Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #11257 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-06-04
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, German, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Swedish, Turkish
• Dubbed in: German
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 115 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
As noted critic Pauline Kael wrote, the 1987 box-office hit The Untouchables is "like an attempt to visualise the public's collective dream of Chicago gangsters". In other words, this lavish reworking of the vintage TV series is a rousing pot-boiler from a bygone era, so beautifully designed and photographed--and so craftily directed by Brian De Palma--that the historical reality of Prohibition-era Chicago could only pale in comparison. From a script by David Mamet, the film pits four underdog heroes (the maverick lawmen known as the Untouchables) against a singular villain in Al Capone, played by Robert De Niro as a dapper Caesar holding court (and a baseball bat) against any and all challengers. Kevin Costner is the naive federal agent Eliot Ness, whose lack of experience is tempered by the streetwise alliance of a seasoned Chicago cop (Sean Connery, in an Oscar-winning performance), a rookie marksman (Andy Garcia) and an accountant (Charles Martin Smith) who holds the key to Capone's potential downfall. The movie approaches greatness on the strength of its set pieces, such as the siege near the Canadian border, the venal ambush at Connery's apartment and the train-station shootout partially modelled after the "Odessa steps" sequences of the Russian classic Battleship Potemkin. It's thrilling stuff, fuelled by Ennio Morricone's dynamic score, but it's also manipulative and obvious. If you're inclined to be critical, the film gives you reason to complain. If you'd rather sit back and enjoy a first-rate production with an all-star cast, The Untouchables may very well strike you as a classic. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

DVD Description
DVD Special Features:

Theatrical Trailer
English Dolby Digital 5.1
German Dolby Surround
Subtitles: English for the hearing impaired, English, Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, German, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Swedish, Turkish

Synopsis
Kevin Costner is idealistic federal agent Eliot Ness, whose assignment to clean up Prohibition-era Chicago leads to violence and manly questions about upholding the law. Initially powerless to stop the flow of booze into the city (the police force is corrupt and everyone in town seems to be on the mob's payroll), Ness finds guidance from an older streetwise cop (Sean Connery, who won an Academy Award for this role) who convinces him he'll need to break some rules if he wants to bring down head mobster Al Capone (Robert De Niro). Andy Garcia and Charles Martin Smith play Ness's other recruits, who together must stand tall against a city full of assassins. Director Brian De Palma (MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE) packs the film with violence and creative camera movements while David Mamet's intelligent script capably dodges cliche at every turn. There's a real sense of what's at stake for these characters on a personal level, which contrasts nicely with the futility inherent in enforcing Prohibition in the first place. The film is based on the autobiographical book by Ness (cowritten with Oscar Fraley) and the 1959-63 TV series; Ennio Morricone (THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY) composed the uninhibitedly bombastic score.

Customer Reviews

Brilliantly Made, But Not A Classic
I watched this film for the first time today, oblivious as to what it was about and only interested in it because of the rave reviews I'd heard. Well, it definatley wasn't what I ewas expecting, but it was very good none the less. Set in the 1930s when alchohol was illegal in the US, Al Capone is the Crime Lord trading the stuff for masses of money, and Eliot Ness, the federal Agent who is determined to bring him down. I wasn't particularly blown away by any of the acting, I guess Kevin Costner as Eliot Ness is worth a mention, but although each character played their part well none of them stood out or really made the character their own. What does deserve a mention however is the style in which the Untouchables was filmed - lots of weird camera angles and shots, lots of dramatic music, all building up suspense, tension, fear, excitement, sadness, etc. The viewer gets sucked into this film, as long as they have the patience to sit through the first 30 or so minutes until it gets really interesting.

A good film, very well made, but not one I'd be quick to recommend to friends or want to watch again in a hurry. Watch, but don't expect to be blown away.

QUITE LITERALLY 'UNTOUCHABLE'
Director Brian Da Palmer's 1987 gangster epic made a star out of Kevin Costner (still one of his finest performances) and gifted Sean Connery the best role of his later career. It's an immaculate 30's set crime thriller as Elliot Ness (Costner) and his band of Untouchables go up against Robert De Niro's magnificently evil and slimy baseball bat weilding mobster Al Capone.
The dialogue is flab free and the movie is full of great action sequences including the iconic and often pastiched 'baby/steps/Grand Central Station shootout.
It's a fascinating, and true, story as Ness and his band of agents, accountants and old cops, attempt to put the most powerful gangster in pre-war America behind bars. They are twarted at every turn until the most mundane method of stopping Capone is discovered - should have remembered to pay that tax bill Al !
De Palmer has never bettered The Untouchables and Sean Connery's old warhorse of a street cop performance as 'Malone' rightly won him an Oscar.
The Untouchables is up there with the very best films from the 80's. Stunning Stuff.

Not a Classic
This entertaining film is Brian DePalma's paste-up job of the war between crusader Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner) and gangster Al Capone (Robert De Niro). Sean Connery as a secondary character steals the movie with a great performance (Oscar 1987). The pacing is patchy as the director seems to treat this saga of law and order with mock seriousness; the director can't seem to help Costner get comfortable with the material, which pushes the film into outrageousness at some turns and mawkishness at others.

Costner's lack of charisma and DePalma's attempt at mock seriousness irritate me when ever i watch this movie. It will never find a place on my dvd shelf. It is a good movie, but it is far from great. Selah, 7/10.