Considering the characteristics of film noir, the double indemnity film seems to cover almost all of them. Analysis of the film double indemnity 2728 words bartleby. Double indemnity scene analysis billy wilders double indemnity is one of the best representatives of the film noir era in hollywood as it contains all the main characteristics of the genre. The character of vivian also challenges multiple film noir conventions like the femme fatale of double indemnity. Slideshare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. Cinematography the cinematography around the femme fetale will normally position them in a place of some sort of superiority. Double indemnity is unique in that it contains a powerful femme fatale who is responsible for the downfall of a male figure that is also a bad guy. The heroes of noir generally share certain qualities, such as moral ambiguity, a fatalistic outlook, and alienation from society. Since we talked mostly about femme fatales in class, i focused mainly on the one introduced in last weeks film, double indemnity. During the era when film noir was most popular, directors often associated their movies with a lowkey blackwhite visual. Why is phyllis in double indemnity hailed as one of. It hides them from the audiences sight, and wraps the plot in enigmas and secret crimes. Narrative innovations in film noir describes voiceover and flashback as the persistent style and narrative elements of film noir.
Barbara stanwyck plays phyllis dietrichson in double indemnity her name is no doubt a nod to premier silver screen seductress marlene dietrich. Double indemnity adopts film noirs and crime fictions properties, and responds to these anticipations. Not only is double indemnity one of the archetypal films known as film noir but it is regarded by many as the first true film noir. Midterm paper film noir style in the maltese falcon and double indemnity what elements of a movie make up a film noir. Film analysis of double indemnity film studies essay uk essays. Double indemnity was the first film which played film noir for what it essentially was.
Billy wilders double indemnity he cowrote it with raymond chandler is a widely regarded paradigmatic film noir wrought with tropes of the genre. It was popularised in the 1940s50s widely in hollywood, with the early black and white films such as the maltese falcon 1941 and double indemnity 1944. In a common noir storyline a man, often embittered by life or tarnished by his past, meets a beautiful, mysterious woman femme fatale. Noir films mostly revolve around a central, male antihero theyre hardboiled tough guys with tragic flaws, cynical detectives, aimless grifters, callous gangsters, or like walter neff in double indemnity, victims of. Double indemnity is a 1944 american film noir directed by billy wilder. Barbara stanwyck and fred macmurray in double indemnity 1944 double indemnity. Everett collection rex features the film was shot by john seitz like a textbook noir. Billy wilders double indemnity 1944 and the phenomenon of.
Billy wilders double indemnity 1944 and the phenomenon of american film noir. The characters, scenario and stylistic elements of double indemnity all perfectly represent this group of hollywood films from the early 1940s to the late 1950s. The typical characters that we see on screen, are in a prominent hierarchy throughout most film noirs. Billy wilders double indemnity 1944 and the phenomenon of american film noir by david walsh and joanne laurier 28 july 2015 as part of an eight film series, turner classic movies, the us. Powered by create your own unique website with customizable templates. Seitz to film double indemnity, and together they produced a visual aesthetic that became a template for film noir style. These characters should come from a script based on a piece of american pulp fiction such as the maltese falcon or double indemnity, ideally adapted by a. From the very beginning of the film, the audience is introduced to a setting of a dark city night, with streetlights creating reflections off the water gleaming from the pavement. Double indemnity was directed by billy wilder who used his movie making instincts to create a classic film noir all others would be measured by. What makes this film a wonderful case in point of the culture and style of film noir is that, as stated by the movie production convention of the period, jealousy. In other filmssuch as welles s citizen kane and wilder s double indemnity and sunset boulevard 1950the denouement often the death or downfall of the central character is revealed in the opening scenes. With this statement, we begin to understand one of the reasons why double indemnity is regarded so highly and is considered the subgenres prototype. Noir lighting is unlike the brightly lit sets of mainstream film of the time which used filler lamps to remove ambiguous shadows. Film noir 2010 short the title of the film in the film double indentity is a reference to this film, which has a very similar plot structure and style.
This genre of film saw the opening of dark, disturbing visual and thematic content to stir the thoughts of the consumers. In film noir, elements like violence, sexual harassments, adultery, crime and greed are representatives of similar evil types in the society with a moral conflict emerging at the base of the plot gene 145. Yet double indemnity adds in an extra layer of complexity lighting also reveals the hidden evils within the characters. Double indemnity is 75, but anklets and film noir are. Thus, it is used as a narrative feature which puts aspects of the story and of the characters into visual form. We described a femme fatale as being beautiful, one who leads the main character into danger, and feigns naivete or weakness to hide manipulative goals. Not only is double indemnity one of the archetypal films known as film noir but it is regarded. Double indemnity 1944 tough talkersphyllis dietrichson barbara stanwyck and walter neff fred macmurray. Men in fedoras walk mean streets shrouded in shadow and women are sometimes the sirens to. Double indemnity innovating a film noir cinematography.
Interior scenes are often filled with smoke and shadows, symbolizing the cloudy layers of deceit and secrecy that often. The representation of women in film noir high on films. Brief sequences of blanc or normal lighting may be used to indicate the normal world. To what extent do the conventions and codes of film noir. Film noir double indemnity by hannah eubanks on prezi. The urgentlytold, highlystylized story was wilders third film after the major and the minor 1942 and five graves to cairo 1943. Film noir originated from the french, meaning black cinema. The influence of this definitive film noir with its typical conventions of venetian blind lighting and voiceover narration can be found in other countless imitations. Exceptionally well written, double indemnity applies billy wilders cynicism to the rules of one of the household names when it comes to hard boiled literature, dashiell hammett. Film noir literally black film or black cinema was coined by french film critics first by nino frank in 1946 who noticed the trend of how dark, downbeat and black the looks and themes were of many american crime and detective films released in france to theatres during and following world war ii, such as the maltese falcon 1941, murder, my sweet 1944, double indemnity. The term film noir, french for black film literal or dark film closer meaning, was first applied to hollywood films by french critic nino frank in 1946, but was unrecognized by most american film industry professionals of that era.
Double indemnity as a film noir classic film studies essay. Double indemnity is a 1944 american film noir directed by billy wilder, cowritten by wilder and raymond chandler, and produced by. Many of the lights portrayed in both double indemnity and the maltese falcon were hung low and floor lamps were infrequently high off the ground. The essential elements of film noir explained in one grand. Though film scholars enjoy tossing around the term film noir to describe any number of dark and dangerous blackandwhite movies from the early 1930s in europe to the late 1950s in hollywood. Iconography the typical location of a noir film is normally set in abandoned areas, such as warehouses, alleyways, empty streets etc. Either as a result of their relationship or because she manipulates him, he cheats, murders or attempts to murder, a second man attached to the woman and with whom she is unhappy eg. Film noir s are riddled with morally questionable protagonists, who embrace corruption. Double indemnity 1944 is director billy wilders classic film noir masterpiece a cynical, witty, and sleazy thriller about adultery, corruption and murder. Evolving versions of film noir explore todays uneasy feelings by roger ebert. If you continue browsing the site, you agree to the use of cookies on this website. Double indemnity is the first film in which billy wilders impeccable talent as a director and a screenwriter came forward in full force. Double indemnity is generally considered the gold standard of film noir, helping to establish the template for future entries in the category.
In film noir, lighting implicitly develops key points around the story and the protagonists. Its contributions to storytelling and scriptwriting and how it helped establishing film noir conventions. This undated publicity photo,provided by universal studios home entertainment, shows actors fred macmurray and barbara stanwyck in the 1944 noir film double indemnity. Als er een archetypische film noir is, compleet met voiceover, femme fatale en expressionistisch camerawerk, dan is het double indemnity. Outdoors its nearly always night, while the interiors, at. Cain story was the best written and most characteristically noir of the period. While double indemnity carefully clues the spectator in as to who is speaking, when they are speaking, and from where they are speaking, other films use voiceover and flashback temporarily and more ambiguously.
According to many cinematographers, a film noir is a term used to describe hollywood crime dramas, with emphasis on sex and violence. There is a blanket of corrupt cops, femme fatales, protagonists, detectives, as well as masterminds with money, gangsters and double crossers, in a downbeat, rain sodden quiet town. In the first major scene of billy wilders 1944 film double indemnity, protagonist. He was known as a comedic writer but he wanted to do more. The dark and distinctive elements of film noir culture trip. This essay explores exactly what noir is, by looking at one of the most important films in the genre, double indemnity, and tries to pin down its defining elements, the femme fatale, the antihero. Darkness, gloom and fog are normally associated with film noir. Double indemnity femme fatale films from literature.
Evolving versions of film noir explore todays uneasy feelings. Wilders first few films as a director in hollywood showed no signs of the shadowy world of film noir he would help create. Set to the unforgettably dramatic and alternately mysterious musical score of miklos rozsa, thus opens billy wilders classic film noir double indemnity. In film noir, exterior scenes in daylight are kept to a bare minimum. Although the hardboiled detective is the stereotypical noir hero, the central male characters in film. Billy wilders double indemnity 1944 and the phenomenon. Noir narrative conventions film noir noir overview. Double indemnity is 75, but anklets and film noir are forever double indemnity is classic film noir. First, film noir needs the right cast of characters, including an investigator with relative integrity like sam spade or philip marlowe, a criminal usually a murderer, one bad, beautiful woman, and another good, bland woman. I would say yes to the first part of the question as the last seduction is set many years later than double indemnity which means there is a huge technological update e. The general darkness present throughout the movie is embodied in the plot which reveals the moral bankruptcy of the main characters. In fact, film noir is a genre within the cinema of disillusionment and the two great keys to understand the importance of this hollywood subgenre are darkness and cynicism.
1348 532 322 1410 724 663 1422 1064 1196 1410 1291 569 967 541 126 1297 1176 127 412 1377 414 1112 546 245 956 1477 1072 596 207 710 595 394 1302 1392 117 49 1312 11 41 1100 815