The Two Jakes

**It's good, it doesn't seem as bad as many says, but it's also far from the quality of the original movie.** I loved _Chinatown_ and was very curious to see this film, notoriously less famous and less recognized. I was curious to see to what extent this would be a consequence of the widespread ill-fame that hangs, more or less justifiably, over the sequels of good films. What I can now say, after having seen it, is that I can understand why it has fallen into a certain oblivion: in fact, it is not a very interesting film, and it is very far from having the quality that we found in…

I kept looking out for Anne Bancroft, or - indeed anyone who could inject a little class into this really rather dreary vehicle for Jack Nicholson. Reprising his "Gittes" role from "Chinatown" (1974) he finds himself embroiled in a murder mystery that leaves him unsure who he can trust as he tries to get to the truth and stay alive! Yes, that's the gist - hardly novel, is it? What could have helped it would have been better writing and a more compelling contribution from the star. As it is, he is going through the motions - accompanied by a pretty lacklustre voice-over narrative - as the…