Billy Wilder’s Double Indemnity (1944) starts, in many ways, how one might expect a classic noir film to start. The protagonist, Walter, retreats to his office late… Read more “Double Indemnity Scene Analysis”
MEDA 325 Darker Than Night Posts
Scene 1 (on Narration): Double Indemnity In the film, Double indemnity, Walter Neff (a 35-year-old automobile insurance salesman) was visiting the Dietrichson mansion to discuss some automobile insurance policies on dairy trucks. But instead of meeting with Mr. Dietrichson, which was originally planned, Neff met Phyllis Dietrichson (the wife of the late Mr. Dietrichson). It […]
Watching Double Indemnity for me was a very interesting experience, as it is a film that perfectly exemplifies many of the “typical” characteristics of film noir. The first meeting between the main characters Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray) and Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck) illustrates two of these characteristics perfectly: the use of flashback/voice-over narration, and the … More Double Indemnity Scene Analysis
Double Indemnity is a suspense drama written by Oscar Wilde in 1944. The plot focuses on three characters, Walter Neff (insurance salesman), Phyllis Dietrichson (wife of the deceased) and Barton Keyes(claims adjuster). The story follows the actions of Walter Neff as he kills Mrs.Dietrichsons husband for a double indemnity clause (where you get double the … Continue reading Scene 1: Double Indemnity
In the scene from Double Indemnity that begins around the 7-minute mark of the film. Insurance salesman, Walter Neff, meets Mrs. Dietrichson for the first time. From watching this scene in the film one can gather much useful information regarding tropes of the film noir genre. For example, as Mr. Neff first enters the Dietrichson household one … Continue reading Double Idemnity Scene Analysis
Non-heroic heroes, dark lighting/the usage of shadows, frequent use of flashbacks, murder and complex plot lines are prominent characteristics of Film Noir. The scene 7 minuets into Billy Wilder’s Double Indemnity does not stray from the tropes of noir filmmaking. The scene opens with a flashback of the narrator/protagonist Walter Neff driving to Mr. Dietrichson’sContinue reading “Double Indemnity: Billy Wilder”
The scene where Walter meets Mrs. Dietrichson for the first time is a very good example of both voice-over narration and camera shots in order to develop a more in-depth narrative around the scene. The scene begins with Walter Neff narrating as we see him in a flashback driving a car up to what we […]
From what I have seen of Double Indemnity, I already notice the similarity to other films we have watched in this class. Specifically The Maltese Falcon. Except instead of an extremely valuable statue for our protagonist to chase after we have a beatiful woman. When Walter Neff first meets Phyllis Dietrichson, we can immediately tellContinue reading “Scene analysis 1”
This week we discussed themes of existentialism and how the inherent meaninglessness of life defined by this school of thought plays out in noir films. According to Robert G. Porfirio, existentialism “is an outlook which begins with a disoriented individual facing a confused world he cannot accept. It places its emphasis on man’s contingency in […]
The first thing that the scene shows is how Walter Neff is somewhat of a non-heroic hero based on what Porfirio describes in the sense that he immediately begins to start flirting with the wife of his client right away something that wasn’t common for heroic Hollywood heroes to do. Another narrative connection of noir […]