Chinatown
Directed by Roman PolanskiPrivate eye Jake Gittes lives off of the murky moral climate of sunbaked, pre-World War II Southern California. Hired by a beautiful socialite to investigate her husband's extra-marital affair, Gittes is swept into a maelstrom of double dealings and deadly deceits, uncovering a web of personal and political scandals that come crashing together.
Where to Watch Chinatown
Chinatown Ratings & Reviews
- makdelartMarch 19, 2026The film lacks flashy spectacle, but it features a rather complex plot, a convoluted mystery, a distinctive detective character, crimes, corruption and a femme fatale – all typical hallmarks of film noir. On top of that, there’s an unexpected twist and a dramatic conclusion. Jerry Goldsmith’s beautiful score also adds to the atmosphere. A masterful film by Polanski, further enhanced by his own memorable cameo appearance.
- j.pete6November 2, 2024THE GOAT, BEST MOVIE OF ALL TIME. ION WANNA HEAR YOUR OPINION BROTHER
- Caleb BrianDecember 15, 2025It's as good as they say it is
- ርልዪረSeptember 14, 2025Chinatown. Every major city has a geographically distinct, alien, bustling, simmering and chaotic Chinatown where those who belong - the assimilated, the ones from the proverbial all-American, culturally sanitized suburbs go to spend tourist time on Sundays or date nights to sample the exotic food, the culture and the chaos, bringing home whatever local color they didn't absorb on their sojourn into take-out containers. Whatever nefarious behaviors go on there happen because it's "only Chinatown." Murder, mayhem, drug-deals, opium dens, graft and gambling...the bleak underbelly stuff of a non-assimilated culture left to their own justice by the mainstream...the police put these in the unsolved file. Jake Gittes - played by Jack Nicholson - is a born hero, who wants to wear a white hat but a corrupt police dept. won't let him so he becomes a PI in order to have some integrity, even if he becomes a snoop for jealous spouses. Fueling the infamous Los Angeles water wars, the impresario of graft - Noah Cross, a composite of real-life entrepreneur Mulholland and others guilty of robbing the city blind to feather their own bankbooks - also thinks he can bypass the fundamental laws of nature to groom his own daughter and grand daughter for self-gratifying incestuous relationships. Faye Dunaway plays the hapless heroine Evelyn who married Cross' kind business party Hollis Mulwray to escape her father's clutches and when her husband, the Water Commissioner is killed because of ethical conflicts with Cross over diversion of water from the desert to Cross' lands to enhance his wealth, it sets off a hunt by police as to who did it. Enter Jake Gittes, conned by a fake Evelyn Mulwray planted by Cross into investigating where all the water is going. The plot all climaxes in a torrent of bullets and screams and blood in Chinatown, where crime gets buried as the price of living in the undesirable leftover parts of LA. The police execute manslaughter for Cross who owns them and Dunaway's heroine, trying to escape with her daughter born of her own father, takes the hit. A brilliant, haunting film-noir score by Jerry Goldsmith and poignant artwork on the movie poster capture the pathos of a script written by Robert Towne, a 70s wunderkind (who along with producer Bob Evans was so instrumental in Paramount's renaissance, thanks to the Godfather 1 and 2). This Los Angeles is a burgeoning, flourishing America, a dream of what some people could have that once was but always is as we live in it today...where the good guys give up while the bad guys destroy beauty and innocence to satisfy their own greed and narcissism. The bones of contention today aren't the orange and lemon groves and vineyards and lettuce, strawberry, almond and avocado fields that yield billions in profit, but instead the computers and high tech and environmental and transportation boondoggles. That cuts across the board to all cultures, not just the Anglos. Maybe that's why Chinatown is timeless -because greed is.
- mickerdooAugust 7, 2025Keeps you guessing til the last second. Shocking. Nicholson delivers on all accounts and some. Probably one of the best movies ever made.
- Rowan KrzysiakFebruary 18, 2025A very solid, straightforward story and one well told. There's nothing of suprise about the era, the location and even the characters so if that kind of thing is not of interest in general to you then this'll feel like an expensive episode of Columbo.
- Logan EstridgeJuly 6, 2025Perfect film noir, and surprisingly funny at times. You feel like you are solving the mystery right alongside Mr. Grittes. Every detail is important, and nothing is too spelled out for the audience. I'd like to rewatch it to see if I missed anything.
- Buster The BearMarch 9, 2025Slow burn with a touch of romance. A story of family cruelty and conspiracy. Corrupt government vs the people of Los Angeles… “Survival is the ability to swim in strange water”
- zotflixJanuary 15, 2025Fantastic! Nicholson at his best. The twist at the end tho!!!
- David DanielOctober 12, 2024I hadn't seen the 2:35 version since the seventies, and after reading the book on its production, well it was such a profoundly beautiful film with fantastic performances, this time I really followed Towne's mournful depiction of a nascent Los Angeles...
Chinatown Trivia
Chinatown was released on June 20, 1974.
Chinatown was directed by Roman Polanski.
Chinatown has a runtime of 2h 10m.
Chinatown was produced by Robert Evans.
Private eye Jake Gittes lives off of the murky moral climate of sunbaked, pre-World War II Southern California. Hired by a beautiful socialite to investigate her husband's extra-marital affair, Gittes is swept into a maelstrom of double dealings and deadly deceits, uncovering a web of personal and political scandals that come crashing together.
The key characters in Chinatown are J.J. 'Jake' Gittes (Jack Nicholson), Evelyn Cross Mulwray (Faye Dunaway), Noah Cross (John Huston).
Chinatown is rated R.
Chinatown is a Crime, Drama, Mystery film.
Chinatown has an audience rating of 9.3 out of 10.
Chinatown had a budget of $6M.
Chinatown has made $30M at the box office.