Untouchables, The (DVD)

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Video:
Measuring in at an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, the anamorphic widescreen video is more or less identical to the previous release. There are, however, some noticeable differences in several scenes. For example, in chapter 10, when the four leads go on their first liquor raid, the new transfer looks brighter and is more detailed. Then in the following chapter, the images on both versions go back to looking identical, from a purely visual standpoint. Colors are correctly represented with natural skin tones and deep black levels and slight grain is still present throughout the entire presentation. Unfortunately, minor particles of dust and scratches can still be seen in this new print. Although the transfer seems to have gone through some minor upgrades, I´m sure that more could have been done to give a popular movie like "The Untouchables" a better video transfer. Subtitle options include English and Spanish.

Audio:
The main English language audio track gets an upgrade from Dolby Digital 5.1 to Dolby Digital 5.1 EX on this new DVD. I´m glad to say that the new track is more robust and richer in tone, creating a sound field that is sure to envelope the home theater audience. Ennio Morricone´s theme music soars and punctuates forcefully, giving the bass a good workout. The surround channels provide ambient sound and also support the occasional explosion and gunshot sounds. Dialogue also sounds better in this new DVD, providing a cleaner and louder response. Other audio tracks include English Dolby Surround 2.0 and French Dolby Surround 2.0.

Extras:
Paramount is re-releasing "The Untouchables" with the Special Collector´s Edition moniker, which is part of the company´s new effort to upgrade previous bare-bones releases to a more complete DVD package, complete with bonus features. As the previous DVD release for "The Untouchables" only contain the movie´s theatrical trailer as an extra, anything else added here is a plus. I´m glad to say that some interesting bonus features have been assembled for this new release. Although not as extensive as I would have liked them to be, they are still better than nothing. The only obvious thing missing here is an audio commentary track and one with Brian De Palma would have been the final icing on the cake.

A total of six behind-the-scenes featurettes of varying lengths can be found in the Special Features section of the disc. Starting off is an almost 20-minute documentary titled "The Script, The Cast". It features recent interviews with director Brian De Palma and producer Art Linson and old interview footages with Kevin Costner, Sean Connery, Andy Garcia and Charles Martin Smith. Both De Palma and Linson contribute some pretty interesting stories about how the movie was made. The biggest one was the fact that Robert De Niro was not the original actor cast for the role of Al Capone. Instead, the role was initially given to Bob Hoskins. De Palma lobbied for De Niro and even threatened to walk off the movie if Paramount did not relent on this issue. Eventually, everything was settled and the movie was better for it.

Next, we have "Production Stories", a recollection by the Director of Photography, Stephen H. Burum on the various aspects of making this movie. If you can believe it, Burum initially wanted to shoot the movie in black and white, which of course, wouldn´t have worked out very well. Then there were the problems of shooting a period film in the modern city of Chicago with its towering skyscrapers. For outside night scenes, the solution was to get building owners to black out all their lights in order to cleverly hide the existence of the buildings. There is also a more recent interview with Charles Martin Smith.

In "Reinventing The Genre", De Palma talked about wanting to make a different type of gangster film. That is why we get to experience the Canadian border raid with the four leads on horseback, a move that brings the movie out of the confines of the city. Also discussed here are the death scenes for Charles Martin Smith and Sean Connery and the gripping finale with the baby carriage falling down the stairs in slow motion. Burum also talked about a final scene with Capone getting a shave in prison (similar to the opening scene, just in a very different location) that was never completed because De Palma thought that it wouldn´t work.

"The Classic" is a short five and a half minute featurette discussing legendary composer Ennio Morricone´s music score for the film and also has Art Linson talking about his surprise at the success of the movie during its premiere.

The final feature is titled, ´Original Featurette: "The Men"´, which is essentially a short promotional piece that was shot around the time that the movie was made. It features interviews with the major cast members.

Last but not least is the same "Theatrical Trailer" that can be found on the original DVD.

As you can see, there are no recent interviews with all the major stars from this movie. The presence of Costner, Connery, Garcia and De Niro would have made the featurettes here more compelling and thorough.

Packaging:
The cover art has gone through some minor changes. First, the most significant one is the extra gray frame around a brown background, which gives the smaller-sized cover art a classier look. New but less noticeable is a string of bullet holes running from the top left to the bottom right of the picture. Also, don´t expect to find an insert on this DVD even though the previous release had one.

Entertainment Value:
John´s parting thoughts:
Did everything in "The Untouchables" really happen the way it's depicted in the movie? No, I don't think so. Does it matter? No, I don't think so. Should you buy the DVD, even without any extra bells or whistles? Yes, I think so.

Hock´s final thoughts about this new Special Collector´s Edition:
Other than the obvious extra features included on this DVD, there seems to be a small upgrade in the video transfer and a much noticeable upgrade in the new Dolby Digital 5.1 EX audio track. Fans of this movie should definitely run out to purchase this DVD for all the reasons I stated above. From what I can see, Paramount is releasing it at a low SRP, which is great news for many of you. Anyone still procrastinating or still in two minds about this new release should finally get off their behinds and go buy it.