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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Fritz
Amazon Verified Purchase
OK, I am biased. I loved this series when it was shown late on BBC1 about 20 years ago. It is simplistic story telling in stark contrast to the contrived and sophisticated contempories today.
But it is this bluntness that is its appeal. Its so nice to have stories that dont try to be clever, dont rely on graphic gore and dont dwell on a myriad of sub-plots. You know who is who instantly, it gets stuck in from the start. There is no need to digest anything you simply have to watch.
The stories are based on the book "Untouchables" by Eliot Ness and are basically set in the roaring-20's/early 30's following Ness in his war on gang crime mainly in Chicago.
Gangsters smack each other around, riddle each other with machine gun bullets, cross-each other, move in on someone else's turf, throw wise cracks at Ness in deadly taunts, molls adore the hoods in speakeasy's and Ness has a thousand lives. But I never get tired of watching this dated but classic TV series.
Each episode is about 50 minutes long and in black & white; the lack of colour helps set this in its time, I think; it would not be as good to me if it were in colour.
It has the classic voice-over, sounding like a snappy newspaper editor filling in his 'hacks' on whats going on.
I have the whole series and I love it.
If you like the old time gangster films, e.g. Jimmy Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, etc. then you will probably like these.
But it is this bluntness that is its appeal. Its so nice to have stories that dont try to be clever, dont rely on graphic gore and dont dwell on a myriad of sub-plots. You know who is who instantly, it gets stuck in from the start. There is no need to digest anything you simply have to watch.
The stories are based on the book "Untouchables" by Eliot Ness and are basically set in the roaring-20's/early 30's following Ness in his war on gang crime mainly in Chicago.
Gangsters smack each other around, riddle each other with machine gun bullets, cross-each other, move in on someone else's turf, throw wise cracks at Ness in deadly taunts, molls adore the hoods in speakeasy's and Ness has a thousand lives. But I never get tired of watching this dated but classic TV series.
Each episode is about 50 minutes long and in black & white; the lack of colour helps set this in its time, I think; it would not be as good to me if it were in colour.
It has the classic voice-over, sounding like a snappy newspaper editor filling in his 'hacks' on whats going on.
I have the whole series and I love it.
If you like the old time gangster films, e.g. Jimmy Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, etc. then you will probably like these.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.5 out of 5 stars
24 reviews
21 of 24 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Classic G-Men vs. Mobsters Saga
24 May 2008
By Terence Allen
- Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase
Retro television shows have never done particularly well unless they were set in the Old West. Shows set in the 20's, 30's, 40's, etc, any era outside of the one in which they aired have never lasted long except in three major exceptions - Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, and The Untouchables.
The Untouchables succeeded for a number of reasons. First, the veil that had been on the Mafia for a number of years was slowly but surely being peeled off due to gangland killings and the fame of gangsters such as Al Capone, Bugsy Siegel, Dutch Schultz, Lucky Luciano, and others. Even before the Godfather and its outstanding first sequel, the public had a fascination and curiosity with the mob. So take some true events, ture characters, heavily fictionalize them with Hollywood gloss and pathos, and you get a very successful show that made a star out of Robert Stack and brought new fame to a Treasury agent named Eliot Ness.
The Untouchables' collection should not have been split up into multiple sections. That's greed, pure and simple. But the lure of this show - its great characters, performances, grit and intelligence will draw buyers even though they know they're being ripped off. Stack's Ness is one of the best alltime detectives - fearless, relentless, and absolutely ruthless with the bad guys. The supporting casts were always excellent, and Bruce Gordon brough the right amount of humor and menace to Frank Nitti, Capone's chief lieutenant.
The Untouchables - Season Two, Volume 2 is not untouchable, but it is irresistable.
The Untouchables succeeded for a number of reasons. First, the veil that had been on the Mafia for a number of years was slowly but surely being peeled off due to gangland killings and the fame of gangsters such as Al Capone, Bugsy Siegel, Dutch Schultz, Lucky Luciano, and others. Even before the Godfather and its outstanding first sequel, the public had a fascination and curiosity with the mob. So take some true events, ture characters, heavily fictionalize them with Hollywood gloss and pathos, and you get a very successful show that made a star out of Robert Stack and brought new fame to a Treasury agent named Eliot Ness.
The Untouchables' collection should not have been split up into multiple sections. That's greed, pure and simple. But the lure of this show - its great characters, performances, grit and intelligence will draw buyers even though they know they're being ripped off. Stack's Ness is one of the best alltime detectives - fearless, relentless, and absolutely ruthless with the bad guys. The supporting casts were always excellent, and Bruce Gordon brough the right amount of humor and menace to Frank Nitti, Capone's chief lieutenant.
The Untouchables - Season Two, Volume 2 is not untouchable, but it is irresistable.
37 of 48 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
Enough is Enough!
23 Jun 2008
By W. J. Hauf
- Published on Amazon.com
The Program is first rate but Paramount's performance rates a "F".
We as fans of the Untouchable Series showned our loyalty by buying the first season in half season sets at inflated prices.
I will continue to purchase other series such as Mission Impossible where Paramount issues complete seasons for less than $35.
However for the Untouchables I'm through.
I will buy no more Untouchable programs at nearly $60 a season.
If the execs at Paramount think this plan is good marketing just watch them drive loyal Untouchable fans away.
In my case they have already succeeded.
In the end Paramount will lose revenues, fans will lose the programs and Paramount will blame their mistakened greed on "lack of buyer interest".
We as fans of the Untouchable Series showned our loyalty by buying the first season in half season sets at inflated prices.
I will continue to purchase other series such as Mission Impossible where Paramount issues complete seasons for less than $35.
However for the Untouchables I'm through.
I will buy no more Untouchable programs at nearly $60 a season.
If the execs at Paramount think this plan is good marketing just watch them drive loyal Untouchable fans away.
In my case they have already succeeded.
In the end Paramount will lose revenues, fans will lose the programs and Paramount will blame their mistakened greed on "lack of buyer interest".
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Delivers everything it promises
27 Sep 2008
By Kent K. Balmer
- Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase
I have purchased all four of the DVD's for seasons 1 and 2 and they are all I'd hoped for and more. They bring back all the excitement from when they were first shown. A real fun part is seeing all of the future stars when they were much younger, using the show as a springboard for their careers (Lee Marvin, Telly Savales, Peter Falk, Charles Bronson, Elizabeth Montgomery etc.). The quality is excellent. If you liked the original series, I guarantee you'll love the DVDs. Worth every cent.
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 24 reviews
4.5 out of 5 stars
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