Dark Nights Over Neo-Tokyo A Life in the Shadows Among Generations: Film Noir and Cyberpunk – A Comparison using a Cyberpunk Film Canon
Cyberpunk and film noir have never been explicitly compared before. Therefore, the most thrilling part of this research is to enter virgin soil with the basic question: Does cyberpunk contain clearly recognizable elements of film noir? This complex question leads to a detailed examination: Firstly, the definitions of film noir and cyberpunk used in this work are presented. Secondly, a cyberpunk film canon including the most important films must be developed to enter this sub genre. Finally, the film canon is compared with defining elements of film noir. The results give conclusions as to the importance of the revolutionary character of film noir depending on the strength of influence on the authors and directors of cyberpunk. But can cyberpunk be described as: Film Noir + Science Fiction? In order to check the truth behind that thesis, you will undergo a little time travel from the 1940s through Los Angeles in 2019 until the dark age in which machines misuse us humans as batteries. Put on your trodes and dive into the gloomy world of cyberpunk.