Double Indemnity Essay

This essay will provide an overview of a clip from the beginning of the movie Double Indemnity. The clip has a runtime of two minutes and thirty-three seconds and contains five shots in total. This paper will provide an in-depth analysis of each shot in the clip. It will examine the types of camera angles used, the lighting direction and the composition of objects and figures on the screen.

The elevator encounter between Walter Neff and the Watchman in the first scene is a two-shot captured at medium close-up distance. Walter is clutching a coat tightly around his suit while trying to avoid having a conversation with the Watchman. The low-key and high-contrast lighting here has left the most of the scene in total darkness. The only non-obscure elements are the Watchman’s face, the directory board on the first floor and the elevator panel to the right. As Walter exists upon reaching the twelfth floor, the camera follows him forward. He pushes past a double glass door and approaches the balcony that separates the twelfth floor from the eleventh. This shot ends with the camera moving beyond his position and providing a birds-eye view of the floor below. …show more content…
The camera is stationary through-out, tracking Walters movement from the floor underneath him. The high-key lighting coming from the eleventh floor makes him less ambiguous and gives his face greater exposure. Various elements in the background: the plants, the framed picture next to them and the doors are also well highlighted. The third shot takes place in the office room and is captured at long distance. The camera follows Walter as he throws his coat unto a nearby chair and moves over to the desk to turn on the desk lamp. Soft moonlighting from behind the blinds is radiated on the desk. The light is very low-key, the room and its contents remain barely visible until the desk-lamp is turned