"Hey baby"

Film noir literally means “black film.” As you are watching the film, keep track of all the elements in the picture that seem dark or depressing. Think about the characters, the setting, and the story line.

Since Double Indemnity is an example of the film noir genre, it is generally filled with elements that a common to the genre. An apparent element of the movie is that it is shot in black and white. This highlights stark, angular shadows and puts emphasis on what is shadowed, and what is light. The movie is shot in a modern city setting, compounding the feelings of isolation, and being lost among the crowd.  However the most notable feature of film noir is the use of high-contrast lighting. Because the film was mostly shot in the darkness of the night, or the early morning, artificial light was used to illuminate the actors. With the high contrast the light sections were very bright, and the dark sections were very dark, creating a visual gap between what could be seen and what could not. One could easily see the light of a cigarette, or the striking of a match. This emphasis on darkness creates an atmosphere comprised of melancholy attitudes or depressed decisions.

The story line is not linear at all. Many jumps between the past and present are apparent. The fractured plot adds to the disorganization and disorder in the world which the characters are living. A main characteristic of the plot of Film noir is that fatalism is expressed by one transgression that spirals out of control. Walter Neff makes the mistake of helping Phyllis, which then snowballs into much greater problems. Every attempt at correction makes everything worse, suggesting the hysteria and panic of the characters. The “perfect murder’ begins to fall apart and the true natures and motives of the characters shine through. Both have distanced themselves from society, and, in a sense, have become close to each other (murder buddies for life) yet Phyllis shoots Walter and admits to using him, yet simultaneously admits to loving him after her inability to shoot him again. (Women right?)  At this climax, with both characters revealing their true dark selves, in a room with no lights, Walter shoots her twice. (“Goodbye baby”) Murder, plot twists, darkness, blood and cigarettes. Walter Neff will not be the same insurance sales man he once was. And it is that transformation of the human mind which really is the dark scary part of this film.