Product Description

Sentenced to 15 years in prison, former mob "button man" Joe Valachi (Charles Bronson) turns informant when he learns top Mafia capo Vito Genovese (Lino Ventura) has put a $100,000 contract out on his life. From thievery and extortion to vengeance and murder, Valachi spills the innermost workings of the Cosa Nostra, culminating in his riveting testimony before a Senate subcommittee on organized crime. Based on Peter Maa's best-selling book, THE VALACHI PAPERS is gripping, shocking and absolutely true, "a hard-hitting, violence-ridden documented melodrama of the underworld" (Variety).

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18244 in DVD
• Brand: Sony
• Released on: 2006-01-03
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, French
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 125 minutes

Customer Reviews

MovieHistorian
This is one of the best movies on organized crime available. It is along the lines of "Goodfellas" and "Donnie Brasco" although it takes place at a much earlier time in history. It is gritty and factual although artistic license is expected. The movie focuses on Joe Valachi who was the first of the Mafia informants and set the stage for others to follow. The movie gives explicit and factual information on the history of the American Mafia from the original "bosses" through the making of the syndicate on through the Vito Genovese regime. It is a must see for anyone interested in the history of organized crime from its very beginning on to the beginning of their decline.

Some DVD Info and Clarification
Against the information provided here by Amazon, the DVD packaging and on-screen info give the rating of this film as PG (not R). There is some brief nudity and some mild swearing. Maltin's movie guide indicates the film was originally released with an R rating, but was subsequently edited to the 125 min. PG rated version featured here. The disc is widescreen anamorphic as well, not full screen as noted by Amazon (the packaging also only notes "widescreen".)

A genuine effort in telling a true story in America
THE VALACHI PAPERS (1972) with the well known star, the late CHARLES
BRONSON, will interest those viewers with a passing curiosity on
crime phenomena, as well as fans of that actor and those interested
in the historical undercurrents of America, in matters of the
perpetual cat-and-mouse game of those operating within the legal
framework, with large sums of money at stake from commercial
operations, being the cops and robbers.

The picture is long in playing time.

The final product shows high filming quality, with unusual clarity
of the dialogs and script, a logical flow in which the story
unfolds (easy to understand.)

This movie is also not for everyone, or for the casual viewer,
considering the often vicious, homicidal behavior of the individuals
participating in the gang activities ( pistol shootouts, rub outs,
etc.)

It also shows the paradox of 1st and 2nd generation Italians in
America, struggling for supreme power and financial controls
over various revenue generating rackets (protection, alcohol,
commodities, etc.) in their own ethnic group, while remaining
proud of their cultural and other heritage.

The music is tastefully chosen, and the director indeed was capable
and brave enough to show some more private, realistic and humanistic
moments by the gang members, which tends to underline the
biographical, and true nature of the story told within, vs. the
fantasy tales, and robotic nonsensical behavior too often seen in
movies released post 1990's.

There is an admirable effort in portraying scenes at the turn of the
century, and the decades following WWII, with proper automobiles,
street scenes, clothes worn by the gangsters.

Overall, this picture is a genuine effort in telling the story of a
mob family from the perspective of a low-level member who managed to
live to tell his story to the world.