Résumé

 The film noir style is easily recognizable for its technical innovations and aesthetic choices, which represent a clear departure from the classical Hollywood style of the 1930s. This shift is also evident in the realm of film scoring, where a new generation of composers sought to reflect the emotional and moral ambiguity, as well as the shadowy atmospheres, of noir cinema through music that diverged from the traditions of 19th-century European Romanticism. This article focuses on the aural dimension of film noir, specifically examining the music that accompanies the first flashback sequences in three seminal films: Double Indemnity (1944), scored by Miklós Rózsa; Laura (1944), scored by David Raksin; and Sunset Boulevard (1950), scored by Franz Waxman. The analysis explores how each composer evokes memory through sound by examining harmony, rhythm, orchestration, and diegesis during these temporal transitions. By juxtaposing musical scores with the corresponding dialogue from key scenes, this study aims to deepen our understanding of the role of music and sound in film noir, inspired by the concept of the integrated soundtrack.