Rent Double Indemnity (1944)

4.2 of 5 from 321 ratings
1h 43min
Rent Double Indemnity Online DVD & Blu-ray Rental
  • General info
  • Available formats
Synopsis:
Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray), naive insurance man. Falls for the seductive charms of his beautiful client Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck) Together they plot to get rid of her dull husband and collect on the "double indemnity" life policy.
Actors:
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Directors:
Producers:
Joseph Sistrom
Writers:
Billy Wilder, Raymond Chandler, James M. Cain
Others:
John Seitz, Miklós Rózsa, Loren L. Ryder
Studio:
Universal Pictures
Genres:
Classics, Drama, Thrillers
Collections:
A Brief History of French Poetic Realism, A History of Gay Cinema: According to Hollywood, Action & Adventure, Award Winners, Drama Films & TV, Holidays Film Collection, Masters of Cinema, Oscar's Two-Time Club, The Biggest Oscar Snubs: Part 1, A Brief History of Film..., The Instant Expert's Guide, The Instant Expert's Guide to Pedro Almodóvar, The Instant Expert's Guide to: Billy Wilder, Top 10 Films About Trains: Thrillers, Top 10 Screen Kisses (1896-1979), Top 100 AFI Movies, Top 100 AFI Passions, Top 100 AFI Thrills, Top Film and TV Detectives: Guide to Screen Sleuth, Top Films
BBFC:
Release Date:
11/07/2005
Run Time:
103 minutes
Languages:
English Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono
Subtitles:
None
DVD Regions:
Region 2
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Full Screen 1.33:1 / 4:3
Colour:
B & W
BBFC:
Release Date:
25/06/2012
Run Time:
108 minutes
Languages:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0 Mono
Subtitles:
English Hard of Hearing
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Full Screen 1.37:1
Colour:
B & W
BLU-RAY Regions:
B
Bonus:
  • Audio Commentary by Film Historian Nick Redman and Screenwriter Lem Dobbs Shadows of Suspense - a 2006 'making of documentary'
  • 1945 Screen Guild Theater radio adaptation of Double Indemnity, starring Barbara Stanwyck and Fred Mac Murray
  • The Original Theatrical Trailer
  • Optional Music and Effects Track
BBFC:
Release Date:
Unknown
Run Time:
108 minutes
Languages:
English Dolby Digital 1.0, English LPCM Mono
Subtitles:
English Hard of Hearing
DVD Regions:
Region 2
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Full Screen 1.37:1
Colour:
B & W
BLU-RAY Regions:
B

More like Double Indemnity

Reviews (6) of Double Indemnity

PG or 15 - Double Indemnity review by JD

Spoiler Alert
18/10/2016

The DVD is rated at PG, the Blu-Ray is 5 minutes longer and is 15 rated. I am intrigued as to whether the edited 5 minutes are the reason for the difference. There is some indifferent kissing and possibly the most benign death by shooting I have ever seen in the Blu-ray version. Not really 15 stuff. The reason for heavy censoring in my opinion is the cruelly mercenary motivation of Phyllis Dietrichson brilliantly played by Barbara Stanwyck. The moral code of a praying mantis. I would not show any child this attitude to life for fear of lessons learned. This 1944 black and white American drama will not be to many people's taste. I am not at all surprised however that the previous reviews have been gushing. If this is a genre for you it is a truly classic film.

5 out of 5 members found this review helpful.

Superb - Double Indemnity review by RP

Spoiler Alert
02/02/2012

Insurance salesman Walter Neff (played by Fred MacMurray) has an affair with customer's attractive, murderous wife (Phyllis Dietrichson, played by Barbara Stanwyck). Together they plan to kill hubby and claim the insurance money – but suspicious claims investigator (Barton Keyes, played by Edward G. Robinson) smells a rat, and the unlucky Walter ends up with no woman, no money – and indeed, dead.

The three main characters are all well cast – the woman attractive and deadly, the salesman good looking, fast talking and slightly oily, the investigator rumpled, world weary and cynical. A superb film with excellent plot, excellent dialogue, excellent acting. 5/5 stars. Highly recommended.

4 out of 4 members found this review helpful.

My Favourite Noir. - Double Indemnity review by Steve

Spoiler Alert
Updated 10/03/2021

Film noir arrived as a complete genre with Double Indemnity. If noir was created at the junction of American pulp fiction and European film aesthetics, this could hardly have been more auspicious. It was written as a serial by former crime reporter James M. Cain from a real life murder case, and translated for the screen by hard boiled fiction's ultimate poet Raymond Chandler. Director Billy Wilder worked originally in Germany and the legendary composer of the dreamy orchestral score Miklós Rózsa went over to Hollywood on the same wave.

Such was the impact of Double Indemnity that it invented most of the motifs of noir and the closer a film adheres to its archetypes, the more noir it feels: the witty, pessimistic dialogue and narration; the angel-of-death femme fatale; the weak natured hero caught in the grip of an implacable destiny; the shadows and the neon soaked streets.

Most intensely Double Indemnity is a vehicle for Barbara Stanwyck's stunning, chilling performance as a psychopath and former killer who lies dormant in the LA suburbs until reanimated by Fred MacMurray's insurance salesman looking to dupe the system from within. It is a story about corruption and greed hidden in the hearts of ordinary seeming people, shielded from the sun of the blinding public gaze in the dusty shadows of American interiors.

There is a genuinely diseased heart to this film that remains a little horrifying. A sordid, corrupt sexuality made real by its unglamorous stars. Everyman Fred MacMurray, and Barbara Stanwyck in a cheap blonde wig. Edward G. Robinson's is sensational as the insurance investigator who knows something isn't legitimate. The cinematography of John F. Seitz is extremely dark and evocative. While I think Double Indemnity is flawless in every respect, it's Chandler's voice that makes it feel unique, whether its fabulous wisecracks, or explaining the nihilistic dreams of its doomed heroes. 

3 out of 3 members found this review helpful.

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