Genre: Noir

Clever, dark, suspensful and over flowing with twists and turns, Double Indemnity is the archtypal Noir film. A Femme Fatal, (possibly the most famous in history, played with menace and sophistication that so easily defeats the conscience of an average Joe who roped into a devious crime by the wonderful Babara Stanwyck), a story told in regretable flashback with a novel like monologue, a complicated crime, fantastic gothic interior settings (the mansion hallway) and gloomy cinematography are all the generic Noir conventions found in this classic, all of which are so intricatly woven together to create this masterpiece.

The peformances are all memorable and the final scene with Fred MacMurray and Edward G. Robinson is so well performaned, supplying both emotional connection between the characters and a devestating, unanswered open ending that is both tragic and darkly, touchingly comical.

Your eyes are glued to the screen and this is heard a lot but you won't be able to look away; It is all so gripping and involving. We watch the story unfold with an unsurpassable unpredictablility and mounting tension. Each scene is well constructed with every angle, every piece of music and every use of lighting relevent to the film, creating certain moods and manipulating our feelings towards the characters.

The settings are all subtle yet iconic contributions to the film. The empty, dominating feel of the mansion hallway is where we are first introduced the Phyllis Dietrich, with the large, gothic look and the towering, meandering staircase representing Phyllis's villainous qualities and empty soul which we are all yet to see but all know is coming. This scene is brimming with dramtic irony; we observe the innocuous insurance representative Walter Neff become almost immeadiately overwhelmed with the beautiful Phyllis yet we know what thay is hiding. This moment is when the seeds of the plot are lain and all the viewers can do is watch, biting our nails just waiting to see the inevitable crime unfold. How it will and what will happen is unknown whilst we sit in awe and hang on every single word of the superb screenplay.

The breakthrough for director Billy WIlder, Double Indemnity was a marvellous way to kick start his diverse Hollywood career. Filmed with style and undeniable talent, Double Indemnity is crafted amazingly. It never lets go and stays with us for a long time after viewing. This is due to Wilder's well observed structure, his inclusion of emotive scenes, his subtle touches of dramtic irony and his eye for aesthetic brilliance.

Double Indemnity is a phenomenal Noir film. A staple of the genre and a film of utmost importance that should not be missed. Absouloutly incredible.

The first time I viewed this, my opinon of it was that it was a 4 star film. I will admit that was because it was late at night and I found it harder to follow the plot. Now I have seen it for a second time, I have decided it is a 5 star film, and the Coens' second best (after Fargo), a big jump from when it wazs my least favourite of the Brothers.

I love the clever and complex plot, I love the humor (I was laughing all the way through) and I love everything else about this picture.

When it comes to making a great film, the Coen's come high above others, and always make a unique picture, different from any of their other films, and different from anything else ever done before.

A tour de force Noir. A classic of Hollywood's greatest genre.

A dark story accompanied by one of the most beautiful cinematography's I have ever seen. For a moody story, a stark use of black and shadows was needed, and the Black and White merges beautifully.

Robert Mitchum gives one of the best performances of all time as the calm but oh so menacing god-fearing preacher. With the shadows bouncing off his face and body to help with the feel of evil.

The children are very talented. They both show believable fear, and for the young girl, naivety. They clearly understand the film and they worked hard to mould lovable characters. With great success.

This was Charles Laughton's only feature as director. That is shocking because he clearly had the talent for directing and created a much loved classic, using the locations, the story and the cast to the utmost effect. If he had directed other films, I would have watched them straight away. Although it is a shame he didn't make more, at least we have this much loved thriller to remember his directorial skills by.

This seems like "Remake Material" but I hope to God it is left alone. It cannot be bettered, even if a remake keeps the black and white photography. Nothing could equal the power and chills of this classic.

One of the best of the Noir genre, this is a must see. Everything is perfect. The look of it all, the cast and the unige story.

This is the the darkest, most disturbing film to ever emerge from the twisted minds of the Coens. In other words, it's actually quite sick. But thats a reason I love it.

It is Bloody, and it is Simple. The film is one of the Coens easiest to follow, but has some very confusing questions which never seem to get answered. And as you already probably know, I love unanswered questions in films. It makes it more realisic, more exciting and makes you feel more fullfilled and entertained.

As far as performances go, they were all good. I really believed John Getz's fear as the whole thing escalated out of control. I really believed M Emmet Walsh's mad man identity. I really believed Dan Hedaya's anger and jealousy and I really believed Francis McDormand's innocence, even though it was all her fault, though unwittingly.

This goes down as one of the best directing debuts ever. For a first film, the brothers showed all the skills that normally come from experianced directors. They used perfect angles, perfect dialogue, perfect use of music and score, perfect casting, perfect pacing and perfect plot ideas. They have kept this talent running through 25 years of work in film. They have a brilliant career and hope their films always stay close to the level the always deliver on and never fall lower. That would be the truly saddest thing to happen in hollywood in recent years.

Screw the Dark Knight, this is Nolan's masterpiece. Better than Memento even.

Following is a gritty British noir with all the conventional parts of that genre present here more than ever. A smart narative, subtle performances and excellent direction from Nolan, showing early potential. Amazing filmed by Nolan himself too. Which leads me to see that this, with other reasons, is very similar to Killer's Kiss which was, like this is Nolan's first main film, Kurbrick's first main film.
Both are in black and white, both actually filmed there picture themselves and both are crime films. Even the running time for both of them are short, yet both achieved so much, even with a small, even tiny, budget.

The performances are very good, Alex Haw being playing cold and confident to a tee and Jeremy Theobold being perfect in the lead role. Both are subtle performances that allow us to easily understand the characters.

Easily one of the best Noir's ever made, even if it was made 50, 60 years after Noir first began. This is Nolan's best film and smartest film that knocks his other films out of the park, and yes that includes you, Memento.

Classic. Noir at it's best. All the Noir conventions are there and they gleam in this picture.

The story is spellbinding and is brought vividly to life with fantastic performances from every cast member. The use of shadows is great. Just like in the other Tourneur film I Walked With A Zombie. In that, fear is created, and in this, mystery is created by the shadows.

Like in I Walked With A Zombie, Tourneur keeps a fantastic pace throughout. It remains even, therfore none of the intrigue gets lost. He uses great angles too, keeping it a joy to watch aswell as helping create various moods.

The screenplay is a joy to listen too. It is poetic in many parts and has lots of great lines. It is one of the best screenplays of all time.

The performances are top-notch. Mitchum, in the youngest role I have seen him in, he was 29 at the time steales the show as always and speaks his lines of dialogue in the way only he could. It was also great to watch Kirk Douglas and he really helped make the film be as fantastic as it is. Jane Greer is wonderful too and was really impressive in her role, covering a wide range of emotions perfectly.

This is an amazing noir and is one of the best films of the 40's.