Double Indemnity (1944)

User Rating:

8.6/10   

Director:

Billy Wilder

Writers:

James M. Cain (novel)
Billy Wilder (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

24 April 1944 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Film-Noir | Thriller

Tagline:

It's Love And Murder At First Sight !

Plot:

An insurance rep lets himself be talked into a murder/insurance fraud scheme that arouses an insurance investigator's suspicions.

Plot Keywords:

Insurance | Murder | Insurance Investigator | Insurance Salesman | Insurance Agent

Awards:

Nominated for 7 Oscars. Another 1 win

Cast

Fred MacMurray	...	Walter Neff
Barbara Stanwyck	...	Phyllis Dietrichson
Edward G. Robinson	...	Barton Keyes
Porter Hall	...	Mr. Jackson
Jean Heather	...	Lola Dietrichson
Tom Powers	...	Mr. Dietrichson
Byron Barr	...	Nino Zachetti
Richard Gaines	...	Edward S. Norton, Jr.
Fortunio Bonanova	...	Sam Garlopis
John Philliber	...	Joe Peters
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
George Anderson	...	Warden at Execution (scenes deleted)
Al Bridge	...	Execution Chamber Guard (scenes deleted)
Edward Hearn	...	Warden's Secretary (scenes deleted)
Boyd Irwin	...	First Doctor at Execution (scenes deleted)
George Melford	...	Second Doctor at Execution (scenes deleted)
William O'Leary	...	Chaplain at Execution (scenes deleted)
Lee Shumway	...	Door Guard at Execution (scenes deleted)

Runtime:

107 min | Argentina:110 min | Canada:90 min (Ontario)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

Germany:16 | Norway:16 | South Korea:15 | Portugal:M/12 | Argentina:16 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Unrated | USA:Approved | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

1825 N. Kingsley Drive, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

The scene where Neff and Dietrichson can't get their car started after the murder was added by Wilder after his car wouldn't start at the end of a shooting day.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In the first scene in which Walter first kisses Phyllis, we see a wedding ring on Walter's hand. Fred MacMurray was married and the ring was not noticed until post-production.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Building attendant: Well, hello there, Mr. Neff.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Being There (1979)

Soundtrack:

Tangerine

best American Film Noir ever made

"I liked the way that anklet bit into her leg. I wanted to see her again, up close, without that silly staircase between us."--Walter Neff, after meeting Phyllis Dietrichson This is Fred MacMurray like you've never seen him before. He's edgy and sharp, and amoral, although he hides it well from his boss. Barbara Stanwyck's astounding performance set the standard for bad girls in Film Noir for years to come. I love this film because it is a perfect example of how the censorship of the time made it so that filmmakers had to get the sexiness across in a subtle way. This movie is undeniably sexy, and there's not a single 'love scene' in it!