The Two Jakes

The Two Jakes" lacks any storytelling potency.....With "Chinatown" being a powerful and classic picture, "The Two Jakes" had a big shadow to follow....The problem with the film is its derivative approach.....is a far inferior picture that has left many to wonder....The Two Jakes" suffers because it offers nothing new as a sequel and only sponges on the success of its predecessor..... ... Full Review

The Two Jakes was so overwhelmingly disappointing....eventually ties into some of the twisted events of the first film, The Two Jakes still manages to be horribly bland and excruciatingly boring.....Unquestionably inferior to its predecessor and shockingly mediocre, the Jack Nicholson directed The Two Jakes is the sequel to Roman Polanski's near-perfect film noir, Chinatown..... ... Full Review

The Two Jakes was so overwhelmingly disappointing....eventually ties into some of the twisted events of the  first film, The Two Jakes still manages to be horribly bland and excruciatingly boring.....Unquestionably inferior to its predecessor and shockingly mediocre, the Jack Nicholson directed The Two Jakes is the sequel to Roman Polanski#39;s near-perfect film noir, Chinatown..... ... Full Review

Maybe that's why The Two Jakes is never as poignant....Using shots and a slew of character actors as homage to a classic movie he starred in doesn't feel cheap here;....liars, the actor effortlessly throws his charisma around along with his weight.....What it lacks in aggressive storytelling, it makes up for in character.....Nicholson seems to have a genuine affection for the project, disappointed.... ... Full Review

Maybe that's why The Two Jakes is never as poignant or unnerving as its predecessor. DVD Review: The Two Jakes: Special Collector's Edition Director(s): Jack Nicholson. What it lacks in aggressive storytelling, it makes up for in character. ... Full Review

Which isn't to say that The Two Jakes is horrible, it's merely serviceable. The Two Jakes has none of that special atmosphere. Had The Two Jakes stood on its own as an homage to old 1940s film noir, it might have actually fared better. ... Full Review

Harvey Keitel is great, as usual....After the seventies ended, Jack Nicholson became content to play the same character over....It doesn't have the black hole magnetism of Polanski's film, or the ingeniously layered plot..... ... Full Review

despite stunning production values, and a strangely touching performance by Harvey Keitel as a hardnosed businessman with a gooey heart, the tedium in The Two Jakes is as massive as the scale is grand In it, he explains his struggles on the film, the probably never-to-be filmed third film, Gittes vs. Gittes, and the fact that he remains, despite everything, quite proud of The Two Jakes. ... Full Review

The Two Jakes Special Colletors Edition This failure is due to defining moments such as when a widowed character (Madeleine Stowe) irrationally attacks Nicholson in an unexplainable sexual frenzy. ... Full Review

Ultimately, though, it's the haphazard direction, editing, and outright crazy script that sinks this boat within half an hour of launch. And based on the trouble it had getting made -- combined with its general awfulness and poor box office performance (it made $10 million) -- there certainly won't be a third. ... Full Review