Chinatown
1974 Directed by Roman Polanski
Synopsis
Gittes: Dam nosey detective
A private detective investigating an adultery case stumbles on to a scheme of murder that has something to do with water.
Cast
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Some discussion around Chinatown on Letterboxd recently, most particularly on Simone's review, led to this rather last minute decision to watch it for the third time - and for the second time in the last year or so.
I think it could be a growing trend for me, if not for lots of people on Letterboxd. The discussion or mention of a film suddenly leaves you with an instant urge to watch it again, but the pattern of the way this has happened to me so far on Letterboxd has not been a case of me doing it whenever someone mentions one of my very favourite films.
Because Chinatown isn't one of my absolute favourite films, no matter how great…
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I now feel like I can learn a lot about a person when they tell me Chinatown is their favorite film. The languid pace and the deliberately slow build in tension let the film breathe in a way most great noirs do. I will always enjoy watching a detective solve a mystery, and this one is no exception. It didn't have quite the effect on me that I thought it would on a first viewing, but I can already tell I'll grow to appreciate this on numerous rewatches.
The visuals are absolutely stunning. The sets, the costumes, the exterior shots… all so meticulously chosen. The sound design and score are pretty perfect. For the noir genre, the acting is flawless.…
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Forget a review, It's Chinatown.
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The December Challenge: Film 1
From the moment the opening credits of Chinatown begin to roll, you know you’re in for a real treat. Whilst I’m no believer in perfection, it is impossible to deny that this is probably about as close to the perfect movie as you’re ever going to get, particularly if you’re a fan of the classic cinema that acts as its inspiration. Perhaps the greatest film ever made, a bold claim if ever there was one, Chinatown is the ultimate in neo-noir entertainment in that it not only pays homage to the greats of the forties and the fifties but also offers an intensity and unpredictability that very few films have ever been able to…
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"está padre, ¿no?"
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los últimos 15 minutos son tan negros que ningún otro film noir (con la discutible excepción de mulhollando drive) se ha atrevido a ir más allá. son como una frontera de espanto. pasar de ahí sería salirse del cine de género e irse a terrenos de lo experimental.
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seguro ya alguien escribió el ensayo 'restricción del rango de conocimiento en chinatown'. si lo conocen, rólenlo.
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hay muy poquitos guiones PERFECTOS. el de chinatown es uno. si quieren, estúdienlo.
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ah, y esto: chinatown: frames & lenses, doors & windows.
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Great classic noir film! The story is thrilling and gave the suspense from the beginning to end, keeping you wondering what will happen next.
And the amazing Jack Nicholson is always brilliant! I think everything with him is good.
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I decided to revisit a number of films I watched when I was a budding cinephile and didn't remember as well as I should. Chinatown is a neo-noir, hard-boiled detective story which reflects the growing disillusionment and cynicism of the 70's and is one of the true gems of that era. Roman Polanski's immaculate directing and Robert Towne's towering script along with the unforgettable performances by Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway have established this film in the annuls of time as a must-see masterpiece of film-making.
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This story does a really good job of setting up its characters. Jack Nicholson's Jake Gittes really is the perfect storm. He's charming, witty, sarcastic, and cautious. When paired with Faye Dunaway's Evelyn, the movie presents us two characters with complex backgrounds. Jake is mentally bothered by his past, but the details are scarce. As the movie progresses, we are reminded of Jake's flaw. Polanski(with an entertaining appearance, by the way) perfectly adapts this screenplay to build tension towards the final scene. And what a memorable final scene that was.
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The most haunting piece of dialogue is not the famous final line. It's Gittes' final line: "As little as possible."
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Polanski and Towne took a genre that seemed to be all but spent up and breathed new life into it; while retaining the classic motifs of noir, the cynicism and sexuality of "Chinatown" is on a level never seen before, even in the most raunchy and pessimistic of noir classics.
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"You may think you know what you're dealing with, but, believe me, you don't." - Noah Cross
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The famous final line packs a punch, but it's easy to forget that it's because the movie has been winding up for 2 hours
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Forget it Jake, it's Chinatown.
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Now, this is being widely praised as one of the finest films of the seventies, or even one of the finest films of all time. I don't get it. All I see is a well-done noir thriller, but nothing more exciting than two or three dozen noirs from earlier periods. Also, I cannot consider this a true Polanski film, because it lacks most of what makes Polanski films stand out as such - the weird psychology, the game playing, the sarcastic undertone. Some of it is here, but not enough to recognize the hand of the director; this feels like a generic (but very good) script that could've been filmed by any ace director, not just Polanski. I much prefer the films he shot at the beginning of his career, Knife in the Water, Cul-de-Sac, and Repulsion.
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very good script and also good direction