Like with Silence of the Lambs, sometimes something in the genre convention becomes much more than being just another genre movie and instead becomes an elevated piece of art. 

Being that genre movies usually fall into some kind of a formula, this doesn’t happen a lot, and it means the movie must be nailing theme, character and story to a degree higher than most other genre pics.

This is the case with this movie too, made by a prestigious (ahem, and blacklisted) director, but also a prestigious director who admitted he’s just doing this movie for the money.

Maybe it’s the novel it was based off of, maybe it was the great performances, maybe it was the director unable to  stop making noteworthy art whether or not he was doing it for the money, and most likely it’s all these things–but this film does achieve the tast of being this elevated art genre movie.

You already know: we’re talking about 1972’s Chinatown, written by Robert Towne and directed by Roman Polanski.

Muddy water

The gigantic theme of this film is corruption.

In it, Jake is investigating a plot around water, ever present in the movie. And what could be more pure than water, the reason for all existence on the planet.

And throughout the movie, water is constantly corrupted, whether it’s being channeled away, mixed in with enough salt water to damage glass, or used to cover a dead body.

The titular Chinatown is a place that represents corruption, like with Jake’s story about how trying to help the woman he loved. And, of course, it where the final scene takes place where the ultimate corruption happens, Noah Cross getting away with killing his daughter.

And Evelyn is heavily corrupted by her dad in multiple terrible ways, corrupting her own daughter (and sister). This is mirrored by the flaw she mentions in her own eye.

And Jake is also corrupted in a different way. He starts as a detective, mainly catching cheating partners, but as he gets sucked into the action, he seems to be intoxicated by the crime all around him.

His nose is corrupted as well. His once blemish-free face is corrupted by a giant bandage and then a scar. Even an act as pure as water, breathing, gets ruined. When asked, “does it hurt.”

He smiles in that Jack Nicholson fashion and answers “only when I breathe.”

Mystery in a riddle

One way that keeps noirs like this refreshing is the constant swerves. Now any college film major can throw a swerve, but the best swerves are ones that stay consistent with the plot and further what’s happening.

Jake, driving through the orchard, seeming like he’s about to make a breakthrough in the case, but he is instead met with sudden gunfire.

Him about to check the water, seeming like he’s about to make a different breakthrough in the case, but he is instead met with a sudden attack by henchmen.

Noirs are twisting stories, and part of the secret is to get the audience so invested with what Jake is about to solve, they forget it’s a movie and are just as surprised as he is when he meets these swerves.

In many ways, Chinatown does defy the norms. There’s no voice over narration, the femme fatale is actually good (just caught in a terrible situation) and much of the movie is shot in broad bright daylight. 

It meets the genre needs, while also finding ways to break out.

It casts familiar characters, while breaking tropes.

It is a gripping suspense story, while also being a piece of art.

This is proof that a movie doesn’t have to be either/or. Creators are often met with a false binary if they’re creating entertainment or art, but the best films have both in them.

Looking ahead, I know there are others I haven’t gotten to yet on the list, but they are special because they represent all things that a movie can possibly be.

Thanks for reading!

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