Cains 1943 novella of the same name, which originally appeared as an eightpart serial in liberty magazine, beginning in february 1936. What ends up destroying the evil people in the story is not crusading law enforcement, but their own natures. The murderers in double indemnity are phyllis nirdlinger, a very attractive, unhappily married woman, and walter huff, an insurance agent who falls in. Double indemnity in life insurance policies 9 quite as reasonable and is economically decidedly more defen sible than one for death which resulted from bodily injury effected solely by violent, external and accidental means. We are a company that sells limited edition and collectible bluray items that come from all over the world. The transfer looks exemplary, with only a few visible. The picture offers fred macmurray, barbara stanwyck and edward g.
Cain was awarded the grand master award by the mystery writers of america. Seitz editor doane harrison costume designer edith head makeup wally westmore process photographer farciot edouart f red m ac m urray walter neff b arbara s. The collaboration between wilder and raymond chandler produced a masterful script and some of the most memorable dialogue ever spoken in a movie. The novel later served as the basis for the film of the same name in 1944, adapted for the screen by the novelist raymond chandler and. The character phyllis nirdlinger as a femme fatale in double. Two of cains other novels, mildred pierce 1941 and double indemnity 1943, were also made into film noir classics. Compare and contrast walters relationship with phyllis nirdlinger with his relationship with lola. On every level writing, direction, acting double indemnity 1944 is a triumph and stands as one of the greatest achievements in billy wilders career.
Find video, photos, forums, blogs and shop for some of the best movies ever made only at tcm. It doesnt have the heat of the postman always rings twice, but, except for superevil phyllis, is largely more believable. Jeffrey meyerss introduction provides hilarious anecdotes about the turbulent collaboration as well as background. Sep 07, 2015 the truth is double indemnity is a movie about greed, not about love and especially not about the perfect murder or the thrill of the pursuit.
Whether youve loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will find new books that are right for them. We sell slip covers, steelbooks, digibooks, digipacks, figurines and anything releated to bluray products, shipped in well protected boxes. The real breakthrough title for the american style, it opened the floodgates for all kinds of previously taboo subject material that subverted both censor and studio ideas of what constituted suitable movie subject matter. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of double indemnity by james m. Double indemnity also begins with music that is nondiagetic. It comes in a sturdy booklike case, with two discs inside. Double indemnity, published in 1934, is cains second novel and is set in the young, booming city of hollywood. Phyllis proposes to kill her husband to receive the proceeds of an accident insurance policy and walter devises a scheme to receive twice the amount based on a double indemnity clause. This installs the viewers with a sense of urgency and action that is expected. Where bound wachowski brothers, 1996 differs from double indemnity is in its moral framework, which is mediated at so many levels it affects the feel of both films. Double indemnity cain flashcards and study sets quizlet. James cains double indemnity is a hardboiled, rapidly paced. This facsimile edition of double indemnity contains wilder and chandlers original and quite different ending, published here for the first time.
Double indemnity definition of double indemnity by the free. Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books youve read. Double indemnity paramount, 1944, 104 minutes director billy wilder writers billy wilder and raymond chandler, based on a novel by james m. Walter knows that accident insurance pays double indemnity on railroad mishaps, so he and phyllis plot frantically to get nirdlinger onand offa train without arousing the suspicions of the police, the insurance company, nirdlinger s dishy daughter, her mysterious boyfriend, or nirdlinger himself. Double indemnity is a 1943 crime novel, written by american journalistturnednovelist james m. Its immediately apparent from comparison with double indemnity that there is an air of hope in bound. Double indemnity definition of double indemnity by the. Choose from 62 different sets of double indemnity cain flashcards on quizlet. This trailer presents the basic story nicely, but toward the end the action is abruptly cut and replaced with an irritating promotion for what must have been some sort of paramount film series on television.
A hercule poirot mystery hercule poirot series book. Study guide for double indemnity novel double indemnity novel study guide contains a biography of james m. When smalltime insurance salesman walter huff meets seductive phyllis nirdlinger. Adultery, premeditated murder for profit, and cynical characters that gave the. Sibilla cretti describes the swiss approach to international succession and double taxation. Putting double indemnity into context by liz power on. And walter neff and phyllis dietrichson fred macmurray and barbara stanwyck each at their absolute best find that greed through sex, wordplay and their own desire for one another, if for no. Protection and indemnity insurance protects against third parties and environmental damage the instrument regulates the issues of double indemnity and the conditions for allowing and denying extradition the insurer could not sue them in the owners name because they were all entitled to indemnity under the same policy under the provisions of rule 49. Tcm search for double indemnity turner classic movies. Double indemnity, james mallahan cain double indemnity is a 1943 crime novel, written by american journalistturnednovelist james m. Phyllis dietrichson is not the ultimate femme fatale. Double indemnity as a film noir classic film studies essay. When scripting double indemnity, screenwriters billy wilder and raymond chandler had to overcome the challenge of adhering to the hays code while still showing the mutual attraction between walter and phyllis and portraying the darker themes such as murdering mr dietrichson.
May 11, 2012 phyllis proposes to kill her husband to receive the proceeds of an accident insurance policy and walter devises a scheme to receive twice the amount based on a double indemnity clause. Double indemnity by billy wilder, raymond chandler, jeffrey. Double indemnity is ground zero for film noir, plain and simple. Cain, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Not all the characters in the film overcome immerse odds like prevention of the world. The main characters of double indemnity, walter huff and phyllis. Universals doubledisc special edition of double indemnity explains why the popular film hasnt been included on earlier noir release lists the studio was saving it for the fancypackage treatment reserved for its top titles, like to kill a mockingbird and deer hunter. Dietrichson is found dead on a traintrack, the police accept the determination of accidental death. The two construct a scheme to murder nirdlinger, dispose of the body, and. Walter huff is an insurance investigator like any other until the day he meets the beautiful and dangerous phyllis nirdlinger and falls under her spell. Double indemnity is a 1944 american film noir directed by billy wilder, cowritten by wilder and raymond chandler, and produced by buddy desylva and joseph sistrom. Walter huff was an insurance salesman with an unfailing instinct for clients who might be in trouble, and his instinct led him. Synopsis double indemnity is the classic tale of an evil woman motivated by greed who corrupts a weak man motivated by lust.
This study guide consists of approximately 51 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of double indemnity. Double indemnity exists in a placenta of secular astrology, where fate and chance are subject to the mathematics of an insurance companys actuarial tables rather than to the divine fortune of a christian god. The truth is double indemnity is a movie about greed, not about love and especially not about the perfect murder or the thrill of the pursuit. Double indemnity is a 1934 detective novella by james m cain. So i was pleased that chris of our usual suspects discussion group selected double indemnity for our september. Dr sibilla cretti tep is the founder of sgc avocat summary. Double indemnity 1944 1944, classic crime drama noir released in english language in theatre near you in. Walter huff was an insurance salesman with an unfailing instinct for clients who might be in trouble, and his instinct led him to phyllis nirdlinger. However, i shall throughout this paper employ the generally accepted name. The story follows the ambitions of walter huff, insurance salesman, who cooks up a scheme with phyllis nirdlinger to bump off phyllis husband in a manner that pays off the double indemnity clause of a life insurance policy. Cain, virtuoso of the roman noir, gives us a tautly narrated and excruciatingly suspenseful story in double indemnity, an xray view of guilt, of duplicity, and of the kind of obsessive, loveless love that devastates everything it touches.
The book fell into the hands of writerdirector billy wilder, who called in. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Double indemnity is archetypal noir for its abject lack of hope of any sort. Cain novel by director wilder and novelist raymond chandler, it tells the story of an insurance salesman, played by fred macmurray, who is lured into a murderforinsurance plot by barbara. Walter huff was an insurance salesman with an unfailing instinct for clients who might be in trouble, and his. The insurance companies put it in as a sort of comeon for the customers. Learn double indemnity cain with free interactive flashcards. Cain, double indemnity as any contemporary pundit will tell you, it is no small task to make the subject of insurance sound sexy, much less malevolent, perilous, or ripe for abuse by those with weak morals and wicked minds. Double indemnity is a 1943 crime novel, written by american journalistturned novelist james.
Robinson in one of the finest film noirs of the 1940s. Double indemnitys tale of a femme fatale seducing a man to help her kill her husband, but this time its to inherit the diner that they run together. The making of one of the most important film noirs of all time while still adhering to the hays code adds a beauty to the film that would have been lost if it were shot in our day. This facsimile edition contains wilder and chandlers originaland quite differentending, published here for the first time. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Walter huff, an insurance agent, falls for the married phyllis nirdlinger, who consults him.
When nirdlinger has a real accident and breaks his leg, he can no longer drive to a class reunion he planned to attend and phyllis convinces him to take the train. Feb 15, 2014 once we understand the circumstances under which the double indemnity was made, we can truly appreciate the beauty of the film. Double indemnity by billy wilder, raymond chandler. Complete summary of double indemnity 1944 a car swerves through downtown streets at night. Inspired by billy wilders classic film noir of the same name, double indemnity explores questions of desire, power and complicity through new and recent work by a selection of high profile artists.
Tautly narrated and excruciatingly suspenseful, double indemnit. It was part of the play that i had to make two or three calls on nirdlinger in his office. Both are attracted not so much by the crime as by the thrill of committing it with the other person. Lastly, phyllis nirdlinger is a femme fatale in double indemnity because of lowly regarding and opposing the domestic sphere of family and marriage. Walter huff met phyllis nirdlinger when he went to the nirdlinger home to see oil. Also like double indemnity, this novel was adapted into a successful movie, so if you prefer to view rather than read, check out the film starring lana turner. Turner classic movies presents the greatest motion pictures of all time from one of the largest film libraries in the world. In this double story, the woman and man tempt one another. More than 50 years after its release, the classic double indemnity is one of the best films of all time. The driver stumbles to the office of the pacific all risk insurance company and begins to record his confession about killing a man named dietrichson. Engage your students during remote learning with video readalouds.
The characters in the movies are flawed but one will still love and enjoy watching them since they are real. It was first published in serial form in liberty magazine in 1936 and then was one of three long short tales in the collection three of a kind. The murderers in double indemnity are phyllis nirdlinger, a very attractive, unhappily married woman, and walter huff, an insurance agent who falls in love with phyllis and whom she uses as the. If you like your dialogue hardboiled, your lighting shadowy, and your femmes fatales preposterously evil, then look no further. In a city where insurance salesmen are close to the bottom of the social pecking order, walter huff rates as average. Still, he is savvy enough to get through the door and get the prospect talking, except that when he makes a call to a certain mr. The character phyllis nirdlinger as a femme fatale 75. Fate is a condition of individual intelligence, knowledge of the odds, the mathematics of the perfect crime. Compare and contrast walters relationship with phyllis nirdlinger with. The hero is not a criminal, but a weak man who is tempted and succumbs. Double indemnity has one of the most familiar noir themes.