EXAMPLE OF NEO-NOIR: KISS KISS BANG BANG

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Neo-noir film, 2005

 Directed by Shane Black and filmed in Los Angeles, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a contemporary film made in 2005 engaging in many aspects of film noir. The film is narrated by a small-time criminal, Harry Lockhart, discussing the events of the film.
Fleeing a robbery, Harry escapes the grips of the police by creeping into a movie audition and pours his emotional regret about the robbery; impressing the producers who think he is a method actor and hiring him for lead role. He then heads on to Hollywood, where a party is being held. Attending the party, Harry encounters his high school crush. They leave the party to his apartment but the soon-to-be romance was destroyed when drunken Harry accidentally sleeps with Harmony's friend instead.
While working with Perry, Harry stumbles into a conspiracy of kidnapping and murder involving a profile heiress. Evidence suggests that it could be Perry, but there is someone out to try and frame Harry for this.

Whilst this happens, Harmony mistakes Harry for a detective and asks him to explore the death of her sister; it was believed to Harmony that her sister was murdered by someone trying to kill her, but it is insisted suicide by Perry. As events related to both crimes escalate, Harry, Perry and Harmony team up to investigate.

The situations that the protagonist is put into are suspenseful and thrilling, made all the more so by the fact that Harry Lockhart (Downey Jr.) is so ill-equipped to handle them. The film itself is shot in colour, giving it the neo-noir feeling; the characters are modern and up to date. However, the noir concept remains due to the shadowy nature of some shots, and most certainly by the actions of the femme fetale, Harmony Lane. Also, Shane Black uses the third-wall shattering technique of having the narrator talk directly to the audience as though he's telling a story; an approach which definitely makes a noir film.