Melissa Green's Double Indemnity Reflection
In "Double Indemnity," as well as other film noir movies, the contrast between black and white is used to depict the dichotomy of good and evil often presented within the films. However, this goes beyond mere cinematography and aesthetics as a metaphor for the plot line. Race comes into play as well, as we saw in the film. Though surely the main characters were all white, if one looks closely enough black figures are found in the movie, as servants and menial workers in the city. If one extends the cinematography metaphor further, it is clear that the white characters are in danger of falling into darkness; in danger of falling to the depths and depravity that they would like us to think black Americans were in at the time. Avila discusses this in his article, Neff's crimes are only made possible with the help of black "accomplices" (though they help him without their knowledge). His janitor provides him with an alibi. The location of the movie also serves to create the racial dichotomy. At this point, the underbelly of cities became associated with blacks, and white, merely by being in the vicinity, were at risk of falling into darkness. The white flight from major urban areas that occurred after the end of World War II reflected this idea. Cities then became concentrated with minorities, and the whites who stayed went on to become corrupt, in the discourse of film noir.