Double Indemnity- Billy Wilder 1944, 21.57minutes in.
A man (Walter) is pacing around a dark room, the only light coming from the window, and the wooden beams on the window cause shadows this is a typical film noir characteristic and film noirs are dark and shadowy to create an eerie and tense atmosphere. Walter is doing a voiceover where he is talking about a woman he met, the voice over is synonymous with film noirs it helps us to identify with the character and get inside their heads, it helps to give the audience and sense of connection with the characters, feel their emotions. Then the woman (Phyllis) turns up, her character is the femme fatale character, she is sexy and confident and uses her sexuality to get what she wants this is a typical convention of the film noir genre. When Phyllis comes into the flat and Walter turns on the lights this creates weird shadows again typical of the noir genre. Walter and Phyllis then have a slow and passionate embrace after a small tiff in which Walter says to Phyllis “I’m crazy about you” then she doesn’t say it back, another typical film noir characteristic where the man falls in love with the woman because she makes him but she gives no love in return. Phyllis talks about how she hates her husband and how she dreams of killing him and then as Walter is so in love with her he decides to kill her husband this is a film noir characteristic where the woman seduces a man and then convinces him to commit a crime. While this sequence is happening the weather outside is dull and is set at night and its raining, unpleasant weather is another noiresque feature.