A Review by Nicole Goldstein
Chinatown (1974) Review
Year Released: 1974
Director: Roman Polanski
Before I watched it:
I have read about this movie. I have heard about this movie. I have seen Top 10 Lists saying how this movie is a quintessential part of American Cinema. So, I had to put it on my list out of curiosity. The final line of the film “Forget Jake, it’s Chinatown” from what I have heard and read, capture the essence of not only the story, but of the environment of the audience’s emotions as the credits started to roll.
After I watched it:
Well, I was not disappointed, even though some of my Top Ten videos spoiled the crucial plot details. In fact, even when crucial moments were revealed, I was shocked. I was looking at the film from when it was released in 1974 and seeing it from the perspective of a movie-goer from that time. This material was shocking and riveting, flooding the hearts and minds of moviegoers with the life of crime, complications and critical circumstances.
The plot is simple… at first. It traces the life of private eye Jake Gittes (masterfully portrayed by a young Jack Nickelson) looks into the lives of Los Angeles simpletons trying to catch their loved ones in incriminating acts. Everything is running normally until an imposter posing as another man’s wife turns his world upside down. Twist and turns in the plot ends up in cold-blooded murder, with which the real Mrs. Mulwray (played by the ravishing Faye Dunaway) tracks Jake down and attempts to assist him in catching her husband’s killer. Without giving too much away, secrets are spilt and so does copious amounts of blood to close such a case.
The acting in the film is somewhat dated for it’s time but appropriate for the genre. This cold drama thriller is chilling and all of the cast, both lead and supporting, leave audiences on the edge of their seat and solving the crime alongside with Jake. The cinematography is shadowed, gripping and mysterious, just like the murder mystery itself. The lack of music again with this film was appropriate for the story to be told and heard, which was important because every detail is important to catch. The sounds, visual, and mise-en-scene aspects were both appropriately used and genuinely executed.
This film breaks the barriers between the public and the private eye of such a city like Los Angeles. This story also dissects city secrets and how businesses can become corrupt for the mere idea of unlimited riches as a reward. Corruption in this sense takes many forms including exposed secrets and murder. This sense of corruption and dark cityscape in the 1970s is perfectly captured in the last line of dialogue spoken.
“Forget it Jake, it’s Chinatown.”
The most iconic line the film has to offer is softly spoken and filled with sorrow and cruel normality. The line is “Forget it Jake, it’s Chinatown.” Jake and his companions walk away in shock and shame of not being able to save another life tossed aside by the bullet of a gun. Jake’s expression in itself captures the agony and the sheer frustration of how close one can get before witnessing all of it slip away. But as the line suggests, it’s a normal occurrence in such an environment, which is why there is nothing they can do but walk away and continue on the road of their everyday lives. This can also reflect in today’s society and how violence is sometimes overshadowed and not taken as seriously because of the everyday occurrence of it. However, from the recent acts taken against gun violence, these perspectives of these events have changed.
To me, this film highlights a darker world of crime, punishment, secrets which shroud a society and how they can ultimately lead to one’s downfall. This film is a product of its time for all times.
Rating: 8.5/10
What did you think? Agree? Disagree?
If you love it then show it! ❤
A Review by Nicole Goldstein
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COPYRIGHT ©1974 LONG ROAD PRODUCTIONS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED/COPYRIGHT ©1974 LONG ROAD PRODUCTIONS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED (on print); Long Road Productions; 20 June 1974; LP43628 (in copyright registry)
