to see her in full length and so we see her provocative clothing and stance. At the time when Detour was made, Vera's short skirt would be shocking for the audience. Her white blouse is ironic as white connotes purity and innocence. However, it contrasts with her black skirt which is seen as a semiotic for death and gloom.

"I was tussling with the most dangerous animal in the world, a woman."

Detour includes the conventions of smoking and alcohol. Cigarettes and alcohol make the characters seem sophisticated. The smoke from the cigarettes can usually be used to create mystery or tension. 

Over the shoulder shots are also often used in films noir and help create tension. The over the shoulder shot of Al behind Vera can reflect on Al's guilt and the affect that Vera has had on his life. Most of the frame is dark with just part of Al's face which can highlight the idea that everyone has a good side and a dark side.

Nearer the end of the film, Detour revisits the convention of reflections. This reflection allows us to see Vera's dead body whilst outside of the reflection we see Al's reaction to her death. This gives the audience a different and interesting view on Vera's death whilst using conventions of film noir.

After Vera's death the lighting in the film becomes much darker. When Al leaves his apartment we can only see his silhouette which allows the audience to know that things won't end well for him. It creates the sense of uneasiness and adds to the depressing theme of the film. 

The film ends with Al being arrested. In the original version of Detour, Al got away with the murder but this was so far from the norm that the Hollywood Production Code forced them to change the ending. The lighting continues to be dark and so ends the film on a depressing note.

"That's life. Whichever way you turn, fate sticks a foot out to trip you."