Max Payne Forums

[AcesHigh]

I think the criticism due to Max Payne 3 being set in São Paulo is quite exagerated.

Most people say Max Payne is "noir", so it should be set in NY... at night... during the worst winters possible. Eh... how about we set it in some canadian city which can be colder than NY? I also wonder what these people think about LA Noir! Or the many noire hollywood movies NOT set in NY... NOT set in the winter during a blizzard!


Film Noir is about a STYLE of storytelling and filming, not about the setting!
From Wikipedia
"Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as stretching from the early 1940s to the late 1950s. Film noir of this era is associated with a low-key black-and-white visual style that has roots in German Expressionist cinematography. Many of the prototypical stories and much of the attitude of classic noir derive from the hardboiled school of crime fiction that emerged in the United States during the Depression."

"Film noir encompasses a range of plots—the central figure may be a private eye (The Big Sleep), a plainclothes policeman (The Big Heat), an aging boxer (The Set-Up), a hapless grifter (Night and the City), a law-abiding citizen lured into a life of crime (Gun Crazy), or simply a victim of circumstance (D.O.A.). Though the noir mode was originally identified with American productions, films now customarily described as noir have been made around the world."




Surely, still, having the next Max Payne being set in sunny São Paulo would be weird. WAIT... sunny? Who said São Paulo is sunny?

São Paulo is known in Brazil as DRIZZLE city. Sunny days are a minority in a city which usually has cloudy skies. São Paulo is NOT Rio. It doesnt has beaches and its not steaming hot, because its located at 800m above sea level so while its never freezing (because of low latitude), its also never as hot as for example, NY City gets in the summer.

Some of the old released MP3 images do look a bit weird... more like Rio than São Paulo.

[AcesHigh]

some videos and images

Landing in São Paulo. This video gives a good idea of the size of the city
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPjzkYobOKE

images of São Paulo at night
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yb7oqvYyqDg

scenes of São Paulo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjpYyQ-l_2o