The Untouchables (1987) (35^th Anniversary) [4K Ultra HD]

Director: Brian De Palma

Cast: Kevin Costner, Robert De Niro, Sean Connery

Release Date: May 31, 2022

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Disc Rating: 8/10

Synopsis:

Under the visionary direction of Brian De Palma, and with an adapted screenplay by David Mamet, THE UNTOUCHABLES is a must-see masterpiece – a glorious, fierce, larger-than-life depiction of good versus evil on the streets of Prohibition-era Chicago, with unforgettable performances by Robert De Niro as mob warlord Al Capone and Kevin Costner as law enforcer Eliot Ness. The big-screen blockbuster hit earned Sean Connery an Academy Award for his portrayal of veteran officer Jimmy Malone, and the excellent supporting cast includes Patricia Clarkson, Andy Garcia and Charles Martin Smith.

Please Note: Paramount Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray I reviewed in this Post. The opinions I share are my own.

‘The Untouchables’ follows dedicated law enforcer Eliot Ness on the dangerous streets of Prohibition-era Chicago. Fed up with the corruption plaguing the city and intent on bringing down dangerous crime boss Al Capone who has his hands in every aspect of crime within, Ness enlists the help of a few other respected officers to form a clean unit that might be the city’s only chance of finally stopping Capone’s reign. Directed by Brian De Palma and featuring a powerhouse cast that includes Kevin Costner, Robert De Niro, Sean Connery, Patricia Clarkson, Andy Garcia, and Charles Martin Smith, ‘The Untouchables’ still brings plenty of excitement and fun to the table today, three and a half decades after its initial release.

‘The Untouchables’ is a tense, beautifully cast and well directed look at life in Prohibition-era Chicago that accompanies lawman Eliot Ness and his handpicked team as they fight against corruption and crime in every direction in a dedicated attempt to take down crime boss Al Capone. While the characters and the general outline of the tale are rooted in fact, the film never actually makes a real attempt to follow its true origins in most respects and for once that’s probably for the best as it allows this great crime drama to borrow tidbits from reality and use them to its advantage in order to construct the most thrilling and exciting version of the tale as possible and never causes it to be bogged down by a necessity to adhere to facts. Director Brian De Palma’s masterful tale has definitely stood the test of time since it was initially released in 1987 and very little about it feels dated or silly today; serving up a thrilling tale of good versus evil that does a great job of keeping viewers on their toes. If you’ve never had the pleasure of this great film I would strongly encourage trying to give it a chance whenever possible, odds are that you’ll be thrilled you did.

‘The Untouchables’ arrives home for the first time in 4K Ultra HD in celebration of the beloved film’s thirty-fifth anniversary. The film makes its debut on 4K Ultra HD disc featuring a magnificent new 4K video presentation that’s only further complemented by Dolby Vision and HDR-10, paired with an immersive new Dolby Atmos soundtrack in order to deliver what is surely the best viewing experience the film has ever seen at home. The release also features a handful of previously released extras on top of the outstanding new video and audio offerings and dedicated fans of this one should be thrilled with this magnificent new release of the 1987 classic.

Overall, ‘The Untouchables’ comes home in 4K Ultra HD for the first time just in time to celebrate its thirty-fifth anniversary. The Brian De Palma directed film starring acting greats Kevin Costner, Robert De Niro and Sean Connery makes its 4K UHD debut with a marvelous new 4K Ultra High Definition video presentation that’s only boosted by the addition of Dolby Vision and HDR-10 and paired with a noteworthy new Dolby Atmos soundtrack. With a number of solid previously released extras included on top of it, this new release is a definite winner and should have fans of this classic truly excited. If you’re a fan of ‘The Untouchables’ and are fully 4K capable, then you will probably want to consider adding this great new release to your collection at some point. For anyone that’s already considering a purchase, this one is highly recommended!

VIDEO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘The Untouchables’ features a full 2160p Ultra High Definition presentation with Dolby Vision and HDR-10, presented in its original 2.39:1 Cinemascope Aspect Ratio. The video presentation looks pretty outstanding as a whole and provides a clean, colorful and wonderfully detailed presentation from start to finish that doesn’t suffer from any noticeable issues along the way while still retaining a nice level of grain and other welcome elements that do a splendid job of representing its film source. The Dolby Vision HDR inclusion only improves upon it all and helps to deliver a vividly colored and bright presentation with richly deep blacks throughout and the end result is a remarkable presentation that looks even better than many might expect it to. Overall, this is a stellar Ultra High Definition video presentation from Paramount that looks outstanding every step of the way and should easily thrill fans of the film and newcomers alike.

AUDIO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release features a Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 channel compatible) soundtrack. Please note that this review pertains solely to the Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio presentation. This multichannel soundtrack is quite fantastic in its own right and offers a crisp, clean and surprisingly hard hitting audio presentation throughout. It repeatedly utilizes all seven available channels in order to send music, along with gunshots, debris and other action effects, plus bits of crowd chatter and plenty more throughout the various speakers at every reasonable opportunity, while never resulting in any dialogue or other audio elements that might be occurring simultaneously becoming distorted or rendered inaudible in the process. Overall, this is a wonderful Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible) soundtrack that is almost surely the best the film has ever sounded and this great new audio presentation should definitely excite fans.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘The Untouchables’ includes some enjoyable bonus content which appear to be carryover extras from an older Blu-ray release. Included on the release are various Behind the Scenes Featurettes and videos that feature interviews/comments with the cast and crew, plus behind the scenes footage and more. They include ‘The Story, The Cast’ (running approximately 18 minutes in length), ‘Production Stories’ (running approximately 17 minutes), ‘Re-Inventing the Genre’ (approximately 14 minutes), ‘The Classic’ (6 minutes) and the Original Featurette ‘The Men’ (5 minutes). The film’s ‘Theatrical Trailer’ (3 minutes) is also included.

*Please note: The above images are not reflective of the actual 4K Ultra HD release or its quality. A standard Blu-ray copy of the film was not included in the release therefore the above publicity stills were utilized. They are all the property of Paramount Pictures and any other respective owners.

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Disc Rating: 8/10

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‘The Untouchables’ 35^th Anniversary Edition is Now Available to Own on 4K Ultra HD Steelbook & 4K Ultra HD from Paramount Home Entertainment

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