Thread: Film noir thriller

So I'm starting this project, I call it a project because I don't know where it will end up. It could be a book, or a script. Synopsis: A cop travels back in time to investigate his grandfather's reported suicide, in this gritty modern Film noir thriller. It's not really Sci-fi. There are no cars going 88 miles an hour, or worm holes. Basically, cop gets shot, ends up in a coma, finds himself back in Los Angeles, 1943 in his grandfather's body. My big issue is with all of the ultra realistic period pieces out now like Boardwalk Empire, how "modern" is the dialogue in the screenplay/book going to have to be? Now, I have consulted an expert on the old days, my Old Man, 80, according to him, his generation swore just as much as we do now. If you read let's say, The Maltese Falcon, it's pretty tame and seems specifically tailored to be made into a movie. But the dialogue was intricate enough where Hammet didn't need the f word in every sentence and blood splattering against the wall with every gunshot. Do you think that there is an audience for this type of genre anymore? Am I making any sense at all, I've had about 64 ounces of crappy coffee today?

As far as Hammet's lack of swearing, there was a lot more censorship back then, than today. It wasn't the government, but media outlets like publishers, Hollywood, etc, censored themselves. If Hammet's manuscript had contained swearing, the publisher would have excised it. Hammet probably knew better than to even try and slip swearing past his editor. People swore when talking informally, but there was a stronger sense of propriety back then, and the better people did not swear in formal conversation like they do today.

I don't see a problem with your premise. You are asking your readers to accept that someone in a coma can time travel. People can react badly to a story that ends with "and then he woke up and realized it was all a dream." Generally, readers will give you one thing that strains the credibility factor. If you ask readers to believe two things that are impossible, you risk losing some of them.

I'm not sure what you're asking when you say 'How modern does the dialogue have to be?' I would think you should try to make all of the other characters talk like people did in 1943. Your protagonist can go around talking in 21st century American. That could make for an interesting sub-plot - your protagonist as a fish out of water. He could ask people for their cell number and be told "I've never been in prison." (thank you, Jeff Foxworthy) Good luck, C.M.