A masterpiece that has never been upstaged

Rating: Null/10 (18 July 2019)

Roman Polanski's Chinatown is one of the most amazing screenplays ever penned, one of the most gorgeously photographed film ever made and one of the best examples of a finely paced puzzle movie that doesn't fully unfold until the very last frame. Jack Nicholson plays JJ Gittes a private investigator in Los Angeles who gets embroiled in a case that includes big figures and the entire cities drainage system! The pacing is excellent- so good that despite being a long movie it never feels such. Nicholson and Dunaway are excellent and have such good chemistry they wouldn't look out of place in a classic film. Playing the villain Noah Cross is the great director John Huston, and he is menacing, scary and the stuff of nightmares. The film looks great with every scene bathed in gorgeous sun-drenched light that gives this noir an edge. The script is practically a bible for film students. Roman Polanski's Chinatown is worthy of all the praise it has received.