Cinema's dark side

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? Noir is like Polanski's own story, though maybe not quite so macabre, because it does not get much worse than target-practicing Nazis and visits from Charles Manson's "family." Even now, the ongoing bizarre private life of Polanski continues, since he still is wanted in this country for sexual assault of a minor.

Today, all is forgiven artistically. After all, Hollywood gave Polanski a Best Director Academy Award for "The Pianist" (2002), where he revisited his persecuted Polish past in telling the fantastic but true story of pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman's survival during the Nazi regime. Still, Polanski remains a wanted man in the U.S., making Paris his home and production base.

As a final Polanski footnote, the director made several brilliant additions to Robert Towne's celebrated Oscar-winning "Chinatown" script. Again, he drew from his own dark background. This is best demonstrated by the fact that the original screenplay had Faye Dunaway's femme fatale getting away at the end. Polanski lobbied for the character's death: "When people leave the theater, they shouldn't be allowed to think that everything is all fight with the world. It isn't--and very little in life has a nice ending." He later would add a haunting addendum to this statement, "Even blondes die in Hollywood," an obvious reference to Tate.

Though the eventual shooting death of Dunaway's character might seem harsh, it makes perfect noir sense. After all, Bogie sent Mary Astor up river at the close of "The Maltese Falcon," and Fred MacMurray had to blow away the ultimate femme fatale (Barbara Stanwyck) at the conclusion of "Double Indemnity" (1944). One actually worries that Nicholson's "Chinatown" detective will buy the farm, too, as he is forever finding a 45-caliber pistol stuck in his ear. At one point, he is forced to tell Huston's evil powerbroker the whereabouts of daughter Dunaway and the daughter-granddaughter he fathered with her. Given his past track record with the young Dunaway, this is not the most promising of developments. However, one interesting sidenote in the Nicholson-Huston meeting is the comment the latter makes about incest, murder, and all-around corruption, three of Huston's favorite pastimes: "Most people don't have to face the fact that, at the right time, they' re capable of anything."

This is chilling stuff. The dark side of the American dream does not get any darker. Unlike the other major crime genre (the gangster film), noir pushes the envelope on evil. Whereas, gangster pictures showcase standard crimes, like murder and robbery, film noir flirts with stuff that makes you want to take a long, hot shower to wash away the sleaze of sadistic violence and incest. Consequently, "Chinatown" and film noir are not for everyone. For instance, the best film of 1997, at least in my opinion, was the seminal noir movie, "L.A. Confidential." Yet, the Oscar that year went to a little picture called "Titanic." Even though most people had a good idea the ship would not make port, one should never vote against the popularity of romantic melodrama---especially when the only competition is a film noir offering. Still, if you would like to check out an inspired cinematic effort, "Chinatown" is a masterpiece of the dark side.