Chinatown Resources

This is a great resource for technical specifics, cast lists, a brief synopsis and so on. But we're not necessarily saying it's so great for in-depth analysis and summaries. Perhaps you'll need to look elsewhere? (Cough Shmoop cough cough).

Rotten Tomatoes lets you read reviews by critics who loved Chinatown…and now look like intelligent people. It also lets you read reviews by critics who didn't like it…and now look like a pack of dopes. Mock them mercilessly!

You get a nice little nosh here—a taste of the depth and true meaning of Chinatown, thanks to a bit of analysis and summary.

There are some good details in here—it has some interesting quotes from Polanski about his contributions to the story (unhappy ending, sex between Evelyn and Jake) and quotes from Dunaway and Nicholson about how they didn't get along with Polanski. (Polanski is a bit of a diva.)

This page is like Rotten Tomatoes, except…okay, it's basically just like Rotten Tomatoes.

Robert Towne wrote the script for this 1990 sequel to Chinatown and Jack Nicholson directed it. It was a horrible disaster that went down in flames. 'Nuff said.

Roger Ebert loved Chinatown, and his review pays particular attention to Jake Gittes' character. He says that Gittes, despite the external trappings of a hardboiled detective, is "a nice, sad man."

Lyttelton doesn't go for the sexy, salacious details here. He focuses more on the fun facts that actually involve the making of the movie, like how the Evelyn role was originally intended for Jane Fonda.

As you can tell from the title, Pulver isn't trying to chisel away at a classic. He's just explaining why people love this movie, and why Chinatown ranked number one in a poll.

Errigo praises Polanski's direction, and is very admiring in his assessment of the movie. (He hated the sequel The Two Jakes, like most people).

This dude provides his own take on Chinatown, but he also spends some time putting reviews he doesn't agree with on blast—which is sort of funny.

Robert Towne provides tons of insights into how the film was made, talking about his own influences in writing the script, the experience of collaborating with Polanski, etc.

Nicholson talks about working with Polanski, and what went wrong with the sequel to Chinatown, The Two Jakes.

Faye Dunaway angrily ended this interview when the interviewer, Xan Brooks, asked her if it was true that she threw a cup of pee in Roman Polanski's face on the set of Chinatown. She adamantly denied this.

This trailer doesn't give away too much, just the basic prompt, though it does show the very end of the last scene where Walsh says, "Forget it, Jake—it's Chinatown"

Polanski was responsible for the unhappy ending, so he should probably know what makes the movie a genuine tragedy.

We see Polanski talking about his relationship with the producer and actors, while a dude with a sonorous Irish accent fills us on the details about Polanski's own life. It goes to some dark places, talking about how the Manson Family killed Polanski's wife.

This is the moment—the terrible secret comes out.

John Huston speaks one of his big lines, projecting a menace that goes beyond his character's respectable appearance.

This is the cryptic, tragic ending which leaves us feeling just as sad and bewildered as the main character, Jake.

Goldsmith talks about how he wrote according to the mood of different scenes—and clips from the movie illustrate how it worked out. Interesting stuff, especially if you're into music.

There's a strongly romantic yet also melancholy feel to much of this jazz-style score.

The title track has a very eerie vibe at first, with lots of dissonant notes, but than it segues into the romantic jazz stuff.

Here's Nicholson as Gittes, already getting dragged into the mystery. Here, he spies on Hollis Mulwray, as Hollis inspects the dry L.A. River.

Nicholson's nose wasn't really cut—Polanski used a fake knife. But his bandaged-nose-look is semi-iconic, now.

Nice bowtie, dude…Polanski normally had long, counter-cultural hair. But here, it's short.

Dunaway projects mystery— what's her deal? Is she a murderer? The answer turns out to be, bucking film noir tradition…no.

Huston, a famous director, looks like a gentlemanly old man—deceptive, considering his character's a monster.

Towne looks like a writer, right? He's got the shaggy mane, the specs, and the introvert's beard.

Evelyn gets shot through the eye and dies. Consequently, this looks gross.

We think it's cool the way Evelyn's hair is created by the smoke from Jake's cigarette.