Blu-ray Review: The Untouchables 4K UHD™ + Blu-ray™ Special Collector’s Edition SteelBook – “A truly stunning piece of cinema”

“What are you prepared to do?”

First of all, I was ready to give the new 35th Anniversary of Brian De Palma’s The Untouchables a watch and I was so glad I did. Like the first drink after Prohibition lifted, seeing Sean Connery tell Kevin Costner about the Chicago Way in the newly restored version was an absolute delight to the senses.

For those who may now know, The Untouchables was written by David Mamet, directed by De Palma and features a Grammy Award-winning score by Ennio Morricone. It stars Costner as Eliot Ness, Robert De Niro as Al Capone, Sean Connery, Patricia Clarkson, Andy Garcia, and Charles Martin Smith. Connery also won his only Oscar for his role as Jimmy Malone.

Hearing that “du-du-dun-du-dun” of Morricone’s score as the opening titles began brought a huge smile to my face. It had been much too long since I had last watched the film and I had forgotten just how good it was.

Not a single moment is wasted with some truly incredible scenes and performances. Plus, the script is peppered with so many quotable lines, many of which come from Connery’s Jimmy Malone.

From the opening scene of De Niro’s Capone getting a shave while talking to reporters to the horse ride to the bridge and to that iconic shoot-out at Union Station (inspired by Battleship Potemkin) and beyond it is a glorious pleasure to watch and the new restoration has made it look all the more beautiful. The colours pop and all the details and mise-en-scène of Malone’s apartment during the classic POV shot are on full display.

The sound mix is sublime with Morricone’s brilliant score wrapping around the visuals and lifting everything to the next level. The tension rises inexorably with every che-chunk sound of the pram’s wheels being pulled up the steps in Union Station as Costner’s Ness checks out every passenger heading through the door. The use of silence during that seen really makes every moment pop when there is sound.

I enjoyed rewatching the film so much that when it was finished I sat for a few minutes and then put it on again.

The Untouchables 4K UHD™ + Blu-ray™ Special Collector’s Edition SteelBook® includes the 4K Ultra HD™ feature film, Blu-ray™, poster, 6 art cards and 2 business cards.

There is honestly, not much more I can say. It is a truly stunning piece of cinema and the new restoration makes this an essential version to have in your collection.

Here endeth the lesson!

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THE UNTOUCHABLES will also be available as a 4K Ultra HD™ 35th Anniversary SteelBook®. Both releases have a Dolby Atmos® soundtrack** and include over an hour of legacy bonus content in high definition as detailed below:

• The Script, The Cast
• Production Stories
• Re-Inventing the Genre
• The Classic
• Original Featurette: “The Men”
• Theatrical Trailer