The Theme of Film Noir in Double Indemnity

I am comparing Double Indemnity (Billy Wilder, 1944) to the theme of Film Noir. This film was adapted from the 1935 novella ‘Double Indemnity’ by James M.Cain. The film was created before the term noir was even created. Even though Film Noir is full of crime stories, it is actually a style of film, rather than a genre. The style alone had roots in German Expressionism, however, Billy Wilder suggested he was going for a more ‘newsreel’ effect. It is the choice of stylistic features that the directors choose to use when making their movies. The word ‘noir’ is actually French for ‘black’, so a lot of the Noir films have a heavy emphasis on telling some parts of a story through the use of lighting and shadow (chiaroscuro lighting). More elements of Noir are a common feature called femme fatal, this is a deadly and dangerous female character, close up on facial expressions, oddly placed camera angles and an imbalance composition of imagery.

From reading and listening to reviews, many people, including myself, agree that Double Indemnity (Billy Wilder, 1944) could be one of the greatest Film Noir ever created. It involves every single Noir element and is still one of the best films made. The plot is an interesting one as it deals with an insurance salesman instead of a detective/criminal mastermind.

The main character (Walter) doesn’t wanted to do anything more than his job, however, gets roped into getting manipulated by a beautiful blonde woman. But, it’s his faults that make him that compelling character to watch. It shows the character fighting with himself over what’s right and wrong, but still is willing to get into trouble for that one woman. Phyllis is also intriguing to watch as she is playing a typical blonde but her evil side is what makes the film work. She wants everything for herself but plays the characteristic housewife to get it. Although, it almost works there’s the sharp, intelligent character of Keyes that is constantly right on the mark but denying it because of his friendship with Walter.

My favourite feature of any Film Noir is the femme fatal, especially in Double Indemnity (Billy Wilder, 1944). Phyllis becomes deadly manipulative after being seen as the seductress showing the vulnerability and weakness of a stay at home wife. This character traffics in two of the main elements most frequently found with femme fatal, money and sex. Phyllis is known to be the character that defied gender conventions of the time and actually revealing herself to be cunning, intelligent and deceitful. The best scene for femme fatal is Phyllis’ first scene. To start with, she already has the dominant perspective, forecasting what happens later on in the scene, and her allure being evident and shows the control she holds over Walter. The hardboiled voice over helping to introduce the audience to how the filmmakers want her to be seen. It talks of her body and not actually giving her the respect to be described as a whole person.

Cinematography is a must and key element of Film Noir. In this film, there is a lot of heavy use of shadows and lighting that make it look so clever and well thought about. The shadows and darkness convey the environment that they live in to be unsafe and full of corruption. One of my favourite scenes is the one where Walter’s in his apartment with all the lights off, with the curtains open and rain pouring outside is incredible. As is the light over Phyllis’ face in the scene where she has just finished murdering her husband. It highlights how sadistic she could really be. The filmmakers make sure the whole film is beautifully shot with their oddly placed camera angles and that the whole film could come together successfully.