Double Indemnity Page #16

Phyllis and Neff facing towards CAMERA. Neff is bent over,

peeling the towel and plaster off his foot, which is out of

shot. Phyllis is calm, almost relaxed. Neff straightens up.

They are talking to each other. Their lips are seen moving

but what they say is not heard. They stop talking. Phyllis

stares straight ahead. Neff is pulling adhesive tape off the

wrapped towel that was on his foot. He folds the adhesive

into a tight ball, rolls the towel up, puts both into his

pockets.

DISSOLVE TO:

NEFF'S VOICE

On the way back we went over once

more what she was to do at the

inquest, if they had one, and about

the insurance, when that came up. I

was afraid she might go to pieces a

little, now that we had done it, but

she was perfect. No nerves. Not a

tear, not even a blink of the eyes...

B-70 DARK STREET NEAR NEFF'S APT. HOUSE

The sedan drives into the shot and stops without pulling

over to the curb.

NEFF'S VOICE

(Cont'd)

She dropped me a block from my

apartment house.

The car door opens. Neff starts to get out.

PHYLLIS:

Walter.

Neff turns back to her.

PHYLLIS:

What's the matter, Walter. Aren't

you going to kiss me?

NEFF:

Sure, I'm going to kiss you.

Phyllis bends towards him and puts her arms around him.

PHYLLIS:

It's straight down the line, isn't

it?

Phyllis kisses him. In the kiss he is passive.

PHYLLIS:

I love you, Walter.

NEFF:

I love you, baby.

DISSOLVE TO:

B-71 FIRE STAIRS - (NIGHT)

Neff going up.

NEFF'S VOICE

It was two minutes past eleven as I

went up the fire stairs again. Nobody

saw me this time either.

DISSOLVE TO:

B-72 B-73 INSERTS

Telephone bell box and the door bell. The cards are still in

position. Neff's hand takes them out.

NEFF'S VOICE

(Cont'd)

In the apartment I checked the bells.

The cards hadn't moved. No calls. No

visitors.

DISSOLVE TO:

B-74 LIVING ROOM - NEFF'S APT. NIGHT - ELECTRIC LIGHTS ON

Neff comes from the bedroom, wearing the light grey suit he

wore before the murder, only with out a tie. He buttons his

jacket, looks around the room, and opens the corridor door.

NEFF'S VOICE

I changed the blue suit. There was

one last thing to do. I wanted the

garage man to see me again.

DISSOLVE TO:

B-75 BASEMENT GARAGE - (NIGHT)

Fifteen or twenty cars are parked now. Charlie, the attendant

has washed Neff's car and is now polishing the glass and

metal work. Neff comes from the elevator. Charlie sees him.

He straightens up.

CHARLIE:

You going to need it after all, Mr.

Neff? I'm about through.

NEFF:

It's okay, Charlie. Just walking

down to the drug store for something

to eat. Been working upstairs all

evening. My stomach's getting sore

at me.

He walks up the ramp towards the garage entrance.

B-76 STREET OUTSIDE APT. HOUSE - (NIGHT) - SHOOTING TOWARDS

GARAGE ENTRANCE:

Neff comes out at the top of the ramp and starts to walk

down the street, not too fast. CAMERA PRECEDES HIM. He walks

about ten or fifteen yards. At first his steps sound hard

and distinct on the sidewalk and echo in the deserted street.

But slowly, as he goes on, they fade into utter silence. He

walks a few feet without sound, then becomes aware of the

silence. He stops rigidly and looks back. CAMERA STOPS WITH

HIM. He stands like that for a moment, then turns toward the

CAMERA again. There is a look of horror on his face now. He

walks on, CAMERA AHEAD OF HIM again. Still his steps make no

sound.

NEFF'S VOICE

That was all there was to it. Nothing

had slipped, nothing had been

overlooked, there was nothing to

give us away. And yet, Keyes, as I

was walking down the street to the

drug store, suddenly it came over me

that everything would go wrong. It

sounds crazy, Keyes, but it's true,

so help me:
I couldn't hear my own

footsteps. It was the walk of a dead

man.

FADE OUT:

END OF SEQUENCE "B"

SEQUENCE "C"

FADE IN:

C-1 NEFF'S OFFICE - NIGHT

Neff sits before the dictaphone. There are four cylinders on

end on the desk next to him. He gets up from the swivel chair

with great effort and stands a moment unsteadily. The wound

in his shoulder is paining him. He is very weak as he slowly

crosses to the water cooler. He takes the blood stained

handkerchief from inside his shirt and soaks it with fresh

water.

The office door opens behind him. He turns, hiding the

handkerchief behind his back. In the doorway stands the

colored man who has been cleaning up downstairs. He is

carrying his big trash box by a rope handle.

COLORED MAN:

Didn't know anybody was here, Mr.

Neff. We ain't cleaned your office

yet.

NEFF:

Let it go tonight. I'm busy.

COLORED MAN:

Whatever you say, Mr. Neff.

He closes the door slowly, staring at Neff with an uneasy

expression. Neff puts the soaked handkerchief back on his

wounded shoulder, then walks heavily over to his swivel chair

and lowers himself into it. He takes the dictaphone horn and

speaks into it again.

NEFF:

That was the longest night I ever

lived through, Keyes, and the next

day was worse, when the story broke

in the papers, and they were talking

about it at the office, and the day

after that when you started digging

into it. I kept my hands in my pockets

because I thought they were shaking,

and I put on dark glasses so people

couldn't see my eyes, and then I

took them off again so people wouldn't

get to wondering why I wore them. I

was trying to hold myself together,

but I could feel my nerves pulling

me to pieces....

DISSOLVE TO:

C-2 INSURANCE OFFICE - TWELFTH FLOOR - DAY

Neff comes through the reception room doors with his hat on

and his briefcase under his arm. He walks towards his office,

but half way there he runs into Keyes. Keyes is wearing his

vest and hat, no coat. He is carrying a file of papers and

smoking a cigar.

KEYES:

Come on, Walter. The big boss wants

to see us.

NEFF:

Okay.

He turns and walks beside Keyes, CAMERA AHEAD of them

NEFF:

That Dietrichson case?

KEYES:

Must be.

NEFF:

Anything wrong?

KEYES:

The guy's dead, we had him insured

and it's going to cost us money.

That's always wrong.

He stops by a majolica jar full of sand and takes a pencil

from his vest. He stands over the jar extinguishing his cigar

carefully so as not to damage it.

NEFF:

What have you got so far?

KEYES:

Autopsy report. No heart failure, no

apoplexy, no predisposing medical

cause of any kind. He died of a broken

neck.

NEFF:

When is the inquest?

KEYES:

They had it this morning. His wife

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