Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Vallanzasca - Gli Angeli Del Male Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 23, 2011

Screened at the Venice Film Festival, Michele Placido's "Vallanzasca - Gli angeli del male" a.k.a "Angels of Evil" (2010) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox-Italia. The supplemental features on the disc include four deleted scenes; An Italian Job: The Making of Vallanzasca; and an audio commentary by director Michele Placido. In Italian, with optional English, German, and Italian subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Kim Rossi Stuart as the Milanese gangster Renato Vallanzasca

Michele Placido’s latest film Vallanzasca - Gli angeli del male a.k.a Angels of Evil has a lot in common with Jean-François Richet’s Mesrine and Jacques Audiard’s A Prophet. It is as flashy and violent as the former and often as dark and intense as the latter. Unlike these films, however, it moves too fast, often leaving one struggling to keep track of the various characters that populate its narrative.

Angels of Evil is about notorious Milanese gangster Renato Vallanzasca (Kim Rossi Stuart, The Keys to the House, Libero), who is currently serving several life sentences at the Opera prison in Milan. During the 1970s, Vallanzasca and his gang did a number of high-profile robberies and repeatedly embarrassed the Italian police. By the early 1980s, the Milanese had becomes a superstar, a man the media loved and women were obsessed with.

The film is divided into numerous uneven episodes, each highlighting an important event from Vallanzasca’s rise to glory. Early on, we see the charismatic gangster clashing with different local competitors. After he establishes himself, he begins robbing and building his reputation outside of Milan.

Various women share Vallanzasca’s bed but he falls in love with Consuelo (Valeria Solarino, La febbre, The Sea Purple), a stunningly beautiful girl from Calabria. After she gets pregnant, he is captured by the police and sent to prison. Three years later, Consuelo confesses to Vallanzasca that she has found a new father for their son.

Shortly after, Vallanzasca escapes from prison and begins robbing again. Along the way, he clashes with another famous Milanese gangster, Francis Turatello (Francesco Scianna, The Best Day of My Life, Baarìa), who controls various casinos and restaurants. Antonella D'Agostino (Paz Vega, Sex and Lucia, Carmen), a close friend, attempts to mediate and help the two gangsters work together, but fails. Later on, however, Turatello becomes Vallanzasca’s best man.

A highway chase ends with a shootout during which Vallanzasca and his men kill two carabinieri. This is the beginning of the end. Things start to collapse and consequently many of Vallanzasca’s men are also killed, including Sergio (Moritz Bleibtreu, Run Lola Run, The Baader Meinhof Complex), his right-hand man. But instead of going into hiding, Vallanzasca heads to a popular radio station in downtown Rome and gives an important interview that profoundly changes his life. Shortly after, he is captured by the police and sent to prison.

Lacking the historical and political context that made Placido’s previous crime film, Romanzo Criminale, so fascinating to behold, Angels of Evil feels like a quick, very violent and flashy documentary feature meant primarily for viewers who are already familiar with the subject it explores. This is not to say that the the film is frustratingly incomprehensible, but it certainly fails to engage the viewer in the same way Romanzo Criminale did. Once the final credits roll, it feels like the film only managed to tell a good story, while it should have told a great one.

Still, Rossi Stuart delivers a memorable performance as the charismatic Vallanzasca. He is handsome and suave, as the famous gangster apparently was in his early years, and acts like an angry bull when he is cornered. The supporting cast is also strong - Solarino, Vega, Bleibtreu, and especially Scianna are very convincing in front of the camera.

As the film moves from the 70s into the 80s and eventually the 90s, cinematographer Arnaldo Catinari (Parlami d'amore, Il caimano) favors different colors and contrast. Together with Negramaro’s excellent score, they enhance the film’s retro vibe very well.

Note: In 2010, Angels of Evil was screened at the Venice Film Festival. Earlier this year, the film was nominated for seven David di Donatello Awards, including Best Actor (Kim Rossi Stuart) and Best Cinematography (Arnaldo Catinari).

Vallanzasca - Gli Angeli Del Male Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Michele Placido's Vallanzasca - Gli angeli del male a.k.a Angels of Evil arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox-Italia. Please note that the disc's main interface is entirely in English.

This recent Italian crime drama looks wonderful on Blu-ray. As we witness Vallanzasca's transformation into a legend, colors and contrast levels have a tendency to fluctuate -- the sequences from the gangster's early years in Milan have a slightly faded look, while the footage from the 1980s has a marginally richer look. Fine object detail and clarity, however, are excellent. Edge-enhancement is never a serious issue of concern. I did not see any traces of excessive denoising either -- the image consistently conveys tremendous depth and fluidity. There are no artifacts and halo effects. Blown through a digital projector, the film retains a tight and crisp image (there is no flickering or shimmering). All in all, this is a solid looking release that is on par with the ones we have seen produced by 20th Century Fox on this side of the Atlantic. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Vallanzasca - Gli Angeli Del Male Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and German DTS 5.1. For the record, 20th Century Fox have provided optional English, Italian, and German subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they split the image frame and the black bar below it.

The Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track opens up the film very well. The strong retro soundtrack adds quite a bit of flavor to the film, while the shootouts sound very realistic (the attack of the state building, for instance, is very impressive). There isn't a lot of activity in the rear channels, but when they are used, they are indeed very effective. The bass is crisp and punchy. The dialog is crystal clear and very easy to follow. The English translation is of exceptionally high quality.

Vallanzasca - Gli Angeli Del Male Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Deleted Scenes - four deleted scenes. In Italian, with optional German subtitles. (8 min, 1080p).

• An Italian Job: The Making of Vallanzasca - a wonderful featurette in which cast and crew members discuss their work on the film, as well as the real Vallanzasca. In English and Italian, with imposed English subtitles (where necessary) and optional Italian and German subtitles. (8 min, 1080/50i).

• Commentary - an audio commentary by director Michele Placido. In Italian, with optional German subtitles.

Vallanzasca - Gli Angeli Del Male Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Michele Placido's Angels of Evil is a stylish but a bit overpolished gangster film. There is nothing particularly wrong with it, but the film lacks the historical and political context that made Placido's previous crime film, Romanzo Criminale, so fascinating to behold. The cast, however, is excellent. RECOMMENDED.