ChikPapa Very disappointed :(

FuzzyTagz If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Murphy Howard I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

MichaelMRamey The reason I put this film on was because I like crime stories and Jack Nicholson. The film can tend to feel longer than it actually is and drags on. There are some slow parts, but unfortunately they are important to the overall story, so there is no way around then.How ever it's a decent crime noir that will have you wanting to watch the entire thing to discover what is really going on in this whodunnit. Jack Nicholson puts in a good performance and I'd only recommend to fans of crime stories because I don't think a casual film fan would enjoy this.

shinkim-61939 Directed by Roman Polanski and stars Jack Nicholson as a private eye who is hired to investigate and expose her husband Hollis Mulwray but soon finds out that the woman who hired him was not his husband and finds him murdered it becomes something much bigger and much more complicated. To start things off the cast is fantastic in this movie, Jack Nicholson is magnificent especially his subtle acting, for example after Mrs. Mulwray saves him from being shot, the way he looks at her indicates its the first sign he is starting to fall in love her. There is also another scene in the movie where Jack shows brilliance in his subtle acting where he is checking up on Mrs. Mulwray because he feels something suspicious is going on, while he is driving just the look on his face shows that he is tired and he has been through a lot through out the day. Faye Dunaway is fantastic in this film as well and seeing her and Jack work together in this movie was amazing. Just like the acting the movie itself is also very subtle, the theme is not just straight up in your face it does require some thinking. This movie is also very good at foreshadowing for instance when Jake and Mrs. Mulwray are at the restaurant she says that she has had affairs but she would not call it cheating on her husband, that is indicating her father Noah Cross has raped her which is revealed later on in the movie. Noah Cross is a very disturbing villain the more I think about it because he is an old person who has raped his daughter and killed his son-in-law/former business partner and the actor who played him did a really good job. The movie is able to not feel messy even when a lot of things are going on and instead feels contained. The scene where he talks about his past in chinatown I felt like that could have been a movie by itself because in his past he talks about how he tries to protect this woman and later she dies, the same thing happens in the film where the woman who he is trying to protect dies and gets killed, he tries to do the right thing throughout the movie but in the end he is vulnerable and can't win and it was unavoidable and Jake is back to where he was before. The message of this movie is not a positive one but it is honest and it is great to sometimes see a movie that is not perfectly wrapped with a bow and everything is all good. Overall this movie is a must see and I will give this a definite 10 out of 10.

DonAlberto Renowned for its stylised performances, artful direction and riveting story telling technique, Roman Polanski's Chinatown captures a bygone era of crime drama. Jack Nicholson (in an Academy Award nominated performance) is Jack Gittes, a wisecracking private eye who makes "an honest living" off the murky moral climate of pre-war Los Angeles. Hired by a beautiful socialite (Faye Dunaway) to look into her husband's extramarital affair, Gittes unknowingly stumbles across a web of double-dealings and deceit. What at first appears to be an open-and-shut case unravels right under Gitte's nose to expose a maelstrom of political scandal, widespread corruption and dark family secrets that all come to light, one night in Chinatown.Winner of the Academy Award and BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay, this ground-breaking film also garnered 11 Academy Award nominations in all (including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Director). Chinatown is a landmark achievement in the classic film noir tradition, cementing its place as a cornerstone in every movie aficionado's collections.After reading through the blurb and writing down the information, I turn over the DVD case and can't help but thinking that this is one of the best films I've ever seen in a long, long time. Its place amongst the best Noir pictures is well deserved. One would argue that Noir cinema had its time in the 30s or 40s but was later tailed off by the arrival of more market-driven movies. Chinatown meets the criteria of any movie that wants to qualify as Noir: twist and turns, a touch of violence, a solid and rich plot that slowly diverges into several, an inquisitive, witty and cynic detective; someone who Raymond Chandler would be very proud of, characters well outlined whose loyalties slowly but surely are forcing them into witching alliances...and so many more. Yet, what has granted Chinatown a place of its own in cinema history is the changes it brought to the genre. Indeed, here what starts the plot off isn't gambling or a bereaved mistress but a water supply scandal and its cover-up in Los Angeles; there isn't either a femme fatale, although there's romance involved and the ending of the movie is one to remember. It's been rubber-stamped in my memory and It'll never go away. Not that I want it to.

gab-14712 Over the years, people have called Chinatown one of the best movies ever. I don't quite agree with that statement, but there is no denying that the movie is a masterpiece. I may not find it one of the best films all-time, but I do find it as one of the best films of 1974. This noir film hearkens back to the days where similar films were produced left and right. But starting from the 1960's, this genre slowly began to fade away. The film may come across as really taking its time to tell the story, but the thriller has lots of tension that builds up to its climatic ending. This film brought public awareness to some issues people may not have really known about. Water is a commodity for human survival and whoever controls the water, controls the money. This movie is a complex series of events surrounding the control of water and that people can die over this issue. Ah, the wonders of being a human being! The movie is a complicated follow, so don't lose yourself in any train of thought, or you might lose what will happen plot-wise. Boasting one of cinema's all-time greatest screenplays by Robert Towne and a powerful lead performance by Jack Nicholson, you are in for a fantastic time.As I mentioned briefly, the film's plot can be complex as the film will turn down a completely different path in a heartbeat. Jake Gittes (Jack Nicholson) is a private investigator who specializes in matrimonial affairs. One day, he gets a visit from a woman claiming to be Evelyn Mulwray. She tells Jake that her husband is cheating on her and she would like Jake to investigate her claims. He does his job by taking photographs of him and he catches him with another woman. That ensues a scandal and Gittes is confronted by the real Evelyn Mulwray (Faye Dunaway). When the husband shows up dead, Gittes is led deeper and deeper in a web of deceit, lies, and murder.This movie is given its voice by a variety of elements such as Robert Towne's fantastic screenplay or Roman Polanksi's visionary directing style. But let's not forget about the wonderful performances including the tour de force performance by screen legend, Jack Nicholson. Nicholson's performance is nothing short of excellent as he portrays Jake Gittes. I loved how the movie gave in-depth characterization to this character. Gittes may not be the nicest man in the world, but he's a man of honor and honesty. The movie is all about lies and that forms a rather bleak mental state for Gittes. All we wants to do is find the truth and move on, but that seems impossible to do with all the lies and murder. Nicholson was nominated for an Oscar for his performance, and some might say he should have won. Who can forget that scene at the river bed where he is slashed in the nose by this random creep. Faye Dunaway also delivers an amazing performance. On the outside her character makes you believe she is good, but she has some fishy motives about her. Gittes falls in love with her, but he can't take her sneaky lies. Then we have the performance of John Huston, the legendary director who plays Evelyn's father. His character, Noah Cross is the antagonist of the film one would say as he wants to use his wealth to control the water. That dinner scene between Noah and Jake is quite something. Noah and his mean, beady eyes are put to good use.This film was directed by Roman Polanski, before he was extradited to Europe and could only make films there. This movie has him returning back to the director's chair, only a few years after the brutal murder of his wife and unborn child. I loved his sense of direction and he really captured the noir feeling you would find in the films of the 1940's. His conflict with the screenwriter Robert Towne became somewhat famous. Towne had the film end with a happy ending, but Polanksi went against that. The ending is not a happy one as we get some unfortunate deaths from the wrong people, but it was an effective ending nonetheless. No matter what, Robert Towne written one of the best screenplays of all time and that will endure for many, many years into our future.Even though Chinatown is a fictional movie, it's based of the Los Angeles water grab of 1908. This is a city that formed in a desert and it should be impossible for water to exist, which makes the control of the water ever more so fundamental. Towne did a great job adding his own 1930's spin to the story. This movie is undeniably a great film. The pace crawls at times, but the content of the story kept me captivated. This is not an action thriller, but it's one of those slow-burn thrillers focused on telling a top-rate story. The film fires on all cylinders because of it's wonderful acting and solid direction. But we also have a great but sad, trumpet-infused score from Jerry Goldsmith and cinematography from John A. Alonzo that captures the L.A of old in a very effective way. Let's not forget about the award-winning screenplay from Robert Towne. Nominated for 11 Oscars, this film is worth a watch. This is a fantastic thriller that relies upon excellent storytelling.My Grade: A-