I've seen this one before, but hardly remembered a thing of it when watching it again last night - not a good sign, I suppose. This is the only one of three films that I saw that were directed by Jack Nicholson himself, and I really wonder how much help he got. Some cinematography is dazzlingly beautiful, but did he really - for instance - find that exact location (the one with the wooden poles) at the Californian coastline where Rawley and Gittes have their conversation by himself? Maybe that's not what directing is all about, and I'm a bit of a laymen in that respect, but isn't directing also about keeping an eye on the development of the story and coaching your actors? The story is not uninteresting, but it's a somewhat uninspired carbon-copy of its predecessor with rather mediocre acting, and, I guessed straight away that the 'mystery lady' was indeed Miss Mulwray... And that soundtrack could have been toned a bit, couldn't it?Then, there are some really odd scenes, seemingly thrown in for the 'good measure' of simply trying something different, like the sex scene with Stowe and the 'suck my gun' scene with Keith. They cóuld have worked, but they felt (way) out of tune here.I can't say that 'The two Jakes' is a bad film, it is much too easy on the eyes and the story and acting are entertaining enough, but - unsurprisingly - it has almost none of the magic of its predecessor 'Chinatown'. The cinematography is pretty much impeccable, the story was worked out pretty well and the overall atmosphere was more than doable, but that's about it. By the way, did anyone notice Jack rambling on an on (he could talk the balls off a...) while that one tune set in, that same tune that the Coen brothers used in the film noir parody 'The big Lebowski'? Another fun bit was when Jake broke into a house when an old-time commercial was on. I hope it was an original, but I really don't know.Well entertaining, for sure, but also quite bleak compared to the original. 6 to 7 out of 10.

Sure it's not Chinatown, but the atmosphere, sets, costumes and iconic actors carried this film and left me longing for the third part of the trilogy. Quick while Nicholson is still breathing! Some had the opinion that it was too long, but the longer I could stay in that world, the better. Even Meg Tilly, sounding as if she had the worst sinus infection on record, brought an excellent performance to the table. It's too bad that it was a sequel and a sequel to what has become a late twentieth century classic film. I've found that it's the same with going to see any film - you have to keep your expectations under control. Many of the reviewers were expecting to see a second classic in this sequel, but I don't think they realize how rare it is, in spite of the effort and talent associated with the making of a film, for it to all come together into something like Chinatown. So, here's to the films that aren't so great, because they make the great films well..great.

Fortunately for the movie going public, Jack Nicholson got to do another version of one of his most popular roles as private detective J.J. Gittes in The Two Jakes. It's not as good as Chinatown, few films are, but Nicholson is right back in stride as the laconic Philip Marlowe like private eye from the Raymond Chandler era of fictional detectives.In fact repeating their roles from Chinatown besides Nicholson are James Hong, Joe Mantell, and Perry Lopez. And the plot is a continuation in many ways of Chinatown and the case that we knew would haunt Nicholson the rest of his days.It's now post World War II in Los Angeles and Nicholson has been retained by real estate mogul Harvey Keitel whose first name is also Jake in a divorce matter. He's hoping to catch wife Meg Tilly en flagrato with his partner whom he's been thinking has been two timing him with his wife. Nicholson keeping up with the times as a good gumshoe has now the latest recording device and he's got the trysting place bugged with he and Keitel in the next room.But when at one point Keitel produces a revolver and bursts into the two of them and shoots the partner it looks at first like a case of Keitel acting on the unwritten law. But appearances are quite deceiving, as deceiving as they were in Chinatown. And a lot of people want that recording of the event Nicholson most of all because it has a mention of the child of Faye Dunaway from back in the case he Nicholson was involved with in Chinatown.The rest of the film is Nicholson stalling everybody while he tries to find out just what all this is about. Along the way he meets criminal attorney for Keitel, Eli Wallach, a Mickey Cohen like mobster in Ruben Blades, and the widow of Keitel's partner, Madeline Stowe who is ready and willing to make Nicholson an offer he will find it hard to refuse.Nicholson directed himself in this version, taking over for Roman Polanski whom as we know was in exile from the USA back then. He knew his character well and smoothly continued the saga of J.J. Gittes. The atmosphere of the Forties Los Angeles is well done. It's mentioned that a third Gittes film was planned. Hopefully those plans are not scrapped and we'll get to see Nicholson once again in one of my favorite roles of his.

To compare Chinatown and the Two Jakes, which would probably take more sufficiently a whole entire other article, one I wouldn't print here, it might be noteworthy on the surface to also make a co-comparison in terms of iconic films. The Godfather 2 and Chinatown both came out in 1974, and then both saw their respective next (and as we sit here likely final) installments come out in 1990. Both were hyped to one degree ore another, and neither one lived up to the majority of the expectations that were already steadfast in everybody's minds (and, to be fair, criticisms on both sides aren't entirely invalid). But probably even more-so for Two Jakes than Godfather 3, Jack Nicholson and Robert Towne did have a solid story to tell in continuing along the saga of Jake Gittes, whom Towne envisioned not simply in the context of his homage mold (Chandler/Hammett), but in a larger context than the novelistic noirs of old. This was the second part of a supposed trilogy, all based, according to Towne, on natural goods (first part water, second part earth, third, the part unproduced, would have been air and focused on pollution in the 50s).It's easy to say that the Two Jakes is nowhere near the status of Chinatown, but then again it's also hard to say that Jack Nicholson is really as great a director than Roman Polanski. He probably isn't, this in spite of the fact that this could arguably be the best of the three films he helmed (the others underrated Drive, He Said, and Going' South). The best service that he does to the material is to make something that is by itself enthralling as a movie unto itself, while tipping the hat to all of the various supporting characters that previously appeared (from Escobar to the snotty hall-of-records nerd) in Chinatown. Only when Nicholson starts to get obvious, like with the flashes back to brief bits from the original film, does it get a little much. What helps too to distinguish it is a slight change in pace with the structure of the story. Not so much in certain mechanics of the detective procedural, as Towne knows he can't mess with that too much.The chief difference, which probably split and continues to split many fans, is the use of voice-over. Polanski dropped it from his film, having the audience find things out as Gittes did. But for Nicholson, the narration is something else entirely. It's used a lot more like in proper detective fiction, not so much as to guide along the plot but to ruminate, almost like some sage of a weathered snoop, and even if it's used maybe once more than needed (which bit I can't quite point out) it's very effective in adding a mood to the piece, a tone that complements the convention of "we may be through with the past, but the past is not through with us." In this case, Gittes, as continued to be played by Nicholson with that awesome balance of cool thinking and wit, gets into a case with "another" Jake (Keitel, what's not to say about him), and infidelity in the mix. But there's a lot more in store, including an audio recording of a crime, and some details in it that stir up everybody's attention. Meanwhile, a woman named "Kitty", Jake Berman's wife, has something she's hiding from Gittes and... you get the idea.If The Two Jakes isn't always great art- and it's not to say there aren't some thrilling moments of pure cinema, like the opening shot or those scenes driving out in the fields of California (and speaking of nostalgia, orange groves), and the Green Parot club, not to mention a couple of other notable exceptions- it's excellent craftsmanship, where it's like a yarn from the late 40s with a couple of extra spikes of plot contrivance and luscious dames that give our Shamus a bit of a loop at times. It works on that level entirely, of still being playful throwback and serious crime drama, and while it doesn't break that many rules there are for those who want to give it a shot. As far as long-awaited sequels go, for me, it could've been a lot worse.