DVD Corner

A Bronx Tale 4K UHD Review

“A Bronx Tale” is one of the great gangster films (although it’s much more than that). 

Based on the stage play by Chazz Paliminteri (who also wrote the script), “A Bronx Tale” begins in 1960 in the Bronx (naturally). The story follows a 9 year old boy (Calogero AKA C) who lives with his bus driver father (Lorenzo) and mother (Rosina). The neighborhood they live in is essentially run by a local gangster named Sonny who C is endlessly fascinated by. One day, C witnesses Sonny murder a man, but when the police ask him to pick the culprit out of the line-up, C doesn’t rat on Sonny. From there on out, C finds himself working in Sonny’s inner circle. The story jumps ahead 8 years where C is now a 17 year old teenager. He continues to work for Sonny and is beginning to fall for an African-American teen named Jane (even though there are severe racial tensions between Italian-Americans and African-Americans in this neighborhood). C’s life is about to take some unexpected turns as certain situations escalate. 

1993’s “A Bronx Tale” marked the directorial debut of Robert De Niro and what a debut it was. While there’s certainly shades of Martin Scorsese here to be sure, De Niro manages to create a very authentic 60’s set story that is actually based on Chazz Palminteri’s own life experiences. Both De Niro and Palminteri star in the film and give tremendous performances. De Niro plays a caring, nurturing father who is trying to protect his son while Palminteri is a gangster who takes C under his wing like the son he never had. It’s far and away one of Palminteri’s best performances (likely because he is so close to the material). The 2 young actors who portrayed C (Francis Capra and Lillo Brancato Jr.) also deserve a lot of praise for their work here. It is their story and we see it through their eyes.

‘Bronx’ is billed as a gangster/crime drama tale and it works on that level, but at its heart it’s a coming-of-age story about C learning life lessons from 2 father figures and finding love with Jane. C lives two different lives and through them he learns about trust, family, consequences, and love (all of which are themes in the film). Both De Niro and Palminteri create a fully realized world full of era specific music (Doo Wop especially), quirky characters, profound lines/messages, and a real sense of community. 

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 1.85:1 2160p With Dolby Vision. How does it look? This 90’s catalogue title gets a proper 4K restoration. It’s not a showy restoration, but it’s leagues better than past home video releases. Both the image and the colors are crisper here.

Audio Track:  5.1 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? Viewers can expect a clean 5.1 track.

Extras:
* Theatrical trailer
* Vintage making of featurette
* “Revisiting A Bronx Tale: New Interviews”- Separate interviews with Robert De Niro (14 ½ minutes) and Chazz Palminteri (46 minutes). Discussions involve the stage show, casting, directing, how the story drew from Chazz’s life, the film, Chazz’s life, and much more. The Chazz Palminteri interview is easily the best extra here. Very enlightening. 

October 9, 2023 - Posted by nicklyons1 | 4K UHD Review | A Bronx Tale 4K UHD Review, Chazz Palminteri, Gangster Movie, Robert De Niro