6.7 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A biography of Milanese bank robber Renato Vallanzasca.
Starring: Kim Rossi Stuart, Filippo Timi, Moritz Bleibtreu, Valeria Solarino, Paz VegaDrama | 100% |
Foreign | 99% |
Crime | 22% |
Biography | 13% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Italian: DTS HD-Master Audio 5.1
German: DTS 5.1
Italian, English, German
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
Digital copy (as download)
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region B (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
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
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).
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.
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.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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