Noir Parody

If you’re interested in noir parody, there’s a Steve Martin movie called Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid which pays homage to the noir style. The movie stars Steve Martin as a private investigator named Rigby Reardon who is hired to investigate the supposed murder of a woman’s father. The movie pays tribute to noir films by intercutting scenes from movies like Double Indemnity and The Postman Always Rings Twice into the plot of the story. Steve Martin’s character interacts with actors like Humphrey Bogart, Lana Turner, and Fred MacMurray through the insertion of scenes from various noir films.

Here’s the trailer:

As evidenced in the trailer, the film parodies the noir style through the use of action, shadows, and violence. Steve Martin’s character uses a voiceover in order to evoke the noir style in a comedic sense. The movie also references some of the anxieties about World War II demonstrated in noir films through the use of Nazis as the antagonists in the film.