Double Indemnity

A movie with the name "Double Indemnity" does not seem to grab people's attention right away, but once we started watching the film, I became extremely invested in the characters and their outcome. Because the film begins with the end, it is no longer a mystery of what is going to happen, but more how and why it happened. Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray) is an insurance agent who seems to be leading an average life. When he goes to the Dietrichson household to sell car insurance to the head of the house, he instead finds his wife Phyllis (Barbara Stanwyck), and is instantly enthralled. From their first meeting flirtation is obvious but nothing more seems out of the ordinary. It is when Phyllis asks Walter to come back another time that her motifs begin to shine through. I thought it was very interesting how at one point I felt bad for her because her husband seemed so wretched, but what was even more interesting was Walter agreeing to assist in the murder of Mr. Dietrichson so easily. Many aspects of the film noir genre were easily spotted, for example the voice over narration and low key lighting. The use of venetian blinds was also evident in many scenes especially in the offices. I felt the love story between Phyllis and Walter blossomed to fast but by the end it becomes evident that Phyllis did not really love him at that point at all. Barton Keyes (Edward G. Robinson) was by far my favorite character. His intelligence and ability to piece information together was extremely noteworthy. I also liked watching his scenes with Walter because he confided in Walter when all along he was the one he was looking for. The film has a very true and clear message, sometimes people miss what is right under their noses.