Double Indemnity Review

        We’re in March now, and I’ve decided to spice it up this time around. Years prior I talked about the movies that I’ve seen that were generally well liked. Not a specific overarching theme, but just quality movies and what I thought about them. This time, I’ve decided to talk about a certain style of film. If you remember way back around three years ago, I only ever talked about one film noir movie. Sunset Boulevard is my favorite, but I’ve decided to look at more and that’s what I’ll be talking about. Specifically, the movie that is considered the definitive example of film noir, Double Indemnity. 

1. Film Noir

        So you may be wondering what exactly is film noir? Well, to be exact since it was taught to me back in my college years that film noir isn’t a sub-genre. More so that it’s a style of filmmaking that was pushing the envelope of what it could get away with back in the early 20th century. Typically these stories include a person getting roped into a plan by a woman. And just seeing the after effects spill out as the main character gets into more trouble. While some films follow the basic outlines, others diversified by focusing on the corruption on institutions that were considered polished. 

        Double Indemnity at the time, broke the mold of what the style of film noir could be. Mind you film noir was already in vogue prior to this film coming out. Just the way it handled the characters and the story really changed everything. To begin with, we follow the insurance salesman Walter as he walks into his office to record a confession. He recounts how he wound up in the mess by meeting a woman named Phyllis. They flirt, and they devised a plan to trigger an insurance claim to get rich. 

        Sounds simple enough, except for the fact that Walter’s co-worker and friend Keyes starts to sniff out the obvious fraud that is being presented. Where to begin with this one. Well, it’s one of those rare films to have a non-linear way of storytelling. Everything that we’re being shown is narrated by Walter, even in the moments where he explains to his accomplice about the necessary steps to execute their plan. 

        I think this film works on multiple levels, but I’ll focus on two. For one thing, this film is sort of like an anti-romance film. Since it has that angle where the two main characters flirt, but all that is peeled off when we realize that they’re cold and greedy. It’s ironic in a way since Walter was just there to sell some insurance. Then gets smitten by Phyllis and the rabbit hole of easy money gets to them as they plot the insurance claim.

        Additionally, Walter presents himself as intelligent, but his weakness is Phyllis. I’ll talk about her since she is the show stealer in the film. Anyways, while Walter is smart enough to elaborately plan out his next steps, he’s green. Moments upend him when his coworker starts to realize that the new claim that they’re assigned to is easily a crime. 

        This is where I consider this film to also be a proto-thriller in a sense. We’re watching two bad people commit this crime and having this anxiety that Keyes is almost close to pinning the whole thing on Walter. While the anxiety part doesn’t mostly involve him, but when Walter gets spotted by a witness when he’s interrogated. Like it’s been a while that I’ve seen the film, but that moment where Walter is spotted gives me that feeling where he’s a goner. It’s those moments that really lay out that Walter is practically playing a delicate role of being an innocent and just being coy about the whole thing.

2. Femme Fatale

        With any film noir movie, you got to have a femme fatale. That’s the official title for the female character who’s mostly the antagonist. And of course, she looks like a bombshell. That first moment when she’s wrapped around in a towel practically laid a trap on Walter. It’s one of those things where you wouldn’t think much of her. Until she asks about the different insurance claims involving death, is when we see who she really is. 

        Phyllis remains the key example of being the femme fatale, just by her being attractive and using Walter for her own needs really makes her into a conniving villain. Not moustache twirling in any sense, but how she practically plays into Walter’s wants and is willing to kill a man for the sake of lust and greed. The moment when Walter can’t get the smell of her perfume from her mind, really makes her into a black widow of sorts. 

        Overall, her character arc is interesting to see as we see or hear more into who she is as a character. It’s not revealed until later that she was responsible for another death that Walter was not aware of. The whole action makes her calculating and a hustler for sure. One last thing is that she can sell a performance. This comes as she is questioned by Keyes about the insurance claim that she gets emotional and accuses them of claiming her to be a criminal.  

3. Legacy

        The film was a massive success when it came out and was nominated heavily during the Oscars, which won none. It was surprising to me that it was loosely based on a book, which was loosely based on an actual crime that was committed. Aside from that, many imitators tried to cash in on the success of Double Indemnity. Not until other films that were film noir became their own things such as Gilda or The Lady from Shanghai to name a few.

        It only made sense that Sunset Boulevard is sort of like a spiritual successor to this film. That film had the basic tenets of noir down but went in a different direction in terms of story. Since the narrator was already dead, albeit elaborating on his own death as it happened. Other than that, Double Indemnity laid the groundwork for the director to go into a different angle with the film noir aesthetic. 

4. Overall 

        Double Indemnity is an absolute classic from the 40s. Its black and white look gives it that unique take that can’t be imitated in its time or after.