***IMPORTANT NOMINATION INSTRUCTIONS: PLEASE READ BEFORE COMMENTING***
Previous tournaments of this kind have devolved into nitpicking whether this or that film counts as a “real” example of its genre. Being that noir is itself an incredibly tricky genre to pin down, I am setting the following guidelines for nominating films:
1) GENRE DETERMINATION. In order for a film to be considered, it MUST fit one or both of the following criteria:
– Its IMDB page lists “Film-noir” as one of its genres
– Its Wikipedia page describes it as “film noir” or “neo-noir”
Any film which does not fit one or both of this criteria will not be entered into the tournament. Feel free to debate the unfairness of this rule, or blast me in the comments about it. For the purposes of this tourney, both “film noir” and “neo-noir” alike will be allowed interchangeably. Also, please understand that this guideline also disqualifies a good number of films that I LOVE, and that it tears me apart they won’t be in the tournament. The decision stands. Please come correct with your nominations — I’m not going to include anything that doesn’t fit my stated criteria, no matter how many upvotes it gets.
2) SEEDING BY UPVOTE. Seeding in the tournament will be determined by volume of upvotes. The film with the most upvotes gets the #1 seed, second most gets #2, etc. In the event of a tie, I’ll do my best to post a tiebreaker poll in the Open Threads at peak posting hours. If you want your favorite film to advance or qualify, feel free to urge your fellow posters to support your pick.
3) I AM ABSTAINING FROM NOMINATIONS ENTIRELY. In order to maintain a semblance of impartiality, I will not be nominating any films myself, nor upvoting any posts during the nominations round. I reserve the right to cast my votes in the elimination rounds if there is a particular film or matchup I feel strongly about, but otherwise I will attempt to stay out of the general voting as well.
Got it? Go forth and nominate! Don’t forget, the more upvotes your pick gets, the higher its seed will be, and the better chance it will have at advancing far into the tournament.
For your reference, I have included a few lists to help you come up with stuff to nominate. Don’t forget, they still must be listed as “film noir” or “neo-noir” on either the film’s IMDB or Wikipedia page, so make sure you check before nominating!
One great film noir for each year, 1940-1959
Letterboxd Top 100 Film Noir
100 Best Film Noirs Of All Time – Paste
List of film noir titles – Wikipedia
List of neo-noir titles – Wikipedia