The Untouchables -1987- streamlines history for maximum drama. Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner) is a straight-arrow Prohibition agent frustrated by the corruption permeating the Chicago PD. Al Capone (Robert De Niro), flamboyant and savage, controls the city.
It is worth noting that 1987 was a competitive year. The Untouchables went head-to-head with: the untouchables -1987-
portrays Ness with a stiff-collared sincerity that makes his eventual descent into violence more impactful. It is worth noting that 1987 was a competitive year
Watching The Untouchables -1987- in 2024 (and beyond) reveals some dated elements. The violence, once shocking, now feels almost quaint compared to the gore of prestige television. Costner’s acting has been critiqued by younger audiences as "wooden," though defenders argue that rigidity is the point: Ness is a man of unyielding moral fiber breaking under pressure. The violence, once shocking, now feels almost quaint
The defining performance of the film belongs to Sean Connery. Playing the beat cop Jim Malone—a character largely invented for the film—Connery found the role that would finally earn him an Academy Award. Malone is the mentor, the gatekeeper of old-world street wisdom. He introduces Ness to the brutal reality of Chicago: "He pulls a knife, you pull a gun. He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue. That's the Chicago way."