Hourglass Film Noir Mascara – the dark beauty gets the wht review

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase.

photos: we heart this

Mascaras have always been the most basic makeup staple for me—a most essential beauty product, yet the most elusive. Mascara is essential in that my lashes are fine and, therefore, nearly invisible without a good coating of black mascara; elusive in that, as a contact wearer, I cannot deal with clumping, flaking or flyaway fibers. Slowly but surely, over the years I have found a lonely few mascaras which satisfy me, and fewer still which have made me truly happy. As only a true makeup aficionado could, I continue to experiment with new mascaras, hoping to find one better than the rest. From the outset, Hourglass Film Noir Full Spectrum Mascara ($28) seemed to place itself as a contender for my crown.

Hourglass is a line of cosmetics that means to combine timelessness with extravagance and style with luxury. From packaging to product, Hourglass aims to create a luxury here-to-now only imagined. In the case of the Film Noir Mascara it uses pro-vitamin B5 to condition and hydrate lashes, added polymers to help the formula adhere to lashes without smudging or fading, and a specially designed, hourglass-shaped brush to distribute product evenly while creating volume, lift and length.

Hourglass Film Noir Mascara looks luxurious in its metallic tube; Hourglass packaging is always uniquely beautiful and dark. The calligraphic—near gothic-looking standard Hourglass font proclaiming “Film Noir” looks a bit more Dracula than Double Indemnity in this case. I just hope the folks at Hourglass understand that I want to look like Barbara Stanwyck, not Bella Lugosi.

Removing the brush from the tube, the hourglass brush looked slightly awkward. The nod to its “hourglass” name is good in a design sense, but its practicality is lost on me. I need the skinny part of the brush to be at the end so I can work the mascara into the little lashes at the corner of my eye; the fat ends did nothing to help me distribute the product evenly as it promised to do. If wanting to acknowledge the hourglass shape (as they did in their previously reviewed Femme Rouge Velvet Crème Lipsticks stamped with the hourglass on the body of the lipcolor) perhaps they should have considered shaping the wand rather than the brush.

The formula of the mascara itself (paraben, sulfate, synthetic dye and phthalate-free) does everything it promises and more. This goes on lightly and naturally, doesn’t clump and seems to condition my lashes making them look and feel healthy (yes, they did look more Barbara than Bella). Throughout the day I didn’t experience any flaking or smudging. At the end of the day, a little rub with a cotton pad and eye makeup remover made it all go away.

In the final analysis, the packaging is beautiful and the formula is to die for, but the brush needs a redesign. Film Noir is a contender for my mascara crown for sure…a definite maybe.

Ok dames, it’s time to throw your cards on the table. Was Film Noir a decent sort of kohl, or was it a bunch of hooey wrapped in a pretty package and tied with a poison bow?

Sherri is co-author of What Would You Do With This Room? My 10 Foolproof Commandments to Great Interior Design, and of course, a wht writer!

Disclosure: This review includes products that were provided by the manufacturer/PR firm for our consideration. It also may contain an affiliate link, a link that gives us a small commission if you purchase the item. For more info, or any questions, please see our disclosure policy.

Author

  • sherrishera

    Sherri is a writer, dog lover, old movie fanatic, history detective, political junkie, fashion pundit and social media consumer advocate. “A fancy dinner and expensive champagne are better than writing a rent check any day of the week.” skin tone: NC 25 skin type: oily/sensitive favorite beauty product: anti-aging anything

8 Comments

  1. I loved almost everything about Hourglass Film Noir Mascara. Its slim tube felt good in my hand and was easy to wield, and the mascara itself is unique and impressive. My lashes looked dark, glossy, healthy and utterly un-clumpy.

    I wear contact lenses, too, @sherrishera, and I’m always worried about flaking. I never had this problem with Film Noir. Just like you said, it lasted all day but came off easily when it was time to remove it.

    The subtle hourglass shape of the brush was the only problem. I just don’t get it. It’s a testament to the extraordinary mascara that it goes on like a dream despite the awkward brush.

    5 stars for the mascara itself, 3 stars for the brush = 4 stars for Film Noir. I hope Hourglass reconsiders the design because I really do love the product!

  2. I would love to give this mascara a try. I am always looking for something super natural and gentle that gives me a natural but still noticeable lash definition. This might be a winner for me!

  3. You know what I really love about this mascara? It’s actually not black. Did anyone else notice that? It’s a deep charcoal grey. I don’t know why, but that tickles me! As does most everything else about this mascara. The formula is fabulous, no flaking, no crunchy lash feeling. I didn’t feel like it overly lengthened or thickened. To me, it felt like a great day time mascara (which is fine, I like having time specific mascaras! But usually, I’d pay a bit less for day mascara.) And of course, as with all Hourglass products, the packaging is just gorge.

    But yeah…the brush. I am not liking this reserved brush trend. I think there is a reason mascara wands have been the same shape for like 75 years. The fat tip on this is unwieldy and awkward to try to get into your outer lashes. I no like.

    I’m going to go with a 3 on this. Which could easily go to a 4 with a brush redesign.

  4. I’m also going to go with a 3 for this one. While I love the packaging (So sleek and shiny, it makes me feel fancy!), I’m just not digging the brush. I’d give it four stars for being just a generally good mascara, but the brush makes it go from “good” to “meh”. The formula is nice and like @stef said, a great everyday type mascara. (However, I like my lashes drag queen thick. I am a Dallas girl, you know!)

    Hourglass may be sexy for marketing, but it is not great for practial application. 3 stars from me!

  5. I def agree with @Stef that this is a little more day than night (no super-long, super-fat lashes here). What I love most about the formula is the glossiness of the texture that translates to the lashes as well. It almost seems as though I’m applying a serum or conditioner to my lashes that happens to be tinted black (or as @Stef pointed out, charcoal gray…a nuance my eyes can’t quite see but I know that the girl knows her graduations of color). Oh, if they’s just fix that brush! I’m glad to see I’m not the only one who didn’t see the point.
    As with all Hourglass, the weighty metallic tube is phenomonal. Is it picky of me to be taken aback by the font for “Film Noir?” They have such attention to detail I thought that (if they weren’t going to use the same deco font as the “Hourglass”) they should have chosen a font representative of the name. Film Noir isn’t goth (nor is the formula)…it’s more typewriter-style font (Console or Lucidia)…something that looks like Bogey or Bill Holden narrarating one of their films: “Honey, dollface, it goes something like this…” Then again, maybe I watch too many old movies. 3 stars from me.

  6. I give this one a solid 4 stars too – I think the formula’s wonderful, but I have to agree the brush is a bit lacking. That’s a great idea @sherrishera, about making the wand into the shape of an hourglass instead of the brush – because you know they’re going for the product id there, which I totally get and think is a great thing. I appreciate those special touches companies try to do – just make it work properly, and worth the pricetag!

    The formula is definitely superior – goes on smoothly without clumping – is a pretty, deep, rich color (you’re right though, Stef – it’s not jet black, but that is ok for daytime), lasts all day without flaking – even lasts through the night when I (yuck) don’t remove my makeup, yet comes off easily with cleanser.

    I can’t totally knock the brush because it does lengthen and separate most of my lashes beautifully, it’s just those outer corners that I can’t get to easily with this brush…but as my mom always taught me – those outermost lashes do make the most difference in defining your eyes and giving them that special wow factor. So overall, a 5 for the excellent formula, but I wouldn’t buy the brush again most likely, so a 3 for that – which balances out to a 4 overall.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *