If you like crime and mystery movies, Chinatown (1974) is one of the movies you must watch. This movie is not just a classic film noir, it is a masterpiece that takes you on a journey through conspiracies and deception in an unnatural way.
The story revolves around Jake Gates, a private investigator played by Jack Nicholson, who starts the case when a woman asks him to monitor her husband to make sure he is not cheating on her. But like any respectable crime story, the issue turns out to be much bigger than just marital infidelity, and reaches political corruption and water tampering in Los Angeles, and the city itself feels like a main character in the movie.
The thing that attracted me most in this movie is the writing and dialogues, every scene is calculated with skill, as if every word has a deeper meaning that you will understand as the events progress. Other than that, the general atmosphere of the movie, with the dim lighting and cinematography that gives you a sense of mystery, makes you live the atmosphere of the thirties in all its details.
And of course, the acting was top notch. Jack Nicholson played the role of Jake Gates with his sarcastic and intelligent style, and you feel that he is a hero living in a world full of corruption, but at the same time he is not a perfect hero, he has his flaws and mistakes. Faye Dunaway in her role was a mystery in herself, and every time you think that you have understood her character, you discover something new that turns the tables.
As for the ending, it is truly one of the strongest endings you can see in the cinema. I will not spoil it, but I will tell you that it is the kind that leaves you shocked and unable to believe what happened.
Chinatown is not just a crime movie, it is a movie about corruption, about power, and about how unjust the world can be, and all of this is said in the simplest sentence at the end: "Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown."
My rating review ... (9 / 10)
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