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Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity has gained, over the years, a certain mystique. "The greatest Film Noir ever made," some say; "Barbara Stanwyck is the greatest femme fatale in movie history," say others. Another classic film by another director once stated that when given a choice between printing the Truth and printing The Legend, print The Legend. Well, I'm not comfortable with that. I like Double Indemnity an awful lot, but "The Greatest Film Noir ever?" Not hardly. To quote another classic Film Noir (with, I think, a stronger claim on the title), Double Indemnity is "just a little too cold around the heart."

In terms of formal particulars, Double Indemnity is impeccable. Fred MacMurray, cast against type as amoral insurance agent Walter Neff, is a canny choice for the lead, grounding the movie by offering a lead actor who seems like a decent enough Joe who just gets in over his head. Barbara Stanwyck is glacial as Mrs. Dietrichson, who convinces Neff to kill her husband for the insurance money. Edward G. Robinson, also cast against type as MacMurray's shrewd boss almost walks away with the movie--no small feat. The film is lensed with consumate skill and written with an ear for cynical dialogue in the best tradition of Film Noir...and yet.....the screenplay is where thing begin to strike false notes. The screenplay was written by director Wilder and by Raymond Chandler, who didn't get along. It is possible to pick out which parts of the screenplay were written by each man (Wilder is surely responsible for all of Robinson's dialogue, Chandler is surely responsible for all of Stanwyck's). Compounding this is the fact that Chandler hated James M. Cain's writing with uncommon passion, so it's odd to find him working on this movie in the first place, and there is a certain stiffness in the unfolding of the plot that can be attributed to Chandler's disdain. Wilder's contributions to the screenplay, or at least the uses to which the screenplay is put, are problematic, too. Among writing directors, Wilder is the most writerly. He often tells the audience things that he already showing them, inelegantly at times, unintentionally humorous at other times. Many (most) of his films talk too damned much at the expense of cinema. There are intstances of this in Double Indemnity.

So the screenplay is not all of a piece, despite being brilliant in sections. Barbara Stanwyck, as I said, is glacial as the femme fatale, but is that what the screenplay needs? Wilder put her in a blond wig to emphasize that quality of frigidity, but it takes it too far. There is a shot of Stanwyck in the second half of the movie, after she has already revealed herself as a monster, in which she is wearing a pair of sunglasses. In the context of the movie and the shot, she barely seems human. This is something of a fault, since we, the audience, have to be convinced that "nice guy" Neff will kill for her. I am not convinced that he would have. Fortunately for Wilder, Edward G. Robinson's character is dead on target. Without Robinson, the viciousness of the material would overwhelm the film. He gives the audience a window into the movie and practically walks away with the picture. I'll say this: Even if Double Indemnity isn't the greatest Film Noir and even Barbara Stanwyck isn't the greatest of all femme fatales, I am perfectly willing to concede that Robinson gives what may well be the greatest supporting performance in history. But don't hold me to it.