Review of Chinatown (1974) by Ashley H — 11 Jan 2014
Chinatown is the kind of film that creates film lovers and matures the taste of those who are already film buffs. Essentially a film noir set in 1930's Los Angeles, Chinatown tells the complex plot of "Jake" Gittes (Jack Nicholson), a private investigator, who gets hired to find out whether Evelyn Mulwray's (Faye Dunaway) husband is cheating on her.
He accidentally stumbles upon a deceptively more complicated and dangerous story. The first thing you'll notice is Jack Nicholson best performance on film which is not over-the-top, but superbly convincing and charisma-radiating.
He takes traits from his character and adds them to his personality. Faye Dunaway is also quite good and has the ability to switch from calm, collected, and snobby to vulnerable, pitiful, and lost. If I had to choose whose film this was, Polanski's or Towne's, I'd have to go with Polanski.
He creates some of the best atmosphere I have ever seen on film that is eerily dark hidden under a beautiful canvas. He even changed the original ending to make it more interesting, depressing, and above all, realistic.
Robert Towne's script is nevertheless fascinating with tons of instantly quotable dialogue and an unpredictable mystery story. I do feel that this film could have been a genre bore if not for Polanski.
The film is truly about the corruption of power and injustice. Polanski's wife was killed by Charles Manson's gang; she never did anything wrong except being a celebrities wife. This is his most personal story.
Chinatown is of course an achievement in film making since it pushed Hollywood's schlocky boundaries more than ever before.
This review of Chinatown (1974) was written by Ashley H on 11 Jan 2014.
Chinatown has generally received very positive reviews.
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