Post by Chicago Jake on May 28, 2013 23:58:05 GMT -6
I recently watched Roman Polanski's "Chinatown" for the first time, and already posted my thoughts on this message board. Well, last week, I finally got around to watching the sequel to that movie, "The Two Jakes" directed by Jack Nicholson himself. It starred Nicholson, Harvey Keitel, Meg Tilly, Madeleine Stowe, Eli Wallach, Ruben Blades, Frederic Forrest, David Keith, Richard Farnsworth,. Tracey Walter, and of course the immortal James Hong.
This movie has been savaged by critics for over twenty years, but I think they have all missed the point. I thought it was a wonderful and sublime example of modern noir, blending the world-weary PI trope with social commentary about how modern society is destroying traditional American culture.
The plot was pretty complicated, including infidelity, real estate fraud, oil company profits, corrupt government, and a bunch of other concepts too numerous to mention. But overall, it was about how a man has to choose what is important to him, and doing what it takes to live up to his commitments.
The very title was a reference to two very different characters (Nicholson's Jake Gittes and Keitel's Jake Berman), who on the surface are complete opposites, but who, by the end of the film you realize are really very similar, in terms of their goals and needs and beliefs. And I think that is what makes it a great film.
It is set in 1948, and has both a post-war world-weariness and a modern-era optimism, all rolled into one. I also thought Nicholson did a great job of directing it with a certain amount of flourish, but not so much that it distracted from the story.
Allegedly, a third movie was always planned, but at this late date that seems unlikely. I hope it materializes! It would no doubt be just as fascinating as the first two.
So, what did YOU think?.......Jake
This movie has been savaged by critics for over twenty years, but I think they have all missed the point. I thought it was a wonderful and sublime example of modern noir, blending the world-weary PI trope with social commentary about how modern society is destroying traditional American culture.
The plot was pretty complicated, including infidelity, real estate fraud, oil company profits, corrupt government, and a bunch of other concepts too numerous to mention. But overall, it was about how a man has to choose what is important to him, and doing what it takes to live up to his commitments.
The very title was a reference to two very different characters (Nicholson's Jake Gittes and Keitel's Jake Berman), who on the surface are complete opposites, but who, by the end of the film you realize are really very similar, in terms of their goals and needs and beliefs. And I think that is what makes it a great film.
It is set in 1948, and has both a post-war world-weariness and a modern-era optimism, all rolled into one. I also thought Nicholson did a great job of directing it with a certain amount of flourish, but not so much that it distracted from the story.
Allegedly, a third movie was always planned, but at this late date that seems unlikely. I hope it materializes! It would no doubt be just as fascinating as the first two.
So, what did YOU think?.......Jake
