Exceptional neo-noir masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (1 February 2013)

Chinatown can be interpreted in a number of ways. On the surface it's a compelling detective film, while it's also about the corrupt power of big business. It's also a damning indictment on the very origins of Los Angeles itself, where the city became a powerful entity on the back of the theft of water from the poor. Anyone with money is shown to be simply above the law. The central character, private investigator Jake Gittes, is ultimately shown to be utterly impotent when up against the water baron Noah Cross. The latter is at liberty to do exactly as he pleases, from large scale financial corruption to the ultimate personal transgression of incest. The story is a very pessimistic one indeed with Chinatown itself mainly referenced pointedly as a place where different rules apply, a place where anything goes and the law can do as they please. Gittes himself hints at an episode in his past where he tried to help a girl in Chinatown and it ended badly, the main narrative pans out tragically and history repeats itself. It's only at the end of the film where the action relocates to Chinatown itself and it is one of the most unforgettable, uncompromising and nihilistic in cinema history. Director Roman Polanski insisted on this bleak ending against the wishes of his screenwriter Robert Towne. Only a few years earlier Polanski's wife Sharon Tate had been murdered as the result of a house invasion by the Manson Family. Polanski, therefore, had an added level of cynicism about life in general because of this; he said 'That's life. Beautiful blondes die in Los Angeles. Sharon had.'
This is a classic film with very good reason. Everything is right about it - the direction, the writing, the story and the acting. The latter is covered by a trio of unforgettable performances from Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway and John Huston; and a highly memorable cameo from Polanski himself as a knife-wielding enforcer, made all the more sinister because of his diminutive size. Nicholson and Dunaway's characters are multi-dimensional with many inner demons, while Huston is an all too believable monster, whose true horror is just below the surface. The detailed recreation of 30's L.A. is also extremely well-done; it also has ensured that there is a certain timeless quality to Chinatown. But apart from anything else this is simply a great movie whose mystery is consistently enthralling throughout. One of the all time greats.