Post Script: Chinatown

By Andreas Babiolakis


Robert Towne wanted to showcase a darker side of Los Angeles — and the world — in Chinatown. Roman Polanski took his warnings and went the extra mile. The result is a genre defining moment, and one of cinema’s most shocking pictures.

SPOILER ALERT: CONTAINS EVERY PLOT DETAIL FOR CHINATOWN THE ENTIRE EPISODE

This return to my Post Script series gets into the cycle of guilt, death, and misfortune that lingers around Chinatown, as well as a handful of the countless reasons why I feel it is the greatest screenplay of all time.


Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.