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DOUBLE INDEMNITY
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Double Indemnity, 1944
Classic Movie Reviews
Directed by Billy Wilder
Starring Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, and Edward G. Robinson
Synopsis:
Insurance agent Walter Neff plots with attractive Phyllis Dietrichson to murder her husband. After the husband has been tricked into signing a double indemnity accident policy, they kill him to make it look like an accident. Insurance investigator Barton Keyes doesn't believe it was an accident and pursues the case, linking Phyllis with everyone but his friend, Walter. Neff, meanwhile, is told by Dietrichson's daughter from a previous marriage that she believes that Phyllis killed her mother in order to marry her father. Neff suspects Phyllis of a double cross and he believes she has abandoned him for a younger man
Review:
Everyone knows the saying “they don’t make them like they used to” This phrase can easily be applied to mainstream studio feature films of today. How they used to make them is like Double Indemnity; that is with a tight story, good writing, and compelling characters.
Film noir was a popular genre of cinema from the early 1940’s to the late 1950’s. It is often characterized by being a crime story, having seedy characters, and being shot in higher contrast black and white. The term “femme fatale” was born out of this genre, and Billy Wilder put this film at the pinnacle of the film noir canon.
So what’s so great about this movie? In all honesty; everything. The cinematography is great as it goes from mainly mid-tones to high contrast with deep and dark shadows as the film progresses. It serves the story, which is tight, fast paced, and thrilling. Every scene is used to move the story forward.
The dialogue is brilliant and cracks like a whip. Back in 1944, much of the dialogue that we take for granted today couldn’t be said. Writers had to use innuendos and double entendres, which made the writing more exciting and clever compared to today’s use of “Is that a mirror in your pocket, because I can really see myself in your pants.” Take for example an early scene between MacMurray and Stanwyck, where on the surface they’re talking about speeding, but what they’re really talking about is MacMurray’s chances of getting Stanwyck into bed.
The acting in this film is also phenomenal. Robinsons speech about statistics for every different type of suicide is simply stunning. Every actor inhabits their role to further bring you into this movie. The relationships between the three are well thought out; especially the heartfelt connection between Robinson and MacMurray. The one-liners are as quick and sharp as a boxer’s jab, so be sure to pay attention to fully absorb this masterpiece.Billy Wilder is known as one of cinemas great directors, and it’s easy to see why with this film. The editing between MacMurray’s confession and the flashbacks to the main story parallel each other brilliantly. As MacMurray begins to breathe hard, and become more disheveled in the present time, it mirrors his venture into the dark plot he’s brought himself into in the flashbacks. Wilder also invokes a strong visual motif using a cigarette, a lighter, and matches.
This film was just re-released in the past couple of years on a 2 disc DVD. While I wasn’t around to see the original screening of it, I have seen a VHS version of it, so I can say that a great job was done on the transfer. Some shots seem “milky” but the audio is great and the images are very solid. I would urge any fan of classic film, or any aspiring film student for that matter to pick up this DVD. This film is 63 years old and outshines many modern movies by simply relying on the basics; a good story, script, and characters.
