What else can you say about Chinatown, Roman Polanski’s 1974 noir throwback masterpiece that hasn’t already been said? It remains moody, atmospheric, and deliciously sleazy. It drips with authenticity and great period detail too. The pitch-perfect performances of film legends Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, and director/actor John Huston highlight this bleak tale of corruption, murder, and lies.
Buy Chinatown 4K UHDNicholson is snarky L.A. private-eye Jake Gittes, Dunaway is mysterious socialite Evelyn Mulwray, and Huston is Noah Cross, Evelyn’s sinister, wealthy father. How these three characters cross paths is the stuff modern film history is made of. Spoiling the film’s many shocking and solid twists would be doing it a disservice, despite it being a 50-year-old classic. You should see it you haven’t; you’ll be very surprised and glad you did. It continues to a loving tribute to a bygone era, and one of the greatest films ever made.
Making its 4K UHD debut, the cornucopia of extras from the original Blu-ray is still there, including the audio commentary with film’s Oscar-winning screenwriter Robert Towne and filmmaker/fan David Fincher; “Water and Power” documentary; “Chinatown: An Appreciation,” “Chinatown: The Beginning and the End,” “Chinatown: Filming,” and “Chinatown: The Legacy” featurettes; and trailer. There are two new featurettes: “A State of Mind: Author Sam Wasson on Chinatown” and “The Trilogy That Never Was”, and the 1990 sequel The Two Jakes (directed by Nicholson).
This release is a must have for film lovers and beginners alike. Chinatown will stand the test of time. Read Jack Cormack’s review.
Other great releases out this week:
Bound 4K UHD/Blu (Criterion): The Wachowskis’ sexy 1996 neo-noir starring Jennifer Tilly and Gina Gershon as lovers Violet and Corky, who scheme to steal millions and pin the blame on Violet’s crooked boyfriend.
Victims of Sin (Criterion): A fiery Mexican drama about a female nightclub dancer, who gives up everything to raise an abandoned boy, whom she must protect from his merciless gangster father.
American Fiction: Last year’s award-winning comedy with the always amazing Jeffrey Wright as English professor/author Thelonious “Monk” Ellison, who writes a satirical novel under a pseudonym, with the intent to expose the flaws of the book world.
