The Untouchables (DVD 2004)

One of 1987's monster hits at the box office, Brian DePalma's film version of the classic television series stars Kevin Costner, in an early leading role, Robert De Niro in one of his early cameo roles, and Sean Connery in one of his first "mentor to the young kid" roles.

The movie is slick Hollywood entertainment all the way. Big, bloody and full of witty one-liners (courtesy of David Mamet), The Untouchables moves like a bat out of hell, going from set piece to set piece, almost never pausing to let the viewer catch their breath.

As released on DVD by Paramount, the disc boasts a beautiful anamorphic transfer, yet loses a great many points because of a fairly uninvolving 5.1 mix. In a familiar refrain, it goes without saying that the release comes almost totally devoid of any special features. Pity.

It is the 1920s and Prohibition is the law of the land. It is the time of Al Capone (Robert De Niro), the king of Chicago. Yet a new face has come to Windy City—an earnest, family man sent by the Treasury Department to bring down Capone's reign of violence and intimidation. Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner) is his name, and together with his small group of agents, nicknamed the Untouchables, they will attempt the unthinkable: find a way to stop Capone, or die trying.