Review of Double Indemnity (1944) by Ben L — 08 Apr 2015

Double Indemnity is film noir at its finest. The story is about an insurance salesman who allows a woman to talk him into a murder plot that will help them defraud the insurance company and runaway together. Fred MacMurray plays dramatically against type as the insurance salesman who has dreamed up the perfect way of getting the best of the insurance company. His narration throughout is very classy and feels perfect for this style of film. I also appreciated that the narration explained some of his thought process, but didn't waste time retelling moments we were able to see on screen. Barbara Stanwyck plays the femme fatale in this story, and she is just mysterious enough that you can never tell what she is really thinking. Is she genuinely in love with Fred MacMurray's character, or just leading him on? You'll have to watch the film and decide for yourself. Without question, though, my favorite performance comes from Edward G. Robinson. Who would have thought that an insurance claims manager would be the hero of a film, but I feel like he is definitely the hero of Double Indemnity (although your rooting interest kind of shifts around as the movie goes on.) He is so perfect for this role, because he manages to be the hard-nosed boss, but his affection for his coworker softens every scene they have together. In fact the relationship between the characters played by MacMurray and Robinson is easily the most interesting and engaging aspect of the film.

Of course the cinematography includes a lot of darkness. It fits the dark tone of the film, and locks it solidly in the noir genre. However the more intriguing choices that were made behind the camera were how shots were set up. There's a scene where Stanwyck is hiding behind a door trying to avoid being seen by Robinson, and they brilliantly place the camera down the hallway so we can focus in on her. This one staging choice adds so much tension to what could be a very mundane conversation between MacMurray and Robinson. Also the scene of the murder is executed in a brilliant way because we aren't allowed to see the deed, but instead experience it through the expressions on Stanwyck's face. There's really not much to complain about in Double Indemnity. It is a well-crafted story, and it takes a different angle on a classic murder mystery. It was very intriguing to think about how the insurance company has more at stake than the police so they have more incentive to sniff out a murder. Instead of following around some detective we are left with a pencil pusher played by Edward G. Robinson, and yet it works. I thought there were a few odd choices in the film, and I never fully understood what role Nino played in the story. His entire subplot kind of went over my head. That being said, I still think Double Indemnity is a great film, and it is definitely worth seeing at least once.