Spoiler Alert: Drowning in a Drought
- SpoilerAlertBlog
- Jan 12, 2019
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 6, 2020
Movie: Chinatown
Rank: 21
Year: 1974
Director: Roman Polanski
Cast: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston
A drought-ridden 1937 Los Angeles provides the backdrop for this neo-noir film bubbling just below the city’s consciousness with crime. A seedy private investigator with an unclear cop past seeks out adulterers for a fee, only to be roped into a conspiracy involving diverted water supplies, identity theft, murder and incest. Through Jake Gittes’ eyes, the story unravels with unexpected turns and increasing gag-inducing realizations.
“I was trying to keep someone from being hurt. I ended up making sure that she was hurt.”
- Jake Gittes, Chinatown
As with all works of art, the artists who create it embed it with reflections of the times, hints at their interests and insights into their experiences. This film is no different, situated between tragedy and depravity much like its director, Roman Polanski. He grew up during the Holocaust. In 1969, tragedy struck again when his pregnant wife, actress Sharon Tate, was brutally murdered by the Manson Family. A mere three years after the film’s release, Polanski’s life took another turn when he was arrested for admitted sex crimes against a 13-year-old girl and eventually fled the United States to avoid jail time. Both sides of the coin color a modern-day perception of this film where murder and sexual assault are hallmarks of the plot.
“Most people never have to face the fact that at the right time and the right place, they’re capable of anything.”
– Noah Cross, Chinatown
Originally hired by an imposter-Mrs. Mulwray to get proof of her supposed husband’s infidelity, Gittes’ is confronted by the actual Evelyn Mulwray after that proof goes public. She is threatening a lawsuit, but that all gets resolved rather easily. However, Hollis Mulwray winds up dead by drowning, a shocking truth given the drought. As the story progresses, it becomes evident Evelyn’s father, Noah Cross, is involved in a plan to use the identities of nursing home residents to buy up large quantities of land after conning LA citizens and diverting water supplies. It is revealed Hollis’ body was moved, originally dying in salt water. After realizing Evelyn’s pond contained salt water and seeing broken bifocals, Gittes is mistakenly led to believe Evelyn is the murderer. However, when confronted, Evelyn reveals the wholly surprising truth Hollis’ supposed mistress, Katherine, is actually her daughter and sister, the product of incest at 15 when raped by her father. Not alone in his misconceptions, all roads lead to Chinatown where Evelyn seeks to run away to Mexico, but is faced with police seeking to arrest her and a sexual assailant father desiring access to the daughter he has yet to assault. In an attempt to save her daughter, Evelyn shoots her father and drives off in a flurry of police bullets which lead to her demise. The movie ends, with Katherine in the hands of the father she shares with her mother.
“She’s my sister and my daughter!”
– Evelyn Mulwray, Chinatown
What happened in Chinatown that led Gittes to quit or be fired from the police force? What kind of life has Katherine lived? What happens now that Evelyn is dead? All worthwhile inquiries. However, answers are really needed as to what type of psychotic henchman thinks of cutting a nose from the inside out. With some justification in the vein of the Code of Hammurabi, about nosy people losing their noses, a knife was placed in Gittes’ nostril and then ripped outward through the skin spraying blood all over Gittes’ face. Is this a common threatening attack? Henchmen likely don’t have the utmost care about cleanliness of knives, but hopefully that man developed some latent cold virus ready to take hold after his exposure to Gittes’ snot and blood mixture on his knife.
Disturbing and moody, this smoke-filled movie is aided by being a period film able to play on noir tropes and aesthetics of the time. Polanski’s use of atypical shots, such as framing from a binocular lens or reflections on mirrors and cameras, bolsters the secretive direction of the plot. The audience is in on it with Gittes, peering, eavesdropping and piecing the story together as he does. A predominantly orchestral soundtrack, not unlike the suspense building music Scooby Doo creeps down corridors to before unmasking the monster, makes somewhat overt choices to build romance and tension, but remains wholly effective. For the deficits of its creator, through great acting, reflection on a genre not in vogue when made and a twisting plot, Chinatown serve as a good example of filmmaking for any generation. It has stood the test of time, negating its closing line. Audiences have chosen not to forget it; it’s Chinatown!
“Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown”
– Walsh, Chinatown
Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN): rainn.org, 800.656.HOPE (4673)
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