Chinatown (1974)

 

Chinatown (1974) 

I'm not sure there's much I can say about this. It totally lived up to expectations (and they were high, after all I'd heard). This is a rare movie that I think I could call just about flawlessly made, including the acting. Every character, down to the most minor, was well defined and well acted. Also, if any movie truly convinced me of Jack Nicholson's talents, it was this (not that he's been bad in what I'd seen him in previously -- far from it). The witty dialogue, acclaimed for a reason, works incredibly well coming out of his mouth, which makes sense because he supposedly improvised and fine-tuned quite a lot of it. The score was also very weird and unique, and I'd say it's deserving of being as famous as it is. This is the first Roman Polanski movie I've seen, and I will not only look forward to rewatching it to pick up on more details, but also to checking out his other stuff. One last thing is that it was interesting to watch just shortly after L.A. Confidential (another neo-noir set in L.A., albeit in the '50s).

****/****