Manifest deception: Utopic myth and the fifties frontier in L.A. Confidential

Abstract

Scholars and critics alike associate film noir with gritty, existentialist films that explore the dystopic nature of urban centers. Central to these dystopian environments is the exposure of institutional corruption and the ambiguous morality that blurs the line between cop and criminal. This article examines Curtis Hanson's 1997 neo-noir film, L.A. Confidential as a unique example of American noir that explores the dystopic nature of the famed urban center of Los Angeles. It argues that the film's exploration of the dystopic nature of Los Angeles is fundamentally dependent upon a sustained deconstruction of the utopic myths of Western American expansion, specifically, the ideology of manifest destiny. In doing so, this article expands on extant scholarship in American noir, and contributes to a broader understanding of the cross-pollination between the noir film and the Western.