Chinatown: The Noir That Poisoned Its Own Ending

Sun, 12 Apr 2026 11:00:00 +0000

Robert Towne wanted a different ending. His screenplay for Chinatown — often cited as the finest ever written, and it is hard to argue — gave his detective a version of a win. Roman Polanski, directing, refused it. He had come out of the murder of his wife and the general conviction that the world does not reward the good, and he insisted the film close on catastrophe. The two men fought about it, and Polanski won, and the reason Chinatown endures where a hundred handsome period thrillers have faded is that the director poisoned the well on purpose. The film is built like a satisfying mystery and then denies you the satisfaction, and that denial is the whole point.

Robert Towne - vo.rs

Chinatown: The Noir That Poisoned Its Own Ending