Posted 10:22 pm Friday, December 04, 2009
'Double Indemnity" -- Wilder's ‘Proto-Noir' An Interesting Taste Of Films To Come
By STEWART SMITH
Entertainment Writer
Welcome back one and all as I continue my examination of the works of director Billy Wilder, this week taking on his classic noir "Double Indemnity."
Entertainment Writer
Welcome back one and all as I continue my examination of the works of director Billy Wilder, this week taking on his classic noir "Double Indemnity."
If you're just joining us, my "Catching Up On" column is a chance for me to write about the films and directors that I've yet to have much exposure to. Given that I've had no formal education on film history I've sort of had to make up my cinematic education as I go along, resulting in many classic and rare films that I have managed to miss over the years.
"Double Indemnity" was made fairly early in Wilder's career, it was only his fourth studio film to direct but it's a powerhouse of an outing with phenomenal (some say career-best) work from Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck and Edward G. Robinson, as well as a dynamite script that Widler co-wrote with author Raymond Chandler. In fact, it's Chandler's contributions that really kind of take center stage.
Most of the elements of a classic Chandler story are in place with the hardboiled dialogue, the dame who can't really be trusted, the repercussions of the characters' actions, it's all there. The biggest shift, though, is the presence of a morally sound leading character. Chandler's novels were always anchored by the unflappable private eye Phillip Marlowe. But here, the moral center isn't found in insurance salesman Walter Neff (MacMurray) and certainly not from the scheming adulterer Phyllis Dietrichson (Stanwyck) but rather from Barton Keyes, Neff's claims adjuster co-worker played by Edward G. Robinson.
Walter is a successful salesman who can pitch a policy to just about anyone. But when he gets tangled up in the web carefully crafted by Phyllis who wants her husband gone and a cool $100,000 in her pocket, things quickly escalate beyond Walter's control and his seemingly perfect plan to help Phyllis get away with murder.
It's a character set up like this that proves a film of this sort would have a very hard time making it through the traditional studio system in today's Hollywood. The main characters are more villains than heroes, leaving almost no one to attach to or root for, which just makes the work put forth by Wilder and the principal leads all the more impressive. It also reinforces that what Wilder is really focused on early in his work is consequences.
Like with "Ace in the Hole," "Sunset Boulevard" and even to an extent with "The Apartment," Wilder is focused on people finding a suitable comeuppance for their selfishness and greed which, I guess is part of why it's a perfect fit for Chandler's involvement despite the lack of a sympathetic main character.
The role of Walter was also a big shift away from type for MacMurray, who had mostly done romantic roles until Wilder tapped him for this, and for Robinson as this apparently marked his first major supporting turn. Robinson was a little hesitant to take it since he normally only did leading roles, but thankfully he took it on as he's simply fantastic here. It's not a broad role like the gangster parts he's famous for playing but he really just kind of lets loose as much as the part will allow and it's great to watch his character unravel the case.
MacMurray, on the other hand, plays it pretty close to the chest and gives what might the only portrayal of a tough guy insurance salesman in cinema history. I would have never guessed that the actor who I was most familiar with as a kid when he played the Absent Minded Professor and the Shaggy Dog would so effortlessly read off Chandler's hardboiled narration. The concept of someone who is normally trying to sell you a liability policy but talks like a tough guy to his two-timing girlfriend seems kind of silly but MacMurray sells it.
Stanwyck is on the same level as Robinson and MacMurray here, putting out one heck of a performance. The skill with which she so subtly moves from victim to cold manipulator is nothing short of brilliant and also highlights what makes the roles she and MacMurray occupy so difficult. These are characters that are highly stylized and hardly relatable, yet due to the strength of the actors behind them they come across as remarkably believable.
Finally, I've got to talk about John Seitz's cinematography. "Double Indemnity" was sort of a proto-film noir as it had a hand in setting trends that countless other films in the genre would follow and Seitz's cinematography here clearly was a major influence in how future noirs would be photographed. The sharp shadows and odd source lighting really set the mood and atmosphere perfectly.
That does it for this week's entry. Join me again next week as I take on Wilder's "The Spirit of St. Louis" with Jimmy Stewart. I'll then wrap up my series on Wilder the following week with "Stalag 17" and then begin a new series on Howard Hawks starting with "Bringing Up Baby."
Stewart Smith is the Entertainment Writer for the Tyler Morning Telegraph. Contact him at 903-596-6301 or by e-mail at ssmith@tylerpa per.com.
