THE MOVIE

It's a great pleasure to revisit an old favourite such as Carlito's Way on a DVD when previously the only way to view it was on a well worn VHS tape. I must have watched this movie about ten times over the years, and each time it has never failed to have me engrossed in the drama and turn of events the two protagonists become embroiled in.


Based on two novels written by a supreme court judge, it tells the story of Carlito Brigande. Just released from prison on a technicality after serving only 5 years of a 30 year sentence, he vows to go straight, make some quick honest money and retire to his dream of renting cars in paradise. But the streets have changed and nothing is that easy anymore, especially when you have a reputation that people won't let you forget.

The characters are brought to life by the ever reliable Al Pacino (as Carlito Brigande) and probably one of the better performances by Sean Penn (as Carlito's lawyer and best friend, Kleinfeld). Directed by Brain De Palma and produced by Martin Bregman, this is nothing short of perfect as a partner to their earlier gangster movie, Scarface. Whether watched on its own, or as a double bill with Scarface(currently only available on video in region 4), this is still rivetting viewing.

THE TRANSFER

Video:

Awwww...you've broken my heart, CT. How could you release Carlito's Way as non-anamorphic? What did I do? Whatever it was, I'm sorry! Please don't do this anymore. This movie deserves better than this. Even though the picture is very nice to look at, with colours and detail that make the mean streets and clubs look natural, and good detail in the darkers areas of the picture, there really shouldn't have been the aliasing on show that appears in scenes like the steps of the courthouse at the start of the film. Even though I still loved watching the film, because it does look nice, when I watched it on a 3 meter screen the flaws jumped out at me. Even on a 68 cm screen (the most common screen size amongst readers) the aliasing was too visible. Please, don't do this anymore to us. If not for us, then do it out of respect for the movies like Carlito's Way, that deserve the best treatment you can give on the shiny little discs that we all love so much. I'd gladly give up Extras (not that you gave us any with this disc) as long I got a perfect video and audio transfer. What do you say? c'mon, let's work together on this.

Audio:

Thankfully, I can't complain about the audio side of things. Where it really counts in movies like this, is in the dialogue, and here CT have done about as good as you can hope for. You'll never miss a word the characters say, with everything sounding extremely clear, even in the confines of the club. The general soundstage is heavily biased towards the front channels, but that's okay because in this kind of film there aren't really many opportunities for the rears to provide anything more that minor general ambience. Thank you, CT-this is more like it.

THE EXTRAS

Extras? Extras-Smextras! Just some notes about the film, a trailer and cast and crew notes. Lordy me, I'm a bit suprised about this. I figured there'd be a bit more on offer, considering the quality of the film, but there you have it. I'm ignoring the text stuff and awarding the 1 star for the trailer.

SUMMARY

A brilliant film, with absolutely mesmerising performances by Pacino and Penn. However, I feel a touch disappointed by the visual quality, as it isn't an anamorphic transfer. Perhaps you should rent this to check out the quality first before you decide to buy, just to make sure for yourself.