A lust for women, blood and money played out in urban shadows marks Double Indemnity as the quintessential film noir of the 40s. It mightn't be the best of its kind or match the grandeur of Billy Wilder's Sunset Blvd (1950). Nonetheless the legendary director weaves a deliciously seductive web of intrigue based on James M Cain's pulp novel. Sparks fly between Barbara Stanwyck as the double-dealing dame and Fred MacMurray's insurance salesman, seduced into bumping off her unwanted husband.

Tragedy is foretold from the outset as Walter Neff (MacMurray), nursing a gunshot wound, decides to record a confession. In devastatingly brusque voiceover he talks us through a series of flashbacks, starting from a fateful tête-à-tête with wily temptress Phyllis Dietrichson (Stanwyck). "How could I have known," says Neff, "that murder could sometimes smell like honeysuckle?" When she inquires about an accident policy for her wealthy other half (Tom Powers) without his knowledge, Neff smells a rat. Even so, that flowery scent becomes so overpowering that he agrees to help Phyllis and her murderous scheme.

"TIGHTER THAN A HANGMAN'S NOOSE"

Wilder co-wrote the script with celebrated crime novelist Raymond Chandler and together they cinch this yarn tighter than a hangman's noose. The air positively crackles as Neff and Phyllis are all at once magnetically entwined and totally repelled by one another. Droll lines are delivered like the crack of a whip - and it smarts. "We're both rotten," declares Phyllis. "Only you're a little more rotten," answers Neff. If all the sharp edges and stark shadows send a shiver up the spine, Edward G Robinson brings heart as Neff's boss and moral compass. It all makes for a lusciously black brew that renders modern noir pale by comparison.