Analyse how editing is used to create meaning in at least two examples from one film from
1930–1960 that you have studied. [10 marks]
-Double Indemnity
Billy Wilder's 1944 film noir 'Double Indemnity' uses editing techniques to establish the film's naturalism, further the narrative, and alter pace and tension. This is prominent during the film's midpoint where protagonist Neff and femme fatale Phyllis have plotted to murder for money, Wilder creating tension for the spectator through parallel editing, a form of cross-cutting, between the two as they talk over the phone. This remains the continuity with the undisruptive shot framing and 180 degree rule, though tension is created as Keyes, a detective, is present in the room with Neff while Phyllis discusses murder, Neff's visible discomfort mirroring the spectator's positioned sense of distress, each cross-cut highlighting this when Keyes remains in Neff's frame. The absence of conventional J and L cuts is also significant in emphasising the urgency of both spectator and character from making the dialogue both heard and seen, solidifying their plans.
Furthering the film's pace, in rhythm with Neff's voiceover, a metric montage (an Eisenstein theory) details Neff's preparation for murder, combined with dissolve transitions typical of 1940s Hollywood which seamlessly blends each shot into one, serving as a practical indicator of linked shots for continuity and narrative consistency to the spectator, as well as an assuredness of Neff's planning and sense of finality in his moral estrangement foreshadowing a successful murder within the plot. Once Neff is secured in Phyllis' car, the Kuleshov effect is created during a reverse shot between Neff and Phyllis, this cut framing them together as accomplices for murder and a finality of it for their developed character arcs.
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