Blog Post #2 "Film Noir"

After watching the American Cinema documentary Film Noir, I found two quotes that perfectly describe the main ideas appearing in Double Indemnity directed by Billy Wilder.  I would like to first quote Errol Morris who has been directing movies since 1978.  Morris believes, “noir is concerned with error, with confusions.  It’s the noir idea.  We don’t know what’s going on, but we do know something bad is out there controlling events.  For me (Morris) the great noir films are films about fall guys.  A person who finds himself caught in a net.  The more he struggles, the deeper and deeper he becomes entwined in nightmare.”  In Double Indemnity, the protagonist Walter Neff, played by Fred Mac Murray is the fall guy.  He begins his day like every other day, as an insurance salesman.  He visits his first client, a Mrs. Phyllis Dietrichson played by Barbara Stanwych.  This meeting is what starts the chain of events that will eventually lead to Walter’s demise. 

Another quote I feel describes Walter’s situation is by Kathryn Bigelow, a woman who has been directing and writing movies since 1982.  The quote is as follows, “He’s on a downward spiral from which he cannot emerge and the more he tries to eradicate the situation, the worse it gets.”  I think Walter’s downward spiral begins once he agrees to help Phyllis attain the accident insurance for her husband Mr. Dietrichson.  Walter knows that Phyllis’ request will lead to the death of her husband and he is the only one who can help get the job done.  We, as the viewers, know that no one can get away with murder and so no matter what Walter does to fix the situation, it only becomes worse.

The three words that stood out for me, that describe a femme fatale were smart, powerful, and sexual.  I think Phyllis is the typical femme fatale and these three words describe her perfectly.  She is smart in the way that she casually asks Walter about obtaining accident insurance for her husband without his knowledge.  Not because she fears for her husbands life, as she explains to Walter but because she has an alternative motive.  Unfortunately for Phyllis, Walter does not fall for her tricks.  He knows exactly why Phyllis is asking such questions and tries to convince her to drop such ideas.  

Walter is already being seduced and is intrigued by Phylis' anklet.

 

 

Phyllis is powerful in the way that she manipulates Walter into believing Mr. Dietrichson is a bad husband.  She puts on a sad face, speaks in a childish tone and tells Walter her husband is mean to her and would never give her a divorce.  Walter, like most male characters in film noir, falls for lies and twisted love.  Phyllis uses seduction to lure Walter in and persuade him into killing Mr. Dietrichson.  I particularly like the way the late Marie Windsor, a femme fatale actress herself, described a femme fatale in the documentary.  She stated, “The classic femme fatale is a woman that’s getting the man into bed and then into trouble.”

Phyllis puts on a sad face for Walter.

 

Noir photography, lighting, and location are very different from films we see in theaters today.  One particular element that stands out to me is the use of venetian blinds.  These were perfect for creating shadow and light.  I would like to quote John Bailey, an American cinematographer and film director who stated, “The venetian blind, which was an effective way for the director of photography to create an interesting and unusual lighting pattern on an otherwise blank wall; and would create interesting psychological effects, depending upon the way they were slanted and adjusted.”  This one setting prop was used in several scenes of Double Indemnity. I’m not sure if the venetian blinds were to create psychological effects for the actors in the film or the viewers in the audience.  To me, the shadow and light of the venetian blinds gave the sense that the actors felt entrapped.  Below are two film stills that show the shadow and light of the venetian blinds.  The first shot is of Walter pondering to himself.  Walter is worried Mr. Keyes, his boss played by Edward G. Robinson, will find out he is a murderer.  The second shot is of Phyllis holding a gun, ready to shoot Walter.  This time we see the venetian blinds over Phyllis’ face.  This makes me think she is beginning to feel trapped and she has no choice but to turn against her partner in crime.

 Creating shadow and light with venetian blinds.

The use of deep-focus cinematography in Double Indemnity can be seen in the film still shown below.  Quoted from chapter 6 of our textbook, Looking At Movies: An Introduction to Film, “Deep-space composition permits the filmmaker to exploit the relative size of people and objects in the frame to convey meaning and conflict.”  This quote perfectly describes the emotions being portrayed in this scene which is conflict.  Phyllis and Walter have resorted to meeting in this grocery store in order to discuss their plans to murder Mr. Dietrichson.  We can see that Walter is feeling a sense of anger and fear.  This scene conveys the conflict that Walter is dealing with when speaking to Phyllis.

Walter and Phyllis make plans for murder.

 

Location is another important aspect in noir films.  As John Bailey stated, “The movie should reflect the world.”  I found a photograph that shows how real the world of Double Indemnity really was.  Below is a comparison shot of Phyllis’ home when the film was shot and now.

Then                                           &                                                 Now

 

Neo-noir is a bit different in comparison to film noir.  Of course, the first major difference is the color photography.  John Bailey states it best.  He says, “Color brings in a certain level of relationship to reality.  I mean the real world is in color.”  Yes, the real world is in color and it is easier for viewers to relate to a film when in looks more like the real world.  Neo-noir is also different in the way it portrays conflict.  The violence and sexuality of these films have become much more graphic.  We can actually see the victim being murdered or raped.  The camera doesn’t focus on a character’s face while another character is being beaten in the background.  In neo-noir we get to see the action as it happens.