Chinatown (1974)

Synopsis: J.J. Gittes (Jack Nicholson) is a retired cop who used to work in Chinatown. He retired and took up the job of a private eye and he's good at it. He specializes in adultry cases. You know the kind. Exposing cheating husbands to suspicious wives and vice versa. When Mrs. Mulwray asks Gittes to follow her husband around because she thinks he's sleeping with another man, things get interesting. It turns out that Mrs. Mulwary's husband is in charge of the water in Los Angeles. Things get even more interesting when Gittes finds Mr. Mulwray making out with some chick but that chick turns out to be the real Mrs. Mulwray (Faye Dunaway). Oh how the stakes go up! Just when you thought things couldn't get any worse for Gittes, Mr. Mulwray is murdered at the water resevoir. Gittes is immediatley plunged into the investigation with a series of water related murders as a suspect but he also gets hired by Mrs. Mulwray who is a suspect herself with a secret to hide. The twists and turns follow in what is truely a crime classic.

Should You Watch It? Classic movies are great because you can watch them anytime and still appreciate them. Sure technically this movie won't stand up to a crime film today but what sets it apart is great writing and great directing. All the characters in this movie are classic including the support characters. They don't write 'em like they used to so if you wanna see how they did it in the old days, here's your chance.

Things to Watch Out For: Chinatown isn't really a big part of the story as only the last part of the movie takes place in Chinatown. Instead, Chinatown is mentioned by Gittes through out the movie which is used to shed some light on Gittes character and the events that's made him the man he is today. Of course, his whole experience in Chinatown is happening to him again when he's out of Chinatown which is a nice metaphor for you can't run away from your problems sorta thing. Faye Dunaway plays the classic female lead and does a good job supporting Jack Nicholson. I don't think she's that hot, but apparantly she is sooo haha.

Things You Don't Expect: I know it's the 1970s and stuff but I was disappointed with the sound effects and editing the sound. Sometimes the music is just real off and the dubbed over sfxs are just bad. It's minor of course and it doens't take anything away from the experience. The story is pretty deep, alot deeper than what I had anticipated and at times you might seem to be overwhelmed at what's really at stake here. It's important to pay attention to the introduction of characters and events in the beginning even though they seem to have nothing to do with anything.

Final Comments:
Story: 8.8 (Robert Towne)
Direction: 8.2 (Roman Polanski)
Acting: 9.0
Cinematography: 7.0
Music/Sound: 5.5

Final Score: 8.4