Pick of the Week: Chinatown

I have to admit that my exposure to Jack Nicholson movies is limited. So pardon me for my perception that his characters are generally as over-the-top and brash as in Batman, One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest and As Good as It Gets. If this is your only exposure to Jack Nicholson, you have to see this movie. In Chinatown, Nicholson plays Jake Gittes, a private investigator who is hired by Mrs. Mulwray, the wife of the chief engineer of the city's water department, to find out if her husband is having an affair. When news of the affair explodes all over the papers, Gittes is soon confronted by the real Mrs. Mulwray who claims that she never hired Gittes. When Mr. Mulwray ends up dead, Gittes suddenly finds himself conducting a murder investigation for the real Mrs. Mulwray. Gittes soon learns just how complicated the situation really is.

My commentary: Jack Nicholson was amazing in this movie. Compared to the other roles I've seen him in, this one was much more subdued than usual, but his dry humour made the character much funnier than I anticipated. Overall, I really enjoyed this movie, the twists were unexpected and for the most part, not too over the top. I also loved how it was pretty much set as a 30's detective flick. As much as I liked this movie, it probably won't be on my list of movies to watch over and over, but I would still recommend it for a Friday night in.

Rating: ******* (7 out of 10)