Coinciding with the 35th anniversary of its original release, Brian De Palma’s 1987 mob movie finds its way to the 4K home formats for the very first time. Presented in luxury Steelbook, The Untouchables is the legendary filmmaker’s look at Eliot Ness and his gang of lawmen on the hunt for notorious mobster Al Capone in the 1930s.
Kevin Costner is the lead as Ness, a relative unknown at the time, albeit a role in Lawrence Kasdan’s western Silverado. The starring roles here are saved for Sean Connery in arguably one of his best screen roles, an Oscar-winning turn as Chicago copper Jimmy Malone, and Robert De Niro on glorious form as Capone. The film follows Ness, Malone, and fellow ‘Untouchables’ George Stone (Andy Garcia) and Oscar Wallace (Charles Martin Smith) as they go after the gangster in the prusuit to bring him to justice.
The Untouchables is released in glorious 4K, the best the film has ever been seen on the home formats and comes presented in a rather lovely Steelbook. Inside an elegantly presented slipcase is the stunning casing, complete with a new design, while inside is the original one-sheet, along with six exclusive postcards, two business cards and indeed two discs – both Blu-ray and the Ultra HD 4K.
Special features are duplicated on each which, while nicely presented, seem to be legacy featurettes, most probably previously seen. Presented in their original ratio. ,ost 4:3. are ‘The Script, The Cast’, ‘Production Stories’, ‘Re-inventing The Genre’, ‘The Classic’, ‘The Men’ – featuring that glorious voiceover we heard over hundreds of movie trailers in the ’80s and ’90s, and the original theatrical trailer. While all feature wonderful archive interviews from its cast and crew, including brilliant insight from De Palma, they are very much of their time. One might have liked to have seen De Palma reflect on the movie now, but to see Connery working behind the scenes in archived B-roll is hugely welcomed.
The film, of course, is worthy of the price tag, a timeless classic that stands up to this day. Being a visionary director who uses every ara of his widescreen frame, the crisp 4K transfer is glorious to witness, a marvel when projected using compatible equipment. Ennio Morricone’s score blasts through the speakers in stunning Dolby Atmos, again a first for the film, at least at home.
The Untouchables is now available on the 4K Ultra HD format.
The Untouchables
Summary
An excellent presentation of obe of De OPalma’s best films of the 1980s. The bonus features are dated but still an absolute joy to watch.
