IMDb > Chinatown (1974)
Chinatown
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Chinatown (1974) More at IMDbPro »

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Chinatown (1974) -- A private detective investigating an adultery case stumbles on to a scheme of murder that has something to do with water.
Chinatown (1974) -- Clip: Your husband was murdered
Chinatown (1974) -- A private detective investigating an adultery case stumbles on to a scheme of murder that has something to do with water.
Chinatown (1974) -- MattTrailer.com - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 1% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writer:
Robert Towne (written by)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Chinatown on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
20 June 1974 (USA) more
Genre:
Plot:
A private detective investigating an adultery case stumbles on to a scheme of murder that has something to do with water. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 18 wins & 22 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(122 articles)
MovieWeb's 2009 DVD Holiday Gift Guide
 (From MovieWeb. 20 November 2009, 12:55 PM, PST)

Dunaway Facing Eviction Over Unpaid Rent - Report
 (From WENN. 19 November 2009, 4:11 AM, PST)

User Comments:
The apex of the 1970s American film renaissance. more (326 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Jack Nicholson ... J.J. Gittes

Faye Dunaway ... Evelyn Mulwray

John Huston ... Noah Cross
Perry Lopez ... Escobar
John Hillerman ... Yelburton
Darrell Zwerling ... Hollis Mulwray

Diane Ladd ... Ida Sessions
Roy Jenson ... Mulvihill

Roman Polanski ... Man with Knife
Richard Bakalyan ... Loach (as Dick Bakalyan)
Joe Mantell ... Walsh

Bruce Glover ... Duffy
Nandu Hinds ... Sophie
James O'Rear ... Lawyer

James Hong ... Evelyn's Butler
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Additional Details

Runtime:
131 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked this as the #21 Greatest Movie of All Time. more
Goofs:
Continuity: When Gittes get drenched by the water, he's completely immersed in it. Then moments later his suit is fairly dry looking as though he had only been splashed. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Jake Gittes: All right, Curly. Enough's enough. You can't eat the Venetian blinds. I just had them installed on Wednesday.
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Movie Connections:
Referenced in "NewsRadio: Sleeping (#3.21)" (1997) more
Soundtrack:
I Can't Get Started more

FAQ

What is the meaning of "Chinatown" and the last line of the movie?
How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
A Note Regarding Spoilers
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132 out of 183 people found the following comment useful.
The apex of the 1970s American film renaissance., 17 June 2000
10/10
Author: Jason Berkley (jdberkley@hotmail.com) from Chicago, Illinois

Some might go with the operatic grandeur of The Godfather, or the gritty psychic trauma of Taxi Driver, as the finest achievement of the Seventies in American film. For my money, though, nothing tops Roman Polanski's masterpiece. A noir thriller that somehow transcends noir, Chinatown becomes a meditation on the bottomless well of human mystery. Robert Towne's legendary script can stand with the best work of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, and Polanski, in insisting on the darkest possible ending for his L.A. story(understandable, given the nightmare Polanski experienced in Los Angeles six years before this film was made), directs with supreme story-telling integrity. Flawlessly performed by its superb cast, with an especially terrifying piece of underplaying from the great John Huston as Noah Cross, a man who could never say what he really wants, even to himself. Easily one of the six or seven best films ever made.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Chinatown (1974)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
How many people's favourite movie? PiperLaurieFan715
possible plothole that's been bugging me. kereyv-1
Why is the screen play considered to be the best? agentmccool27
The 100 Greatest Films of All Time smoothiedudie
Chinatown vs. L.A. Confidential MCorleone54
Doesn't deserve to be in the top 1000 exclusiveburner
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