DOUBLE INDEMNITY Billy Wilder, 1944

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Name: _______________________________________ Date: ______________ Period: _______ Film Study 1 – Ms. Jones DOUBLE INDEMNITY Billy Wilder, 1944 Based on the novel by James M. Cain, Double Indemnity recounts the tale of Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray), an insurance salesman who becomes involved with the beautiful wife of a client. Together Neff and Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck) concoct an insurance scam that will get rid of Mr. Dietrichson and allow the two lovers to run off with the proceeds from an insurance policy. Unfortunately, things don’t work out, and in one of the film’s final sequences Walter and Phyllis are left in a standoff with each other, waiting to see who will blink first. Questions 1. Perhaps the most famous character in film noir movies is the femme fatale. Who is the femme fatale in this film? Describe her character and what she does that qualifies her to be this archetype. 2. In film noir, many of the male leads are weak, frustrated men. While you are watching Double Indemnity, make a mental note of Walter Neff’s characteristics? What kind of man is he? What is his relationship like with women? 3. Double Indemnity has been called “a film without a single trace of pity or love.” Do you agree with this statement? Explain. Think about the motivations that lie behind the actions of Walter Neff and Phyllis Dietrichson when you consider your response. 4. In your mind, are there any heroes in Double Indemnity? If so, who? Explain what makes them a hero in your eyes? 5. 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. Characteristic Description of the scene/shot Analysis – how does this add to the story or mood/tone? Dutch-angle shots Low-key lighting / shadows Close-ups Low-angle / high-angle shots Deep focus / Shallow focus Flashbacks / Voice-overs .

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Double Indemnity: Billy Wilder Vs
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Double Indemnity by Matt Zoller Seitz “The a List: the National Society of Film Critics’ 100 Essential Films,” 2002
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Podcast Transcript: Double Indemnity As a Moralistic Critique of Los Angeles the Dark Side of Los Angele in Noir Films
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Double Indemnity
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Double Indemnity (Wilder 1944) Hitchcock sent Billy Wilder a telegram after the opening telling him how much he liked it. This film came out in 1944, the same year David O. Selznick released Since You Went Away (1944). Part of the campaign for the latter film were major ads that declared, "'Since You Went Away' are the four most important words in movies since 'Gone With the Wind'!" which Selznick had also produced. Billy Wilder hated the ads and decided to counter by personally buying his own trade paper ads which read, "'Double Indemnity' are the two most important words in movies since 'Broken Blossoms'!" referring to the 1919 D.W. Griffith classic. Selznick was not amused and even considered legal action against Wilder. Alfred Hitchcock (who had his own rocky relationship with Selznick) took out his own ads which read, "The two most important words in movies today are 'Billy Wilder'!" Jewish paranoia fear random violence Urban civilized violence Driven to Darkness Jewish Emigre Directors and the Rise of Film Noir (Rutgers University Press, 2009) By Vincent Brook We've long viewed the film noir genre as the cinematic descendent, the culmination even, of 1920s German Expressionism as formulated at Berlin’s UFA Studios by figures like Fritz Lang, Robert Siodmak, Fred Zinnemann, Billy Wilder and Edgar Ulmer. What has been less discussed—and which Vincent Brook tackles so nimbly and thoroughly in Driven to Darkness—is the role Jewishness played in their movies and sensibility, specifically their Jewishness within the often profoundly anti-Semitic German and Austro-Hungarian empire.
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