Movie #51: Chinatown

Movie #: 51
Movie Title: Chinatown
Year Released: 1974

Director: Roman Polanski
Notable Cast: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Hillerman, Perry Lopez, Burt Young, John Huston

Short Description: A private detective hired to expose an adulterer finds himself caught up in a web of deceit, corruption and murder. (IMDB.com)


Rank on the Top 100 Lists (as of 1/7/2013)

AFI.com: #21
IMDB.com: #79
Ranker.com: #92
Lifed.com: N/A
Empire.com: #13
FilmCrave.com: N/A
FlickChart.com: #50



Date Watched: 9/9/2016

Grade: 2.5 out of 5 (Satisfactory)

Rationale: At this point I think it's safe to say that detective/P.I. movies aren't my thing. I never got a sense of suspense or mystery while watching Chinatown like one would expect from a movie with a short description containing the phrase "a web of deceit, corruption and murder". I will say, though, that Jack Nicholson is the perfect man for the role of private investigator J. J. "Jake" Gittes as Nicholson effortlessly portrays an aura of sleaze-ball that's becoming and fitting for a P.I.