Stylish, very violent gangster film set in 1920s Chicago about a federal agent determined to bring down infamous gang boss Al Capone.
Certificate
Duration115 mins
Review by
The crime genre is my favourite movie genre. Why? Because it's the most interesting, especially when based off a true story. 1920s Chicago, and Al Capone is reigning supreme. Elliot Ness has put together a special team of incorruptible officers, namely 'The Untouchables', and they will take down Capone by all means necessary. I expected nothing less of director Brian De Palma, who also directed one of my favourite films of all time, Scarface. I always feel excited watching a gangster film, especially when I know it's based on a true story. The Untouchables is a fantastic film, but it's not Goodfellas. True, this was released before Goodfellas, but I think Goodfellas is generally the gangster film to compare with all others. Now, think of all the greatest gangster films you've seen: Goodfellas, Casino, The Untouchables, Once Upon a time in America, Mean Streets, Jackie Brown, and many others. What's the common factor? Robert De Niro. The way I see it, you're gang film will be fantastic if you've got De Niro in the cast. De Niro does a wonderful job as Al Capone, but the shining star of the film is Sean Connery in his Oscar winning performance as Jimmy Malone. "They pull out a knife, we pull out a gun. They put one of ours in the hospital, we put one of theirs in the morgue!" Fantastic film indeed. However, it doesn't have a great watchability factor. It's not something you can enjoy again and again. Overall, a fantastic film, with a great cast and a dman great story. 4 Stars