Double Indemnity (1944)
Director: Billy Wilder
Honors:
Filmmaker Billy Wilder brings the genre film noir front and
center in Hollywood with a daringly dark, censor-challenging motion picture Double Indemnity. In 1944 “film noir”
was yet to be coined as a term for a dark, gritty drama, and yet this film
would become an all-time classic of the genre, helping to inspire an entire
style within mainstream Hollywood. This thriller brings a blacker edge to the
usual dramas at the time, pushing the boundaries of provocative natures and
murderous intent in a business bound by a phony moral code. Its legacy would
one of Wilder’s finest features and a favorite amongst film historians.
Double Indemnity
is a film noir of an insurance salesman who plots with a housewife to murder
her husband with intent to collect on a hefty insurance policy. Told in
flashback, insurance salesman Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray) recalls how he met
the provocative housewife Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck) who led him
down the path to his demise. Beginning an affair the two concoct a scheme to
take out a life insurance in her husband’s (Tom Powers) name before murdering
him and staging his death as an accident for the sake of collecting on
insurance’s immense payout. The biggest hurdle comes in the form of Barton
Keyes (Edward G. Robinson), the bright claims adjuster and friend to Walter,
whose gut instinct tells him something was not right about the death of Mr.
Dietrichson. Neff discovers he was only part of a deceiving love triangle which
leads to a deadly outcome for Phyllis. Wounded and guilt stricken Neff returns
to his insurance office to dictate his confession, which Keyes overhears. With
Neff found and weakened, the two friends share their final moments together as
they await the eventual arrival of the approaching sirens coming to take Neff
away.
It is a beautifully suspense picture, with wonderful dark
cinematography and a story consisting of flawed characters leading to a rueful
results. Only the third directorial feature film by Billy Wilder, his mastery
of the pen has translated perfectly to his control of the motion picture frame
as this film is a trailblazer of a new style in American cinema. He grasps ahold
of this gloomy story and takes the audience on a ride as we await what will
happen to this man whose lust has led him down a dark path of lies and death.
Without knowing Wilder would set standards in the genre that would later become
known as film noir with his stylistic choices of lighting the creative
voiceover narrative of the main character throughout the picture. This style and
practices proved successful and would be copied for years to come.
The genesis of Double
Indemnity originates from a James M. Crain novella published in 1943 that immediately
became a much admired story in Hollywood curcles, but was balked at by all the
major studios due to the story’s dark nature. Initially the studios believed the
tale to be unfilmmable, because of the strict morals applied to American motion
pictures by the Production Code. Paramount Pictures however took the chance at
the story’s rights and handed it to Billy Wilder, who collaborated with
newcomer Raymond Chandler on the screenplay. The writing process was tumultuous
as the two with very different views on story and storytelling did not get along, but ultimately led to the
script, by which the picture adhered to.
Featured in the starring roles were Brabara Stanwyck, one of
Hollywood’s highest paid actresses, and Fred MacMurray playing vastly against
his usual character persona. Stanwyck from the beginning was the first choice
for the provocative lead. Do to the nature of the character Stanwyck hesitated
at the role, but gave in to Wilder as she was dress in a bad blonde wig to help
aid in the phoniness of her character’s persona.
Fred MacMurray was far from the first choice to play Walter
Neff. Accustomed to squeaky-clean types, usually in light-hearted comedies,
MacMurray was only considered for the role after many of Hollywood’s leading
men passed on the opportunity. Wilder saw something in MacMurray with his
strong, tall build, that he could play the man that was both stern, yet
incredibly vulnerable. Never before had
MacMurray been so serious on screen, yet his delivery with the character is one
of his finest and most unique performances of his career. His future would
continue to land him in primarily clean cut roles, but Wilder seemed to bring
out more in him as they worked together. This would be seen again in the 1960
comedy/drama The Apartment where MacMurray
plays a sleazy business executive under the direction of Wilder.
Edward G. Robinson takes a turn in his career as he portrays
the claims adjuster Barton Keyes. Accustomed to being the star on the marquee
since 1930, Robinson appears to understand it is his time to step into more
character roles, forfeiting the idea he may no longer be a leading man in major
Hollywood pictures. As Keyes, Robinson is the most straight-laced character in
the picture; a far cry from his days best remembered as one of Hollywood’s
tough men. In a way he is the heart and soul of the picture. When he discovers
a weak and bleeding Neff dictating his confession he is the one that best
expresses the sadness, anger, and disappointment that his friend can sink so
low. He is hurt and saddened, but understands his duty and he turns his friend
in to the authorities at the film’s conclusion, making for one of the picture’s
most emotional scenes.
Through production officials form the Production Code office
kept a close eye over the film. Ethics imposed by this appointed office of
morality within Hollywood pictures attempted to keep sex, violence, and immoral
characters from the screen, and this picture had very little outside of immortality
as its focus. From the size of the towel Stanwyck is wearing when we first see
her, to the justice received by Neff, the Production Code had plenty to watch
over. In the end it is clear that every evil deed goes punished, but still many
thought the subject of conspiring to murder one’s own significant other to be
too much an immoral subject matter.
However, Wilder does a marvelous job at fitting into the
Production Code rules enough to produce, but lurid enough to make interesting
to the viewers. Stanwyck is plenty provocative. The murder is gripping with its
evil intent. In the end no one wins, but the audience is more than satisfied.
In fact, Wilder changed the ending form the original material, perhaps to fit
within the Production Code, but also perhaps to make the story more
interesting. The source material has the two main characters committing
suicide, a major frowning point of Hollywood. Ultimately Wilder’s conclusion
was much more highly praised, with even the author Cain giving this new penned ending
acclaim as being much better than his idea.
The film would open April of 1944 to brilliant reviews,
becoming one the year’s highest praised pictures. That year saw the film
nominated for seven Academy Awards, but Hollywood politics saw Paramount
Pictures make a major push for the Leo McCarey more straight-laced feature Going My Way. This resulted in losses in
each category for Double Indemnity, including
Best Actress for Stanwyck, Best Score, Best Director, and Best Picture, much to
Billy Wilder’s frustration.
Billy Wilder would long consider this feature his finest
work, and though itself inspired by European dramatic styling it was this picture
that would go on to influence many filmmakers and an entire genre. Although the
term film noir was yet to be coined for a couple of more years it was this
picture by Wilder that would set the tone of what this genre was to become
known for. His use of shadows, especially through venetian blinds which evoked symbolism
of prison bars, lent to the dark tones for the stories. Also his use of the
main character narrating the feature would become a mainstay of many
like-minded movies.
Almost immediately other studios and filmmakers would begin
to copy this film’s very style. In some cases Paramount had to create cease and
desist orders for other studios literally copying the plot for upcoming
B-pictures. Despite the style to continue to grow for years into the future Double Indemnity remains a proper
classic that receives praise up to this day. A Billy Wilder all-time great
feature Double Indemnity stands as
one of the finest films in American cinematic history as seen with its many
contemporary accolades that rank it as such by both the American Film Institute
and the Library of Congress.
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