Double Indemnity / LA Confidential Shot Analysis

I think one identifiable theme in both Double Indemnity and LA Confidential is the presence of racial inferiority. The shot that I chose from D.I. shows a visibly worried Sam Garlopis in Keyes' office trying to defend himself in a pretty obvious insurance scam while Walter Neff watches calmly. The second shot that I chose, from LA Confidential, is one of the interrogation of the African American men that Exley is trying to pin for the coffee shop murders.

I noticed a few parallels between the shots, the first one being the stance and position of both the men in power (Keyes in the first and Exley and the onlooking cops in the second). In the DI shot we see Garlopis seated while Keyes towers over him which represents Garlopis' inferiority. I also think it is interesting where Garlopis is sitting in comparison to the desk. Normally a guest in an office will sit directly across from the person they're seeing, but in this case Garlopis is kind of off to the side as if he didn't deserve normal treatment. We see a similar situation in the LAC when we see the suspect seated while Exley stands and Dudley's reflection seems to dominate the shot.

Another comparison I noticed was of the placement of the people in power in the shot. In the DI shot we see Keyes at the desk lecturing Garlopis while Neff protects the door, as if trapping Mr. Garlopis. In the LAC shot we see the suspect being interrogated and then the reflection of the hulking group of detectives. In both of the shots, the person of color is confined and surrounded almost like a caged animal.

I think that there is a general inferiority with people of color in both of these films simply by observing the dialogue but this racial inferiority is also aparent in the shots of the films.