Blu-ray + 4K review roundup: The Untouchables, Girls Nite Out, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

In the latest edition of our Blu-ray + 4K UHD review round-up, we look at a trio of recent catalogue reissues including Brian DePalma’s 1987 crime classic The Untouchables, John Ford’s iconic 1962 Western The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and the 1982 slasher Girls Nite Out.

The Untouchables 4k Ultra HD Steelbook Review (Paramount)

Paramount has upgraded Brian De Palma’s The Untouchables to the 4K UHD format, and the results are spectacular. Set in the ’30s, the crime biopic stars Kevin Costner as Elliot Ness, the prohibition agent who famously brought down crime boss Al Capone (Robert DeNiro). The stacked cast also includes Sean Connery, and Andy Garcia, was written by the legendary screenwriter David Mamet, and features a sweeping score by Ennio Morricone.

In addition to the murderer’s row of talent both on and off-screen, The Untouchables is Brian DePalma’s most accessible film, an invigorating tale of crime and justice that remains as watchable today as it was when it was released 35 years ago.

Paramount has released The Untouchables in a standard 4K as well as a sleek-looking steelbook (with a digital code). While no new extras were produced for the release, all of the features from the previous Blu-ray release have been ported over (in 1080p), including approximately an hour of behind-the-scenes special features.

With a dramatic and vibrant new 4K presentation and a new Dolby Atmos track, this is without a double the version of The Untouchables to pick up. Given how rewatchable this film is, this new version gets a hardy endorsement.

The Untouchables 4K Ultra HD Steelbook extras

The Script, The Cast
Production Stories
Re-Inventing the Genre
The Classic
Original Featurette: “The Men”
Theatrical Trailer

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance 4K UHD Review (Paramount)

John Ford’s 1962 Western classic, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, makes the jump to the 4K UHD format, easily making this the best presentation of the film on home video to date. One of the greatest Westerns of all time, the film stars Jimmy Stewart as Ransom “Ranse” Stoddard, a big city lawyer looking to rid the violence-plagued frontier town of Shinbone from the grip of Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin).

Joining Ransom on his quest is a tough rancher named Tom Doniphon (John Wayne), who also winds up in a love triangle for the affection of a local woman (Vera Miles as Hallie Stoddard).

Directed by one of the true masters of the form and with an all-star cast, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance remains one of the best examples of the classic Western ever committed to film. Paramount delivers a striking and rich 4K UHD image, a Dolby TrueHD lossless soundtrack, and a wealth of new extras that provide context and history to this iconic masterpiece. This is how you treat a catalogue title of this caliber.

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance 4K UHD extras

Audio Commentary with Peter Bogdanovich, including archival recordings with Director John Ford and actor James Stewart.
Filmmaker Focus: Leonard Maltin on The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Original Theatrical Trailer (1080p, 2:45).
Selected Scene Commentary with Intro by Dan Ford Along with His Archival Recordings with John Ford and Lee Marvin
The Size of Legends, the Soul of Myth documentary: A 7-part documentary covering the history of the Western, the history of the filmmaker and the film’s stars, the critical reception to the film, and much more.

Girls Nite Out Limited Edition Blu-ray review (Arrow Video)

Arrow Video has unearthed another mostly forgotten ’80s slasher with their release of 1982’s by-the-numbers Girls Nite Out. The film centers on a group of college students in the midst of their annual scavenger hunt, an all-night affair presided over by a radio DJ. As the students spread out across the campus in search of clues, a killer dressed in the school’s bear mascot costume begins to kill them off one by one in a series of sexual assaults that may be too much for today’s audiences to handle.

Directed by Robert Deubel, Girls Nite Out is a rote ’80s slasher that will likely only appeal to slasher completists or those who get a kick out of a fuzzy bear molesting and killing women while screaming about ”whores.” The one thing the film has going for it is an ending so truly out of left-field that it will leave viewers immediately googling the plot synopsis to see if they missed something (they didn’t — the ending is as random as it seems).

While the film is largely forgettable, Arrow has provided a slew of new bonus content including a commentary with film critic/author Justin Kerswell and film historian/author Amanda Reyes that places the decidedly un-PC film in context, and a number of interviews with the film’s cast who all appear bewildered to be discussing this blot on their career some 40 years later.

Your mileage will certainly carry with this one, but the comprehensive extras are definitely worth a look for slasher fanatics and furrys alike.

Girls Nite Out Limited Edition extras

Brand new audio commentary with genre film critic/author Justin Kerswell and film historian/author Amanda Reyes
Staying Alive – a brand new video interview with actress Julia Montgomery
A Savage Mauling – a brand new video interview with actress Laura Summer
Alone in the Dark – a brand new video interview with actress Lois Robbins
It Was a Party! – a brand new video interview with actor Paul Christie
Love & Death – a brand new video interview with actors Lauren-Marie Taylor and John Didrichsen
Archival video interview with actress Julia Montgomery
The Scaremaker Alternate Title Card
Original Trailers
Reversible sleeve featuring original artwork and newly-commissioned artwork by Justin Osbourn
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Michael Gingold