Chinatown (1974) (R)

Chinatown (1974) (R)

Directed by Roman Polanski

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston, Perry Lopez

Daddy Says:

I love film noir. The term is French for "black film", and is usually associated with black & white detective/mystery stories from the 40s and 50s. After falling out of style for a couple of decades, director Roman Polanski resurrected the genre, this time in glorious color, and gave us a timeless classic called Chinatown.

It's the story of Jake Gittes (Jack Nicholson), a private investigator who makes his living by getting photos of cheating spouses, when he is hired by a Mrs. Mulray to catch her husband with his girlfriend. Jake takes the case, but after getting the pictures, he finds out that the Mrs. Mulray who hired him was an imposter, and the real Mrs. Mulray (Faye Dunaway) is mighty upset.

The script by Robert Towne has many twists and turns, but with the sure direction of Polanski the viewers are never lost as to what's going on. We may not know what's going to happen next, but like Jake, we're ready to go along with the ride. Many of the most famous scenes have been absorbed into culture as touchstones. When someone says "forget it Jake, it's Chinatown", you know what they're talking about. I even heard "she's my sister, she's my daughter, she's my sister, she's my daughter" used in a sitcom once when someone couldn't get their story straight.

The cinematography by John A. Alonzo is also particularly brilliant. He makes good use of the widescreen format in his compositions. Most of the outdoor scenes take place during that magic hour when the sun is either just coming up or just about to set, bathing the scenes in that wonderful slanting golden light.

The acting is superb as well. Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway have undeniable chemistry on the screen. And the casting of film director John Huston as Dunaway's wealthy father is wonderful. He plays his part with the command of someone who's very used to getting exactly what they want, and they will get it no matter what the cost. He's one of the film's most memorable characters, even though he doesn't appear until nearly halfway through. Watch for a small role by director Roman Polanski as well, as a not very tall knife-wielding thug who doesn't like "nosey" people.

Rating for Chinatown: *****.

Daughter Says:

“Forget it Jake. It’s Chinatown” The quote made Chinatown something special. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a movie quite like this. Everything about this movie made it one of a kind. It had snappy dialogue, amazing cinematography, and great acting.

Everything said in Chinatown was quick and witty. Which sometimes made it difficult to catch what they were talking about, but you can still catch the basics. Not only was it quick and witty there wasn’t ever anything said that was a waste of time. There wasn’t any dialogue that should have been cut out. Everything went where it should have. The dialogue also helped loosen the mood sometimes (Lt. Escobar: “Isn’t that your phone number?” Jake Gittes: “Is it? I forget. I don’t call myself that often.”), and in other cases make the mood more intense. (Jake Gittes: “Evelyn, put that gun away. Let the police handle this.” Evelyn Mulwray: “He owns the police!”)

Not only did the dialogue give this movie personality, but so did the cinematography. The way John A. Alonzo shot parts of the movie gave the scenes more depth to them. He also made other parts have mystery or an eerie feeling to them. There was a chase scene in a field at one point, and the angles (and such) gave the intensity the scene needed to become perfect.

Also really enjoyed watching Jack Nicholson play a semi-good character for the first time. I mean technically he wasn’t a good guy, because he lied and tricked people. He also told other’s secrets for a living, which isn’t really what a good guy should do. Even though he did all those evil things I was still urging him on to find out the truth about Evelyn. Speaking of Evelyn, Faye Dunaway did an amazing job playing a mysterious woman who held a lot of secrets. I really couldn’t guess what was going to happen next, or what she had up her sleeve for Jake.

I had first seen this movie when I was like in sixth grade. When I first saw it I fell in love with it. Watching this movie again, I’ve just fallen in love all over again (if not more in love).

Rating for Chinatown: *****.