You get tough. You get tender. You get close to each other. Maybe you even get close to the truth.|Jun. 20, 1974|United States|130 Min.|R
Genre: Crime;Drama;Mystery;Thriller
Description: Set in 1937, “Chinatown” follows private investigator J. J. “Jake” Gittes, who is hired by a woman claiming to be Evelyn Mulwray to investigate her husband, Hollis Mulwray, the chief engineer at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. Gittes tails Hollis, witnessing him publicly oppose the construction of an unsafe reservoir. He also takes photos of Hollis with a young woman, which end up on the front page of the newspaper. The next day, Gittes is confronted by the real Evelyn Mulwray, who serves him with legal papers, revealing he was tricked.
Suspecting Hollis was the true target, Gittes attempts to question him but discovers Hollis has been found drowned in a reservoir. Hired by Evelyn, Gittes investigates further, uncovering suspicious activities, such as the nightly release of large amounts of water despite a drought. He is threatened by Water Department Security Chief Claude Mulvihill and a henchman, who slashes his nostril. Later, Gittes receives a call from Ida Sessions, the imposter Mrs. Mulwray, who hints at a deeper conspiracy.
Gittes discovers that Hollis was once business partners with Evelyn’s wealthy father, Noah Cross. Cross warns Gittes about the dangerous forces at play and offers to double his fee to find Hollis’s missing mistress. Through his investigation, Gittes uncovers a scheme by the water department to devalue land in the Northwest Valley by cutting off its water supply, enabling them to purchase it cheaply. He concludes that Hollis was murdered for uncovering this plot.
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Cast director: Roman Polanski
Cast actor: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston, Perry Lopez, John Hillerman, Diane Ladd, Roman Polanski, Roy Jenson, Richard Bakalyan, James Hong
Original name: Chinatown