Double Idemnity

The first thing that struck me when I first heard the music begin to play in this film was that I found it incredibly similar in feeling to that of another film, Mildred Pierce. This is a logical comparison in that both films were made in relatively the same time period and are of the same genre.

The music is underscoring throughout the film, with only one exception, when Walter confronts Phyllis for the last time at her home. There is also a lot of music in the film, I noticed that there were very few spaces of silence. The music was most prominent, however, when Walter's voice is narrating into the Dictaphone. The music serves to convey the mood of the scene we are about to enter.

One may notice through watching this movie that it's a tad dated, there are some very prominent cliches, certainly in dialogue and behavior of the characters--and these cliches are also noticeable in the music. For instance, when Phyllis and Walter are arguing at the grocery the music goes up in pitch to suggest heightening anger, and perhaps, to suggest that Phyllis is on the verge of becoming shrill. Other cliches, such as illustrative music. When Phyllis is shot in the climax, the music illustrates her fall. Similarly, when Walter slumps after being discovered by Keyes, the music again serves as an illustration of this.

While perhaps a bit cheesy, this film, and especially the music in it, convey the deception and drama typical of a film of this genre.