ABSTRACT
Much of the extant scholarship on Hannibal has focused on its connections to the Gothic horror genre, no doubt owing to the series’ lush, evocative visuals and macabre sensibility, as well as its preoccupation with the intricacies and ambiguities of the human psyche. Both the Gothic and film noir are preoccupied with motifs of decay, insanity, and the “amorphous nature of identity.” The blend of Gothic and noir elements in Hannibal’s visual arsenal conforms remarkably well to Kathrina Glitre’s discussion of recurring “strategies and conventions around the use of color in American neo-noir”, particularly her initial assertion that “neo-noir predominantly relies on co-ordinated use of neutral colours off-set by areas of saturated primary colours, which become more prevalent during scenes of dramatic conflict.” The femme fatale is one of the hallmarks of film noir—a dangerous, seductive woman whose primary purpose is to lure the hero away from the correct path and, more often than not, to his death.
