The Valachi Papers Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

The Valachi Papers Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 17, 2022

Terence Young's "The Valachi Papers" (1972) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include audio commentary by film historian Paul Talbot as well as vintage promotional materials for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The text below was initially used in our review of Indicator/Powerhouse Films' Region-B release of The Valachi Papers, which was produced in 2021.

Earlier this year, Sony Pictures Classics produced a beautiful release of Marco Bellocchio's latest film, The Traitor, which sadly did not receive the attention it deserves. I would like to mention a couple of things about Bellocchio’s film because it has plenty in common with Terence Young’s The Valachi Papers.

The Traitor chronicles the rise and fall of Italian crime boss Tommaso Buscetta, who after becoming a target for some of his competitors committed the unthinkable crime -- breaking omerta. In the 1970s, Buscetta was a key figure in Cosa Nostra and was heavily involved with the proliferation of the drug business in Italy. For a while, he relocated to Brazil, where he attempted to create a new image for himself as a legit businessman, but when his rivals started slaughtering his relatives back home, he reacted and got caught. The Brazilian government then struck a deal with the Italian government and Buscetta was promptly extradited to Rome, where special prosecutor Giovanni Falcone began working with him to build a case against Cosa Nostra. Though Falcone was eventually killed by the people he was investigating, the case he initiated exposed Cosa Nostra’s activities and thanks to Buscetta’s detailed testimonies changed it forever.

The events in The Valachi Papers reconstruct a very similar dramatic hit on Cosa Nostra that had a lasting impact on its activities and public image. The film is based on Peter Maas’ international bestseller which gathers a lot of information from the trial against Joe Valachi, a made man who was part of Lucky Luciano’s clan. Like Buscetta, Valachi found himself involved with the drug business and eventually in trouble with the law, and while in prison received the dreaded il bacio della morte (kiss of death) from one of his former employers, crime boss Vito Genovese. Valachi had not broken omerta when Genovese declared that he is a dead man walking, but soon after, while fearing for his life and family, started talking. His testimonies were broadcast live on American TV and covered by news networks around the world and used by the authorities to detain various prominent gangsters.

The key similarity between The Valachi Papers and The Traitor is the abundance of information they provide suggesting -- and depending on the point of view perhaps also proving -- that Valachi and Buscetta were transformed into ‘rats’ by the very people they worked with and served. In other words, their betrayal was not the culmination of a long transformation that separated them from the criminal environment in which they prospered. It was a reactionary move that they saw as the only play that can guarantee their safety. Before their deals with the authorities, neither Valachi nor Buscetta had planned the massive structural damage Cosa Nostra suffered.

How Young and Bellocchio reconstruct the lives and deeds of their stars, however, are quite different. In The Valachi Papers, Charles Bronson essentially plays a classic cinematic macho gangster who undergoes a conventional transformation that sends him to the top and then straight to prison. The film also takes full advantage of the colorful period atmosphere and routinely emphasizes the action as if it is meant to appear in an unusually long vintage commercial. Unsurprisingly, other big stars, like Lino Ventura and Joseph Wiseman, shine bright as well. So, The Valachi Papers is a complete gangster film that takes its glamour very, very seriously. The Traitor has a different personality. It uses Buscetta’s trial to produce a complete profile of Cosa Nostra as a humongous international organization, which is why it also operates with a massive number of names and historical references. In many ways, it looks and feels like an extremely well-researched document on the transition from the old order that Cosa Nostra established in Italy after WWII to the new order that arrived with the proliferation of the drug business.

The Valachi Papers has a good reputation which is entirely deserved, but it is neither a great gangster film nor a detailed authoritative account of Valachi’s historic betrayal. Its main intent was to unite a few very big American and European stars while retelling a hot story virtually everyone had become familiar with.

The Valachi Papers Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Valachi Papers arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from an older master that was supplied by Sony Pictures. In case you are wondering, this isn't the same master that British distributors Indicator/Powerhouse Films worked with to produce this Region-B release of The Valachi Papers.

This film has to be redone in 4K so that it looks as good as it should. I much prefer how it looks on this release, but the limitations of the existing master are very easy to recognize. For example, in darker areas various nuances could be better exposed; shadow definition should be more convincing as well. The entire film looks a tad softer than it should and the size of your screen will determine how often you notice the shakiest areas. Unsurprisingly, grain exposure could be more convincing. Now, this film has a stylized period appearance that is defined by particular primaries and nuances. On this master, they are better balanced and support a warmer color temperature with more convincing transitions. I think that this is the more accurate color temperature, but I also think there is still room for meaningful improvements in terms of saturation and balance. Image stability is good, but I did notice a few shaky spots. There are no distracting large debris, cuts, damage marks, warped or torn frames to report. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

The Valachi Papers Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

This release has only an English lossless audio track. (Indicator/Powerhouse Films' Region-B release has an Italian lossless track as well). However, the English audio track is the one you need to use when viewing the film because all of the big stars spoke their lines in English. I think that the audio is very good. It could be slightly uneven at times, but my suspicion is that this is simply how the original soundtrack was finalized. Perhaps there is some room for small rebalancing work, but I doubt that a newly remastered track will sound dramatically better.

The Valachi Papers Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - Paul Talbot, the ultimate authority on anything that has something to do with Charles Bronson, delivers yet another spectacular commentary that covers everything from the production of the The Valachi Papers to the specific locations that were chosen for key segments to the actual historical events that are recreated in the film to its visual style and tone. (There is even information on the fake gray hair that Bronson had to have to look older). Talbot, who is also very interested in the history of the mafia in America, has some great comments about many of its key figures. Fantastic commentary. (On the Region-B release, Talbot's voice sounds slightly elevated. The same issue is retained on this release).

• U.S. Trailer - a vintage trailer for The Valachi Papers. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• German Trailer - a vintage German trailer for The Valachi Papers. In German, with English subtitles. (4 min).

• TV Spots - a couple of vintage TV spots for The Valachi Papers. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Radio Spot - a vintage radio spot for The Valachi Papers. In English, not subtitled. (1 min).

The Valachi Papers Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you are interested in finding out who the real Joe Valachi was and how his revelations defined Cosa Nostra to the public, you should read Peter Maas' international bestseller and spend some time digging into archival TV content. Terence Young's film is very nicely researched and plenty of it was shot on real locations, but it is not a detailed and authoritative account of Valachi's historic betrayal. It is a fine period gangster film whose main objective was to bring together some pretty big American and European stars while retelling a hot story everyone had become familiar with. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from an older master that was supplied by Sony Pictures. This isn't the same master that British distributors Indicator/Powerhouse Films worked with to produce this Region-B release in 2021. I think that the color balance is more convincing on Kino Lorber's release, but if properly restored in 4K by Sony Pictures The Valachi Papers will look better in high-definition. The Region-B release has a bigger selection of bonus features, but the best of them, which is Paul Talbot's outstanding recent audio commentary, has been retained. As far as I am concerned, Mr. Talbot truly is the ultimate authority on everything that has anything to do with Charles Bronson. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.