Cinema's dark side.

• Author: Gehring, Wes D.
• Position: Chinatown

THE 1974 MOVIE "CHINATOWN" is one of the pivotal works of the film noir genre. The central character, as in most noir movies, is a tough guy detective, played here by Jack Nicholson (before he slipped into his over-the-top psychotic acting style). Thus, it is a restrained characterization in the old Sam Spade-Philip Marlowe tradition, though you might just as well say Humphrey Bogart since he played both so effectively in "The Maltese Falcon" (1941) and "The Big Sleep" (1946), respectively.

The film detective usually is not portrayed as a genius, but rather as a hard-working sleuth whose relentlessness and common sense often lead him to the sordid truth. This is in marked contrast to the traditional Sherlock Holmes-type investigator who can look at a footprint and immediately ascertain everything about the suspect--how much change he had in his pocket, the size of his glass eye, payroll deduction tendencies, etc. Along similar lines, every possible question is answered at the end of a Holmes-style story but, at the close of a film noir caper, numerous questions remain, reflecting on the dark ambiguity of real life. The standard convoluted example is "The Big Sleep," from the Raymond Chandler novel of the same name. For Chandler and most film noir writers, the key was the journey through the tale. He wanted to write stories people would read even if the last page was missing.

Film noir's undercutting of Americana is made more palatable by a generous helping of dark humor. "Chinatown" is the ultimate example of this. The story revolves around the drowning of the Los Angeles water commissioner ... during a drought. The heavy behind this murderous move to control the city's water is Noah Cross (John Huston), who also happens to be the commissioner's father-in-law.

Roman Polanski had made it his in-your-face "Chinatown" mission to accent all the noir negatives. Fittingly, Polanski has the perfect personal biography for a director of this dark genre. As a Jewish youth in World War II Poland, he had played hide and seek with the Nazis for the duration of the conflict. Polanski was captured at one point, and German soldiers had used him for an impromptu game of target practice. Later, as he was establishing his international film career, the Manson family murdered his wife (actress Sharon Tate) and several close friends. Is it any wonder Polanski relates to film noir and has a "Chinatown" cameo where he nearly gives Nicholson the ultimate nose job...