Couple of interesting points

Rating: 10/10 (13 May 2006)

I once took a class in screen writing in Hollywood and there was general agreement that this was the best screenplay ever written. A couple of trivia points that may be of some interest. There was a great scene with the wonderful actor Royal Dano that for reasons never made clear Polanski edited out at the last minute. It happened just before Gittes goes in search of the Orange groves in the valley. That was a mistake by Polanski. There was a scene in the script in which Gittes is in an airplane flying to meet Noah Cross for the first time where the pilot actually tells Gittes that there was a rumor that Cross had an incestuous relationship with his daughter. BIG mistake by R. Towne to foreshadow like that and the right decision by Polanski to cut it out. Also, Polanski and Faye Dunaway absolutely despised each other on the set culminating in the now famous confrontation with Polanski actually dropping his pants and pissing on her script notes in front of her. Just a great movie all around!