Chinatown

Truly deserving of its title as one of the greatest films of all time, Chinatown delivers in spades. Everything about the film shines, and it looks better now than it probably did in 1974; of course, there's a lot of junk in the theaters these days. Acting, cinematography, script, atmosphere, it's all 10s baby. The story of a struggling P.I. getting a case that has more twists and turns than a mountain road is still one of the most crafted storylines ever concocted. Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston, John Hillerman, and everyone else deliver superb performances. Robert Towne's script, John A. Alonzo's camerawork, and Polanski's direction all make this a classic. You can't be a movie buff if you haven't seen this one.

Chinatown sits securely at the pinnacle of the Neo Noir genre. Fueled by Polanski-Nicholson synergy, anchored by one of greatest-ever original screenplays (written by Los Angeles native Robert Towne), brought to movie-life via PanaVision by brilliant cinematographer John Alonzo, and produced by the industry icon Robert Evans, this is one of film's greatest works of art, and being imo one of the top 20 greatest films ever made - it is a must-see movie.

Chinatown represents the art of film-making in its finest form, exceeding expectations in every reel.

This was Polanski's last film he made in the USA, and the best and last opportunity to see Nicholson's brilliant acting prowess before his characterization method became (to a large degree) a caricature of himself (albeit doing so perhaps better than any other icon-level movie-star).

Often, this much talent on one set becomes a disappointment. Not this time.

Like many successful collaborations, there were major style differences between Evans, Polanski and Towne - Such "manageable stress" can sink a film, but instead served as a positive catalyst in raising the bar of production and execution.

For those who haven't seen the film, it is "required" viewing. For those who haven't seen it in a while, cue it up, and enjoy - like most great films, it just seems to get better with age.

Polanski's style of film making utilizes a classic Noir movie-making "complete-the-scene" method before moving on - similar to live theatre (Act I, Scene 1, etc) The benefit is fulfilling each scene's importance to the story and film as a whole - this style works well in Noir films, and his set-up, detailing, and execution is brilliant.

The immaculately detailed set designs, wardrobe, makeup, and authentic restored vintage cars were painstakingly orchestrated by Polanski to transport us back to atmosphere and feel of the golden age of Hollywood circa 1937.

Chinatown is one of the greatest films ever made making it a must-see.

There is a word, impossible to spell, that describes the alignment of solar bodies like the planets when they all fall into place together. A similar word would describe this film. Everything about it is right. Polanski never directed a better movie. The performers, down to the lowest atmosphere person, are superb. The editing, the score, the sound, the decor, the dialog, all are just about flawless. The photography is peerless. The white garden apartments, the terra cotta roof tiles, the palms and desert sand are all painted with a faint gold, faintly ripe with false promise, like the oranges that bounce from Gittes' desperately speeding car in the northwest Valley.

Polanski deserves much of the credit. When Gittes surprises Evelyn Mulwray in her car, after he follows her to her daughter's house, her face slumps forward and beeps the horn briefly. Then, so faintly, we hear a few dogs bark in the background. Not only is the scene itself exquisitely done but it prefigures the ending, as does Gittes' remark earlier to Evelyn that she has a flaw in her iris. The movie is too good to deserve much dissecting. It stands repeated watching. If there is anything wrong with it, it is the serious and tragic ending that Polanski always insists on tacking on. Robert Towne was right and Polanski wrong in this case. Everything came together on this film. It's not only the best detective movie ever made; it's one of the best movies ever made -- period. A marvelous job by everyone concerned.

I have to add (6/27/05) that the word I mentioned in the first sentence is spelled "syzygy." Man, did I get enlightening email on that. I might as well add two other impressive features of this movie. (1) Polanksi takes his time. Example: Gittes sneaks into Hollis Mulwray's office and begins to go through the drawers of his old-fashioned wooden desk. As he slides each drawer out, Polanksi gives us a shot of their humdrum contents (checkbooks, magnifying glass, and so forth) and we can almost smell the heat and the odor of shellac and sawdust emanating from the wooden containers. The contents reveal nothing of importance in this case. But (2) sometimes irrelevant information crops up that resonates later in the film with its own echo. The detail might be just a word ("applecore") or an ordinary object (a pair of spectacles found in a pond, immediately after Gittes imitates the Japanese gardener's remark that the water is bad for the "glass.") Some of the references may be so consistent as to constitute a theme (water). None of this hits you over the head with its significance. It's all very neatly stitched together.

This is a top ten for me. I have watched this film several times, and each time I see why Jack Nicholson is one of our great American actors. It starts with a story of complexity but accessibility. Nicholson's Jake Gittes, running around with a slit in the side of his nose, put there by Polanski, investigates, gets careless, and realizes what he has stumbled upon. Fay Dunaway as Mrs. Mulray and John Huston and that voice: "Just find the girl." There are comic scenes and Nicholson has feet of clay, but he finally puts his personal integrity on the line. He moves into darkness and sees the underside. And then there is Chinatown with its secrets, politics, incest, all of that. It is such an intelligent movies. One of the reviewers said it was compact. That says it all. Every scene is necessary. It's too bad Polanski can't work in the U.S. anymore--he still releases a treasures every so often. To get back to the movie, all that leads to the climactic last several minutes has been prepared for with loving care by the director. It's so nice to know that there are films like this that people will watch into the latter stages of the 21st century. One of finest.

If it wasn't for the fact that most of the cast would have been too young or not born yet, this movie could have been made in the 1930's or 1940's. It reminds one of the film noirs that Hollywood used to make during that time period. It is a superb example of film making, certainly among the 20 best movies I have ever seen.

Jack Nicholson is private detective Jake Gitties, who can be as hard-boiled as Humphrey Bogart's Phil Marlowe. But Gitties is different: He is intelligent, dresses well and has associates whom work with him. Gitties is hired by Evelyn Mulwray (Faye Dunaway) to investigate into an extra-martial affair she believes her husband is having. However, the investigation leads into bigger things involving the water supply of Los Angeles, which is in the middle of a drought. A series of double-crosses, murders and plot twists all lead into a climatic showdown in Chinatown which has a surprising conclusion.

If the saying `They don't make them like they used to' was ever more true, it was with this movie. Sex is only suggested between the Nicholson and Dunaway characters, yet it is convincing enough. And although Faye Dunaway is a beautiful woman, we never see frontal nudity of her (Directors today would do just the opposite). Some of the plot twists also would not be possibly made today, especially the ending (Which, if you haven't seen the movie, I cannot reveal).

Nicholson is a tour de force in his role as Gitties, but the rest of the supporting cast (Including John Huston as Mulwray's deceptive father) is equally superb. As to how Nicholson could loose the Best Actor Oscar to Art Carney in Harry and Toto is beyond me. Faye Dunaway was also nominated for Best Actress, only to loose to Ellen Burstyn for Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. Fortunately, Nicholson and Duanway have both won Oscars since. In addition, the film itself received nominations for Best Picture and Best Director for Roman Polanski (Who has a cameo in the movie as the knife-welding thug who cuts Nicholson's nose), but those Oscars would be lost to The Godfather, Part II. The only Oscar won was for Robert Towne's screenplay, which is today considered the model for film writing. After watching the movie, one will know why. From the stellar performances to the sharp direction to the superb screenplay, this is a cinema treasure.