#28: Double Indemnity (1944)
Barbara Stanwyck’s performance in Double Indemnity is considered one of the greatest examples of the film noir femme fatale trope. This film and her performance in it are still studied for their nuance and genre-defining complexities.
When insurance salesman Walter Neff ( played by Fred MacMurray) conspires with the beautiful but dangerous Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck) to murder her husband and collect the life insurance, their plans turn complicated when insurance investigator Barton Keyes (Edward G. Robinson) becomes suspicious.