Neff Said: Mise-en-scene and Sound in Double Indemnity Film Noir is a genre filled with many interesting conventions. The films within Film Noir use narration, performance, lighting, and blocking in order to tell tales of murder, betrayal, and questionable morals. In this sense, Double Indemnity is a classic Film Noir film. It is a story of two ill-fated lovers lured by lust and greed to commit a heinous act: murder. The main focus of the film (and of this essay) is on Walter Neff and Phyllis Dietrichson and how Phyllis uses Neff. Phyllis is painted in a sympathetic light at the beginning of the film but, by the end, her true natures of corruption are revealed to all. The things that tell the most about Neff and Phyllis are their performances, specifically how they react to either dialogue or sound, and their character blocking. Considering that Double Indemnity is focused around their relationship, it is through examining Neff and Phyllis that much meaning can be found. Double Indemnity’s use of both characters and sound contributes to the theme of a web of corruption spun by an evil temptress. Throughout the film, Neff narrates what is going through his mind and why he is doing the things he is. This lets the audience see the action while hearing why it …show more content…
In the end Neff chooses to break Phyllis’s web of corruption. He could have easily let Zachetti take the fall for the murders, but he chooses to confess everything to Keyes and end the cycle that Phyllis started. It is a moment of redemption for Neff, he is able to give Lola and Zachetti a clean slate and take the blame onto himself. He is able to undo some of the damage that Phyllis had done to the innocents of the story. As the sun rises on Los Angeles, Neff is able to recover the conscience that Phyllis had convinced him to throw into