Chinatown

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston
Directed by: Roman Polanski
Rating: R
Genre: Crime, Mystery, Thriller
1974

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A Los Angeles detective (Jack Nicholson) gets involved in family treachery involving a woman (Faye Dunaway) and her father (John Huston). As he gets further and further into the investigation, he begins to unravel an unspeakable crime.

Review:

Tim: Roman Polanski gives us one of the all-time great film noirs. Chinatown is a landmark film. It is dark, unforgettable, and thrilling. This is all possible because of Robert Towne's terrific script. I also have to give credit to Polanski's direction- it's top-notch.

Jack Nicholson is excellent as Detective Jake Grittes. In the realm of detective films, he ranks as one of the best. The rest of the cast is fairly strong as well. Faye Dunaway works well with Nicholson, and John Huston gives a good performance as well.

Chinatown was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. However, it was up against The Godfather: Part II, which took 4 Oscars from it (including Best Picture). Still, this ranks as one of the most critically acclaimed movies of all time. It did win a much-deserved Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. It is yet another excellent movie in a long-line of excellent movies by Jack Nicholson.

I love the role "Chinatown" plays in this film. It serves as this mysterious place of detective Grittes' past. This is such a powerful force in the movie. I can't recommend this movie highly enough. Hey, it's Chinatown.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Shining, Reds