CHINATOWN (1974) is a MASTERPIECE - Movie Reaction - FIRST TIME WATCHING

Hello Everybody!
Had so much fun with this movie it was unbelievable!
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Starring:
Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston, Perry Lopez, John Hillerman, and Diane Ladd
Written by:
Robert Towne
Directed by:
Roman Polanski

[@RolyPolyOllieReactions]

Hey everyone! It's Chinatown time and man this movie is good! I finally understand why the script for this film is rated so highly through all the amazing but believable plot twists, as well as the whole atmosphere of the film. And the ending, brilliant. Also let me know if I should watch 'The Pianist'!!! Thanks for watching! Have a great day! :)

[@robertoleary5470]

Would love a reaction to the film “the wind that shakes the barley”. It follows a group of Irish repuulicians firing the Irish war of independence and the beginning of the civil war. The main actor is Cillian Murphy, who plays Thomas Shelby in Peaky Blinders.

[@jtt6650]

My favorite line is the one John Huston says. “Politicians, old buildings, and whores all become respectable if they last long enough.” 🤣

[@BigGator5]

Ollie: Would you like to react to a sci-fi show created by Gene Roddenberry (but made long after his death), stars Kevin Sorbo, has a discount Alan Tudyk, and is free to watch here on KZbin?

[@lukebarton5075]

Yes I’d say go for The Pianist. Another Polanski film worth watching is “Frantic”. It’s a mystery type thriller starring Harrison Ford that’s kinda Hitchcock inspired. Would love to see some more classic film noirs - Big Sleep, Maltese Falcon & Touch of Evil are all pretty cool. Keep on discovering the classics!

[@cwdkidman2266]

Roman Polanski went back to ... to ... wherever a name like Poland-ski is from. And he's a bad guy. But why? Because the state says so? Because he's.been accused by a young woman and her mother? Okay. That's valid. But where's the rest of the accusers that ALWAYS comes out in cases like these? Point 2. Maybe he got his start at the age of ten, when he lost nearly his.entire family in the Holocaust and had to roam the countryside, dodging German soldiers.YOU ever had to do that? Me neither. Point 3. Maybe after his childhood, he felt like he'd gotten a break.

[@maximillianosaben]

"Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown." One of the classic lines in cinema.

[@jacobjones5269]

As little as possible….

[@MrRondonmon]

The Old Man Noah (John Huston) was a director, his first ever Movie was the Maltese Falcon in 1941 with Bogart. He also directed "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre", "Key Largo" the "Asphalt Jungle" and the "African Queen" amongst others.

[@laniersmith1798]

And the amazing “Night Of The Iguana”! A must see film

[@RickTBL]

It's funny how Chinatown has two of the greatest directors of all time as actors.

[@43nostromo]

Tremendous score by legendary composer Jerry Goldsmith and easily one of his most iconic. He composed the score in 2 weeks after the last composer was fired. May I suggest "LA Confidential" as masterful companion piece, also scored by Goldsmith, which would earn him another Oscar nomination.

[@e.s.9080]

Director Roman Polanski killed it in his scene as the "midget" that cuts Jake's nose.

[@deckofcards87]

That's John Houston as Mr Cross, aka one of the most legendary directors in history and a good actor as well.

[@e.s.9080]

You chose a fantastic film. It still holds up to this day. Superb acting, enigmatic story , the score and the entire look and ambiance.

[@BigGator5]

"Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown." The Two Jakes (1990) is the sequel and actually finishes what this movie started. Fun Fact: Rance Howard, who plays the role of an angry farmer at the council meeting, is the father of famed actor and director Ron Howard and the grandfather of Bryce Dallas Howard. Bonus Fact: The screenplay is now regarded as being one of the most perfect screenplays ever written and is now a main teaching point in screenwriting seminars and classes everywhere.

[@AdamtheGrey02]

Yeah, I actually enjoyed The Two Jakes more than Chinatown.

[@garytiptin6479]

​@@AdamtheGrey02notice how many familiar faces show up in the second film, "The Two Jakes", beside Nicholson himself!

[@e.s.9080]

Be sure to check out the sequel "The Two Jakes", starring Jack Nicholson again, and he also directs. Not a bad follow-up, just was made a little too late and it didn't stay in theaters too long. On video and cable is where it obtained it's audience. Also, in the late 90's a film was made called "L.A. Confidential" which was in the same vein as "Chinatown", if not an almost copy of that same formula. Coincidentally, Composer Jerry Goldsmith score was nominated for "Chinatown ", didn't win I think, but he wins for the score for "L.A. Confidential", which...has an almost identical sound or tones and cues.

[@ericjanssen394]

The Two Jakes also requires having seen Chinatown, as Jake runs across old demons from this case turning up on a new case ten years later. It’s definitely a sequel, but it’s no Roman Polanski.

[@PhilipCartwright]

The importance of Chinatown in the film is that it stands for a situation where you think you know what's going on, but you really don't, and you think you're helping someone but you're really not, because you don't know the whole situation. Jake basically explains it to Evelyn when they're in bed together and he tells her about the time he tried to help someone and it all went wrong.

[@Divamarja_CA]

Reminds me of Rollo Tomassi in L.A. Confidential.

[@hashshashiinme7656]

@@Divamarja_CA why is that?

[@garytiptin6479]

​@@hashshashiinme7656"Rollo Tomassi" is the guy who gets away with it, only no one knows.

[@marcbloom7462]

Today is 4/22/22 and it's Jack Nicholson's 85th birthday.

[@jtt6650]

Whatever people say about Roman Polanski as a person, he is unquestionably a great director. And yes, The Pianist is definitely worth watching. IMO superior to Schindler’s List. Oh and btw, the “actor” you thought you recognized with the switchblade is Roman Polanski. Nvm you saw it in the credits. 🤓

[@anthonydandrea4376]

As iconic as "Forget it, Jake...it's Chinatown" is....I really get moved by Jack Nicholson's line just before it. He mumbles the dialogue, and I could never understand what he said. I played it over and over on my VHS machine and I finally figured it out...he says "As little as possible". The detective interrupts him. "As little as possible" is the final payoff for the bed scene with Jack and Faye. She asks what did you do in Chinatown? And his reply is "As little as possible" (and it related to the death of the woman he obviously cared about in Chinatown. Fate repeats itself! Great choice of film and I respect your commentaries. Many of the reactors your age are nowhere near as intelligent. Cheers! P.S. Please check out BODY HEAT...another overlooked femme fatale/noir flick!

[@brandonflorida1092]

The guy who cut Jack Nicholson's nose was the director Roman Polanski.

[@LolliPop2000]

"That guy in the back who looks like George Lazenby" is Bruce Glover, who was one of the gay hitmen (Wint and Kidd) in Diamonds are Forever, AND is the father of Crispin Glover.

[@FantasticBabblings]

A great piece of foreshadowing is just before Evelyn says “she’s my daughter” the first time, she leans her head forward and accidentally toots the horn, which foreshadows the horn blowing when she is shot.

[@hankbarcelona7314]

and one of her taillights getting broken foreshadows that she'll lose an eye

[@Mike-rk8px]

If you loved “Chinatown”, you’ll want to see the film Polanski is most famous for, the 1968 horror classic “Rosemary’s Baby”. It’s based on the book by Ira Levin of the same name, and Polanski brings it to life in a way that you’ll never forget. It’s not a horror film in the way you expect to see lots of gory murders, but it’s extremely disturbing on a human level. I really can’t tell you much about the movie without ruining the plot. The musical score was also decided by Polanski, and the music alone is terrifying. It also has one of the all-time great endings in film.

[@perrymalcolm3802]

It was a modern noir. Finest written movie script ever. Just brilliant!!

[@classiclife7204]

Mulwray (the John Huston character) was loosely based on a real figure named William Mulholland. If Robert Moses built modern New York City, Mulholland built Los Angeles, or, rather, set the conditions that allowed it to become the hellish megalopolis that it is today. His career was ended in 1928 when one of his projects, the St. Francis Dam, failed - 12 hours after last inspection - and almost 500 people died, 100 of them kids. The precedent "California Water Wars", in which he was a central figure, is lightly dramatized here. The famous Mulholland Drive is named after him. Oh, and don't worry about Nicholson's reputation - he will be honored and revered after he passes on. He's been in about 8 or 9 masterpieces, and he made them so. "Carnal Knowledge" comes to mind. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest". So many, really.

[@waynesimpson4081]

"We haven't been to Chinatown yet". The point of the film is that we've been in Chinatown the whole time.

[@richardzinns5314]

Film noir is of course famous for shots of faces lit by alternating lines of light and darkness because we are seeing them by the light filtering through Venetian blinds; hence the wonderful in-joke when, in this movie's very first line of dialogue, Jake tells Curly that he can't eat the Venetian blinds because they were just installed.

[@MrDavidcairns]

Excellent. "The thing about Chinatown," Polanski said, "is you never know what's going on there."

[@michaelhurley1497]

Roman Polanski plays the nose-slitting thug. He has a much bigger role in one of his other films, the horror spoof The Fearless Vampire Killers or Pardon Me, but Your Teeth are in My Neck (aka Dance of the Vampires).

[@christiandivine3807]

The guy in the background at Jack's office, his partner, is one of the Bond villains from DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER and Crispin Glover's father!

[@anrun]

And the actor who disrupts the hearing with the sheep is Ron Howard's father.

[@larindanomikos]

My fave horror by Polanski is The Tenant. Also Repulsion is a must.

[@RickTBL]

I once invited 3 unsuspecting friends over to watch The Tenant. That was a fun night. Would love to see a reaction for The Tenant.

[@cwdkidman2266]

Point 3. Maybe he figured he'd gotten lucky. Until he was told by the LAPD that his new wife had been murdered, her child, HIS child cut out of her. Then he had to ID the body. Maybe that's when he went bad.

[@northshore1000]

YES!!! I was so happy to hear you mention Jerry Goldsmith. Will always be my favorite…

[@garytiptin6479]

Finally realized: that's "Higgins" from "Magnum, P. I."!!!

[@sitebstudios]

What a masterpiece! I love your reactions and how much you appreciate the craft of filmmaking. Keep it up!

[@nicholasborkowski3589]

Jack Nicholson is in every scene of this movie.

[@cwdkidman2266]

Polanski and Towne reworked the script. And Polanski decided the pace and the camera shots and framing. He also told the actors what to do. And how to do it.

[@alienlv426ify]

A movie that has it all, story, direction, acting, photography and music. That's why is a masterpiece.

[@larindanomikos]

Man, definitely one of my faves here. Polanski is definitely in my top 20 favorite directors. You probably know this but he's the guy who slices Jake's nose.

[@mobiuspaw494]

Love this movie, the soundtrack gives me chills. Great reaction. 👍

[@russellward4624]

I figure out the plot twists most of the time but this one had me reeling from start to finish. So well written and the cinematography is sublime.

[@PedroCastillo_1980]

Amazing film Chinatown directed by Roman Polanski starring Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway and John Huston. In the ending scene the line "Forget it Jake, It's Chinatown" was ranked in the American Film Institute (AFI) 100 Years..100 Movie Quotes. By the way the man with a knife is Roman Polanski in a cameo role. Thank you bro for reacting this masterpiece👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@michaelbuhl4250]

This movie is loosely based on actual events. The city of Los Angeles did steal water from the Owens River Valley to keep L.A. growing. Hollis Mulray is loosely based on William Mulholland and Noah Cross is loosely based on Fred Eaton. Look up the history of the L.A. aqueduct.

[@jacobjones5269]

As little as possible.. My heart broke the first time I heard that line..

[@Shilohpreston]

I recommend You "The Tennant" by Roman Polański. John Huston was mainly a film director. His most famous movies are "Maltanian Eagle", "Key Largo", "The Tresure of Sierra Madre" (all with Humphrey Bogart, with this actor I also recommend You "Casablanca" by Michael Curtiz), "The Night of the Iguana" and "Prizzi's Honor" starring Jack Nicholson, Kathleen Turner, Anjelica Huston and Robert Loggia.

[@dudermcdudeface3674]

This was a nostalgic film when it came out. Noirs were a generation earlier, so not just set in the literal past, but in the past of Hollywood.

[@norcalboy2572]

I enjoyed your reaction and analysis, Ollie. Especially your focus on the composition of shots.

[@robertshows5100]

Greatest original screenplay ever Robert Towne wanted Cross to be killed but Polanski changed the ending. See Faye in Bonnie And Clyde, her first

[@liteflightify]

Sunset Boulevard, Chinatown and Mulholland Dr are my favorite trio of film noirs (unless you count Vertigo as well). Can’t wait til you get to Mulholland Dr.

[@garytiptin6479]

One point I should point out, though: "Vertigo" was in SAN FRANCISCO; all the others were in Los Angeles!!!

[@jpage78]

Robert Evans deserves a ton of credit for this movie. Recognizing the film needed a European perspective as director for an intrinsically American story gave it that perfect edge of cynicism. Brilliant movie from producer on down.

[@davewolf6256]

“The guy behind looks like George Lazenby.” Well actually, he was the actor who played Mr. Kidd, the assassin from Diamonds are Forever with an not-so-ambiguous sexual preference. I’d say more but YT censors certain words that describe individual sexual preference.

[@DougRayPhillips]

Glad you're exploring the old stuff. According to the people who think they're in charge of the universe, a Noir can't be in color and it can't have been made after 1958. You're supposed to say Neo-Noir instead. (Not that I care.) BTW, "The Two Jakes" (1990) is a sequel to this film.

[@larindanomikos]

Nicholson directed Two Jakes. For me it was just okay.

[@RickTBL]

Wow, it's really a shame that these individuals are coming into your home and telling you what to do. I tend to think the first round of Noir ended with Touch of Evil, and then started up again after color, so I tend to call it Color Noir. The term Neo-Noir is useful because it tells you what type of film it is, and that it's more recent, but if using it causes swelling, headaches, of vomiting, then you don't have to use it. You don't have to do anything. You are as free as free be. It's really a shame that you are so very belabored with "can't"s and "You're supposed to"s, and people telling you what to do. I've studied film for years and no one has ever told me what to think. I think you should just ignore them and call it whatever you want.

[@Albinsable]

What an excellent reaction! I The more you see this movie....the better it gets. I came back to this movie many times just because of the "feel" of this film (that you mention in your review). . "Forget it Jake. It's Chinatown."....to me it means that at that time especially (1930's, 1940's), if a murder/crime was committed in "Chinatown", the cops would turn up, take down what information they could get, but not bother to investigate because the people there lived by a different code of ethics and it was hard to get co-operation to investigate (plus a lot of "shady cops" involved). To this day I still play the fantastic soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith. "The Pianist" is an excellent choice...Academy Award for best picture.....what you see recreated, Roman Polanski experienced as a child.....very horrific and "moving" film.

[@joshsmithactor451]

Such an amazing movie! Jack Nicholsons birthday today too btw!

[@arthurfelig5629]

I thought you would have recognised one of Jake's partners as being one of the two assassins in 'Diamonds are Forever'. 🦂

[@RickTBL]

Polanski plays Knife Guy.

[@tracyfrazier7440]

I think you need to watch Faye Dunaway in Bonnie and Clyde.

[@cwdkidman2266]

Roman went back to... his last name is Polanski, so where would he go?

[@tracyfrazier7440]

Yes, please watch The Pianist. An excellent film. Polanski is a Holocaust survivor.

[@m06een00]

I see you haven't got round to this one yet. But if you like Jack Nicholson films, the best one he ever made was just after Chinatown - One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest in 1975. In my top 20 of all time greats - as is Chinatown.

[@celinhabr1]

It is truly a great movie. A neo Noir, brilliant.

[@randyrocket4546]

yea glad 2 c u added this is one of my favorites ive seen it several times i like murder mystery movies and i like that most americans take land and water for granted but it shows you they equal money and power

[@henrynegro8397]

its weird seeing jack Nicholson playing a more reserved character. Almost like James Bond or Jason Bourne.

[@randysmith7045]

i love this movie. i useto have the poster

[@blindlemonpledge2556]

Because U watched Strangers on a Train, U should watch Throw Mama from the train. Criss-cross...

[@pasteye1671]

Now you're ready for LA Confidential.

[@larindanomikos]

Jake doesn't say the last line.

[@TangentOmega]

Might want to Google Polanski. Have you done LA Confidential? It has a similar vibe.

[@thexman5462]

At this point its pretty much common knowledge.

[@TangentOmega]

@@thexman5462 what is?

[@joshuayeager3686]

Epic film that’s practically perfect but the ending is probably more evil than the majority of most horror films ever created.

[@BigGator5]

Ollie: Would you like to react to a sci-fi show created by Gene Roddenberry (but made long after his death), stars Kevin Sorbo, has a discount Alan Tudyk, and is free to watch here on KZbin?

[@RolyPolyOllieReactions]

At the moment I don't have time for shows unfortunately and once I do there are a few that I want to watch as well. So the answer is probably I wouldn't be able to react to it but I would still love to hear what it's called cause maybe I'll watch it in my own time! :)

[@BigGator5]

Andromeda (2000)! It's free to watch here on KZbin. If you watch it, let me know what you think.

[@cwdkidman2266]

Man, you are REALLY going out of your way not to praise Polanski. What was the sound design and cinematography like in the script? How well was the script edited? How were the performances of the characters in,the script? How were the camera shots framed and composed in the script?

[@jacobjones5269]

The cigarette case is subtle foreshadowing.. And Jake picks up on it during that scene.. She already has a cigarette lit and still lights another one.. Meaning, Jake asking about her father unsettled to her.. And he asks her if talking about her father upsets her.. Less talking, more watching..