Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A movie characterized by low-key lighting, a bleak urban setting, and corrupt, cynical characters.
  • noun The genre or style of such movies.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A film characterized by low-key lighting, a bleak urban setting, and corrupt, cynical or desperate characters.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a movie that is marked by a mood of pessimism, fatalism, menace, and cynical characters

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[French : film, film (from English film; see film) + noir, black (from Old French, from Latin niger, nigr-; see nekw-t- in Indo-European roots).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Borrowing from French film noir (literally "black film")

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Examples

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