Superhighway: A Close Analysis Of Billy Wilder

Camilo Reyes

Cinemas Studies II

Feb. 24th, 2017

Close Analysis I

Black silhouettes walking aimlessly. Dark alleys with characters with even darker purposes. Pretty women in high heels, red lipstick and mascara, who seem to want to both love you and kill you. Men in suits and fedoras smoking cigarettes, always smoking cigarettes. Fatalism. These are some tropes of film noir. These tropes were born during the war, and post the war, to show a growing societal changes of mistrust and cynicism. Few cinematographer were able to grasp such themes such as Billy Wilder. Billy Wilder’s career first started in Berlin. With the rise of Hitler, however, he was forced into an exile and fled to France. Destiny willed it and Wilder ended up in Hollywood.

This rather simple task turns muddy, and Wilder is able to bring his audience along by his usage of mise-en-scene. Most, if not all, the scenes are shot during the night - more over, they are shot in a modern, urban setting. Take for example the apartment scene, where both Keyes, Neff’s work partner, and Phyllis visit Neff at the same time. Not only is that scene shot during the night, past work hours, but the only source of light are the light bulbs. Even the windows are closed, covered with curtains, so any sort of natural lighting is blocked. This isolation from what one can consider the natural world puts the viewer into the character’s mind. The viewer can’t view characters, even if they’re morally ambiguous, as abnormal, because even the world they’re part in is detached from the natural

In the scene there is both diegetic and non-diegetic sound. In fact, the diegetic sound - a neighbor playing music - is used as a way to even further the plot, as it forces Neff to turn around to close the window. This leads to him getting shot. Once the big climax happens, non-diegetic sound of an intense soundtrack take over, which temporarily gives the viewer breathing room but pushes the suspense forward. The scene also has dim lights and uses the venetian blind pattern. This scene also incorporates a clever usage of camera angles. The viewers are able to see from both Neff and Phyllis’ perspectives. Long shots are used as a way to see all the action happening. Close ups are used to highlight character’s emotions, Philly’s in particular as she not only tries to murder Neff, but she gets killed herself. Camera panning, which is steady camera movement, is used to follow Neff - even in his darkest hours, the audience follows him through his deplorable