Hollywood Noir’s Women Performers explores the meaning of performance through an analysis of the unfolding oeuvres of women performers in film noir. The case studies aim to illuminate classic noir films through the lens of performance by women. Shifting the usual emphasis in studies of film noir from genre, character patterns and socio-historical context to performance, each chapter addresses the defining contributions of the women who appeared in these films.The volume builds on scholarship in recent decades that focuses on the centrality of women in film noir, adding material evidence for that approach in fresh readings of films and Hollywood production practices. Hollywood Noir’s Women Performers not only explores how women dominate in the narrative, style or influence of these films through their dynamic performances, but also considers these women’s distinct positions in Hollywood, their roles in the industry and their multiple and mutually informing portrayals in classic noir.
