Chinatown (1974) First Time Watching! Full Movie Reaction!!
Added 2023-06-17 23:00:04 +0000 UTC
Comments
The Two Jakes has the happy ending. I always consider that the proper ending, and it was also written by Towne.
Erwin Quiachon
2023-06-21 18:41:08 +0000 UTCOne more thing, Robert Towne had written a happier ending in which Jake, Evelyn and Catherine get away in the car and they are driving across Mulholland Dr. and the San Fernando Valley is in the background, and it morphs from a desert landscape to a modern (1974), prosperous valley. Polanski insisted on the darker ending.
Robert Boyd
2023-06-21 17:21:43 +0000 UTCReally enjoyed this reaction, guys. This was my third time seeing CHINATOWN, but the first time in a long time, so it was great getting a fresh look at it along with you. I saw it mentioned briefly above, and I want to second the recommendation for DEATH AND THE MAIDEN as another Polanski movie to try… …if you dare. Heh.
Jason Chirevas
2023-06-20 22:55:08 +0000 UTCA recent gumshoe movie that doesn't get talked about enough is Motherless Brooklyn with Ed Norton and Bruce Willis.
Odd Thomas
2023-06-19 22:57:49 +0000 UTCThe Pianist has a somewhat happy ending in that our protagonist survives. That’s about it.
Catherine LW
2023-06-19 22:17:20 +0000 UTCSecond
Florian Meier
2023-06-19 10:23:24 +0000 UTCI just realized that "Kramer vs. Kramer" (1979) would have been an outstanding Fathers Day reaction. I'm rewatching and crying over that one right now! Maybe next year. Happy Father's Day, Daniel!
Erwin Quiachon
2023-06-19 00:57:01 +0000 UTCI don't see why we don't go ahead and recommend his early campy vampire movie The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967) starring the director's soon to be bride, Sharon Tate.
Mike LL
2023-06-18 17:59:02 +0000 UTCVery good. Thank you for that perspective from a first time viewer.
Mike LL
2023-06-18 17:49:25 +0000 UTCI remember reading that Jack Nicholson originally wanted Chinatown to be a trilogy and that The Two Jakes was supposed to be made much sooner than it was. The production of Two Jakes kept getting pushed back because of the rape case against Polanski, then because of frequent disagreements between Nicholson, the writer Robert Towne and the producer Robert Evans. The last film was supposed to be about Jake Gittes at the end of his life, but has been abandoned because of the decline in Nicholson's own health.
Erwin Quiachon
2023-06-18 16:09:16 +0000 UTCAnd although it’s not a typically presented story, that turn does add its own peculiar impact. The world continues, amid all the ugly and somewhat disconnected details. And the most powerful and least noble elements win a vast majority of the time. Since the west coast developed later than much of the country, the tangled and often diabolical history of L.A. (in particular) has been largely overlooked. Much of that is due to the relative newness, and too much direct surviving ancestry. But eventually some justice will be done to the history. There were indeed dirty and vicious conflicts concerning the control and distribution of water for a rapidly growing, semi-arid region. And there’s more than a little truth to the kind of events portrayed in ‘L.A. Confidential’.
David Wilkins
2023-06-18 14:07:24 +0000 UTCEven though "Chinatown" is a better and more critically acclaimed movie, I like the sequel "The Two Jakes" better. I hope we get to see that reaction.
Moe howard
2023-06-18 13:04:08 +0000 UTCI agree with Daniel’s outro point completely; the main plot becomes inconsequential by the end because Noah Cross gets away with everything: the rape of the land and the rape of the daughter.
Robert Boyd
2023-06-18 06:16:04 +0000 UTCThis is one of my Favorite 70's Movies and Detective Movies!!! Great Reaction !!! Another Great 70's Film is "Escape from Alcatraz" from 1979 and "Play Misty For Me" from 1971, Both Clint Eastwood !!! For More Jack Nicholson you need to watch "As Good As IT Gets" from 1997 (Oscar Win), "The Witches of Eastwick" from 1987 and "Batman" from 1989!!! And i think you forgot to put One Flew over the Coocoocsnest to put on Your Jack Nicholson Playlist on Youtube
Florian Meier
2023-06-18 05:58:20 +0000 UTCOh - and forgot to mention , yes that was Polanski who cuts Jake's nose. "Where'd you get the midget Claude" :)
Samolina Pilchard
2023-06-18 05:28:40 +0000 UTCOne of the all time greats. Pleased you finally reacted to it. I think the connection between the water intrique and the horrifying ending is what Noah Cross tells Jake: "You see, Mr. Gittes, most people never have to face the fact that at the right time and the right place, they're capable of ANYTHING." Of course he's speaking of himself, and projecting that other people must be the same way. He's speaking of the same sort of evil that allows him to do what he did to his daughter, and get away with it, and it is the same confident evil that lets him get away with the water/land plot. I think the story is also meant to provide a seedy underside back story to how modern Los Angeles was founded. Anyway, recommendations for Polanski. Are the all dark and unconformable? well a lot of them are, yes, but a lot of them are very good. - The Pianist. It's about the Holocaust, so yeah you're going to be uncomfortable. Very Excellent film though. - Macbeth. An adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy, made not long after Polanski's wife's murder by Charles Manson, which definitely influences the film in my opinion. - Frantic. More of a straight up thriller - probably as light as your going to get with Polanski, which is still not very light, - The Ninth Gate - Another supernatural thriller, but not nearly as dark as Rosemary's Baby. Not his best, but still enjoyable. - The Ghost Writer - A political suspense film, very good, - Death and The Maiden - Ok, you want to avoid squickiness and uncomfortableness? Avoid this film. It makes Rosemary's Baby look like Mr. Roger's Neighborhood (it's not supernatural horror though, but a drama film). Still a very good film. And I'm gonna plug Network again - Not a Polanski film, but it stars Faye Dunaway in a role that won her a Best Actress .
Samolina Pilchard
2023-06-18 05:26:08 +0000 UTCFrantic has one of the happier endings, or happy as you are going to get for a Polanski film.
Samolina Pilchard
2023-06-18 04:53:39 +0000 UTCI second The Patriot.
Alex
2023-06-18 04:29:55 +0000 UTCThe reason the movie is called Chinatown is in Jake's very brief summary to Evelyn of what prompted him to quit the police force and stop working in an environment where everyone was out of their depth and, per the corrupt superiors, supposed to be looking the other way: "I was trying to keep someone from being hurt. I ended up making sure she was hurt." You were correct on the first guess: they go to Chinatown because that is where the butler lives, and they go because Jake has already called Escobar to come get them. Since the address they're at (I believe a house that either Hollis Mulwray or Evelyn owns) is already "burned," they have to go somewhere the police won't find them. At the beginning, when Jake is trying to discourage "Mrs. Mulwray," he's not making a personal recommendation. He's talking about all the people who come in *thinking* they want to know if their partner is cheating, but ultimately find that learning the truth is more devastating than they could have guessed. The farmer who pops into the City Hall with the sheep is played by Rance Howard, Ron Howard's father. Rance appears in several of Ron's movies (plus the resemblance is obvious if you're looking for it). Another familiar face is James Hong of Big Trouble in Little China, Blade Runner, and Everything Everywhere All At Once, playing the real Mrs. Mulwray's butler. You watch most of the movies via digital streaming services, but if you ever decide to own Chinatown on physical media, the Blu-ray and 2-disc DVD have a great audio commentary, by writer Robert Towne, moderated by none other than director David Fincher. As with several others, I will also echo the recommendation of the 1990 sequel, The Two Jakes.
Tyler Foster
2023-06-18 04:14:08 +0000 UTCI have a fun story here. I got to meet the writer, Robert Towne, at the AFI film festival in Dallas, where he and Richard Schickel were hosting a screening of this film. They both left about 10 minutes into the screening. They were seated next to me in the theatre, and I heard one of them whisper "Uh oh, this print is shit." I left shortly after they did and caught up with them at the bar. I had always wondered why he would name his daughter Katherine (born 4 years later, who is now an actress in her own right). After a couple rounds, I asked if there was a story behind that, or if he just really loved the name. He laughed pretty hard, and said, "As it happens she does have the same name, but God no! There is no other deeper connection for me to the character in that story." He then had a visible chill, and nearly fell off the stool. He also shared that he had nothing, and would have nothing to do with The Two Jakes, and to this day has not seen it.
Shawn Goforth
2023-06-18 03:20:50 +0000 UTCI was just going to post this. I couldn’t agree more!
Korny
2023-06-18 02:56:50 +0000 UTCApart from those already suggested (The Pianist, Macbeth etc), you could give these other Roman Polanski films a shot too: Repulsion, The Tenant and Frantic. They are all dark films but they are all powerful in their own way.
Michael SCH
2023-06-18 02:53:47 +0000 UTCThis was my first time watching which I wouldn't have done if you hadn't reacted to it. It was a good movie and way better than 'Rosemary's Baby'. This one didn't bore me and make me feel icky the whole time unlike 'Rosemary's Baby'. As far as I can tell, Chinatown, the neighborhood, is supposed represent how futile it is to fight for justice against the forces of corruption caused by forces more powerful than well meaning individuals or even the legitimate institutions we've created.
Jeffrey Miller
2023-06-18 02:53:14 +0000 UTCAlso "Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown." is #74 on the American Film Institute's 100 greatest movie quotes. Also take a look at the AFI 100 greatest movies of all times if you want great movies to react to. Some movies on the list you guys have already done.
daron85
2023-06-18 02:51:04 +0000 UTCYou have got to watch the movie Network! An amazing film as well as screenplay. Also Faye Dunaway won an Oscar for her amazing performance in that.
daron85
2023-06-18 02:47:08 +0000 UTCI also know his distinctive voice as kindly old Gandalf from the animated version of the Hobbit. It's always jarring when I hear it.
Marcus Cato
2023-06-18 02:40:21 +0000 UTCThanks for another great reaction. If you keep notes on recommendations there are two more Polanski films that I put in the must-see category. One is “The Pianist” (2002) , which is informed by Polanski’s own experience in surviving the Holocaust when he was 12. It’s a very powerful movie. The other one is “The Ghost Writer” (2010), which I consider to be one of the all-time great political/thrillers. Without even considering genre, I think it’s one of the best movies of the past 20 or more years.
David Wilkins
2023-06-18 02:17:10 +0000 UTCLike most noir films, Chinatown has a very unsettling ending. That was a great wrap up you did in the outro. It sort of brings your little journey through film noir in a complete circle, with director John Houston, who directed what is known as the "first" noir film, The Maltese Falcon, performing as Noah Cross in this film. She was his daughter AND his granddaughter. Ugh. Nominated for 11 Academy Awards, the only Oscar went to Robert Towne for his fantastic screenplay. The film was unlucky enough to be up against The Godfather Part II.
Mike LL
2023-06-18 01:40:38 +0000 UTCNot sure if you're taking any movie recommendations, a couple I'd like to put out there (which are also personal favorites that would make for great reactions): 1)Armageddon, which is coming up on its 25th anniversary on July 1, and was also the #1 film at the worldwide box office for 1998, and 2) The Patriot from 2000, probably my favorite Mel Gibson film, and the perfect movie for the 4th of July holiday!
David Crabtree
2023-06-18 01:16:29 +0000 UTCOne of my all-time favorite noir movies...about water! "She's my sister! She's my daughter! She's my sister and my daughter!"
Steve Mercier
2023-06-18 01:08:03 +0000 UTCI compare Chinatown to LA Confidential if you end the story when Dudley kills Vincennes. "The Two Jakes" finishes Chinatown with an ending that is comparable to the rest of LA Confidential.
Erwin Quiachon
2023-06-18 00:18:33 +0000 UTCIn all fairness, both Rosemary's Baby and Chinatown have sequels that are actually very hopeful I recommend the sequel to Chinatown, "The Two Jakes", because it is also very well done, but directed by Jack Nicholson. The Two Jakes is an excellent companion because it does complete the story and leaves the audience with a feeling that is very similar to "LA Confidential". It's true that Polanski is not associated with moral integrity or hope. Polanski is also acclaimed for making a very depressing version of MacBeth (1971), a tragic play that Polanski skillfully made more disturbing and depressing than anyone had seen in any version before.
Erwin Quiachon
2023-06-18 00:11:16 +0000 UTCFYI, John Huston, who portrays Evelyn's father, directed "The Maltese Falcon" that you already watched.
Garmonbozia93
2023-06-18 00:06:53 +0000 UTCNow that I think on it, I don't think I've seen a Polanski movie with a happy ending. I think this one owes a lot to another movie on the same poll, Touch of Evil by Orson Welles. An all-time favorite. Edit: that was rough. You're definitely due for something light and happy at this point.
Marcus Cato
2023-06-17 23:45:47 +0000 UTCCan't wait to see the reaction for this one. That yowzer of a reveal and the crushing ending...
Smooticus
2023-06-17 23:21:42 +0000 UTCForget it, Sam. It's Chinatown.
Ellie Miller
2023-06-17 23:17:42 +0000 UTCI saw this in an art house theater back in the early 90s. I was absolutely stunned at the ending. In fact, after all these years later, I still think it's one of the most emotionally shattering endings of any movie I have seen. The hero is crushed and the evil rich bad guy wins.
Athos Count de la Fère
2023-06-17 23:14:32 +0000 UTCPlease watch "The Two Jakes"(1990).
Erwin Quiachon
2023-06-17 23:02:35 +0000 UTC
