Rating: 
Summary: Another Masterpiece From Hollywood's "Wunderkind"
Review: Orson Welles directed and starred in this masterfully crafted thriller. The opening scene is one of the most powerful "introductions" to a movie ever filmed. A Mexican "border town" is run by a corrupt police chief who frames innocent people to advance his own career. An "honest cop" who catches up with the chief's dirty deeds still worships him as a mentor. Marlene Dietrich is perfectly cast as a mysterious gypsy woman who knows much more than anyone senses. --The DVD has many advantages over the VHS version, most noteworthy the accurate speed advance and scene switch, but also many added features like behind the scenes look and commentaries. This is one of the all-time classics, don't miss it!
Rating: 
Summary: Classic Film in Classic Format
Review: The release of Orson Welles' classic TOUCH OF EVIL in a spiffed up, impressive Collector's Edition is reason enough for fans of the suspenseful mystery to jump for joy. Truth to tell, the film has never looked (thank you, Universal, for the amamorphic encoding) or sounded better, and this definitive edition of the movie, edited to conform more-or-less to Welles' vision of the piece, is probably as good as the movie will ever be.It's not a masterpiece, not like CITIZEN KANE, certainly, as the picture's story meanders quite a bit, but the famous celebrity cameos that pop up constantly keep viewer interest from lagging at the film's most plodding moments, and Charlton Heston's central performance anchors the film quite wonderfully. Welles himself is fairly hammy, wallowing in his excess weight and scuzzy behavior, but these two stars certainly carry the picture. The extras on the DVD are also welcome though one wishes a "making of" documentary along the lines of the Hitchcock films on DVD would have been produced. The film with its notorious history of cutting and haphazard releases deserves a full chronicle. For fans of the genre and for Welles aficianados, TOUCH OF EVIL is a must!
Rating: 
Summary: a touch of ennui
Review: With all due respect I feel like the guy who shows up for a party wearing brown shoes only to find out that it is a black tie affair. Everybody obviously loves this picture but I found it a terrible bore despite Orson Welles' deft touch with a camera and his superb manipulation of light and shadow. As an actor, Welles' own performance as a corrupt sheriff is inspired. As a director, the results are uneven at best. His use of supporting cast, including several interesting cameos, is excellent. But it is not enough to save the day. This is a movie mired in incredibly poor dialog, crushingly bad acting by the principal actors, and a laughably inappropriate music score. Everyone loves the opening scene but for the longest time I thought that it was shot in the old Farmer's Market in New Orleans. After all, the buildings look like the French Quarter used to look and the music is Jazz. (When was the last time you heard Ragtime in a Tex/Mex border town?) And, come on, you know the car is NOT going to explode right next to the two stars of the movie --- at the beginning of the movie. The only thing funnier than the dialog in this movie was Charlton Heston's makeup.
Rating:
Summary: Charlton Heston is amazing in his role as the mexican cop!
Review: Contrary to previous reviews, I think that Heston is the best performer in this movie, i.e., Touch of Evil (Special Restored Edition)VHS ~ Orson Welles . His part seems engaged, genuine and very heart felt. Welles performance on the other hand seems a bit forced and he seems at times a bit uncertain; which gives his role an aura of him trying way to hard to play the role of the corrupt cop ( and the acting part coming in second hand). Heston gives a very good performance and one never doubts that he is playing the role of Vargas. The plot in itself is straightforward and the ending is almost tacked on as an after thought; rather then as a natural conclusion. Overall, though, I would have to say and conclude that I thought that it, i.e., Touch of Evil (Special Restored Edition)VHS ~ Orson Welles was well worth watching and I would definitely recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: ':)
Review: Mexican Heston Battles tubby Orson Welles Altman cops first shot
Rating:
Summary: An almost perfect film.
Review: Touch of Evil is one of the best american movie in film history. Directed by Orson Welles(Citizen Kane). Welles also gives an srtong performance as Hank Quinlan. Welles in this film played corrupted cop will do anything to framed the innocent in jail and helping his enemies to make a deal with them, to keep them out of jail but what i think about the film is Quinlan mostly doing it for pleasure to enjoy himself. This film starts with an car bombing after the first three minutes without a single cut. It`s rarely done on film, you can see anothers movies without a single cut in the opening scene like John Carpenter`s horror masterpiece Halloween and Brian De Palma`s Flawed, Predicatable but entertaining Snake Eyes. Most people might call Touch of Evil, the greatest B-Movie ever made. But personality i don`t see the film as a B-Movie classic. Welles brings a lot of style film techique to the movie and he`s a great storyteller. But the movie at times, i find the acting at times ordinary expect Welles performance, he makes the film worth watching. He gives a dark comic performance in this suspense thriller. Director gives this film noir classic(especially in his role) with an dark sense of humor and the ending of the film, a dark and comic ending. That kind of ending is not for all taste. Film fans(especially Orson Welles fans) of the fifties will enjoy it including the people are taking film class, will like to know this classic film and all what is about, Touch of Evil is one of the most remember in film history. I think the film has two flaws and one of them is Charlton Heston as the mexican detective, Vargas. Don`t get me wrong, he delivers an good performance but he`s unconvining playing a mexican. No wonder why Welles didn`t like the actor but it was the studio choice to make him in the lead role. Heston was a big star in the mid-fifties to the early seventies. Heston is still an actor today, he`s mostly in movies cameos and sometimes in supporting roles. The Plot is ordinary but the filming is so good, it makes you think, you are in the movie. Citizen Kane is a flawless masterpiece and Touch of Evil has a few minor flaws but filming technique is spectualar, cinemagraphy is strong, directing and the way is made is great, music score is eerie and Welles is the real star of the movie, not Heston. DVD`s has an fine anamorphic Widescreen(1:85:1) transer but an very bad Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround. The audio of the film has a lot of noises in the background. Grade:A. Better off buying the tape of this film and wait for an better edition of this film.
Rating:
Summary: Touch of Welles
Review: Having just seen this film for the first time (on DVD) one can only be impressed with the genius that was Orson Welles. This film is a sheer delight from start to finish. The way Welles' uses the camera, his use of light and shadow are amazing plus some of the finest Black & White photography that has ever been committed to film. Then there is the cast, all well chosen for their roles and they respond to Welles' direction by giving good performances. Look out for cameos from Joseph Cotten, Zsa Zsa Gabor and Mercedes McCambridge. Welles' portrayal of Capt. Quinlan is amazing. As soon as you see him, the viewer knows that this is an evil and corrupt man yet a man who thinks that what he does (framing the most likelysuspect) is acceptable law enforcement. And even if Quinlan is proved right, does that make his actions right? This is dilemma, not only for his colleagues in the film but for the viewer as well. The fact that Quinlan ends up in a garbage dump tells us what Welles thinks of this man. It is evident that repeated viewings are required to get the most from this film. Touch Of Evil ranks alongside Citizen Kane and The Third Man as wonderful, absorbing and superbly crafted films. The only complaint I have with the DVD is that the original studio cut of 95 minutes should have been included (no problems with my picture). Welles' memo would have made more sense if it had been.
Rating: 
Summary: aka "Touch of Crap"
Review: First of all, "Touch of Evil" is one of my top 5 favorite movies, and one of the most important and influential movies ever made. However, it seems to me that importance or influence doesn't mean anything to the Universal Home Video, at least in the case of this movie, because, the DVD treatment is really in one word "Horrible!". Orson Welles' "Touch of Evil", has inspired and influenced so many filmmakers ever since its release, from the French New Wave directors like Francois Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard, to George Lucas and Martin Scorsese and beyond, that it doesn't seem to me to be ridiculous or nitpicking to expect special treatment on the DVD, or at least decent treatment. The only positive thing about this DVD is the first 5 seconds of the opening menu. The picture and sound quality are probably the worst that I have seen yet on a major studio DVD release. The picture is very blurry and it's very difficult to see what's going on because of the darkness, and it's not as a result of the dark cinematography, because, I've seen this movie in a theater, on TV airings, and on the original VHS, and the picture on this DVD is the absolute worst, it's almost worse than on one of the budget DVDs. Also, I'm not even sure as to whether or not Orson Welles intended it to be in widescreen format, it seems to play better in full-screen format. The sound quality is also really bad, it's very inconsistent, especially considering that Orson Welles considered sound as an extremely important element of the movies and used sound creatively to add dramatic impact to the overall film experience, which was another one the many innovative aspects of his movies. The only real bonus feature is the 50-page memo that Orson Welles sent to the studio heads containing his passionate suggestions for changes, and pleas for what not to alter. I'm sure that the Orson's 50-page memo including to sucker in people who loves this movie, but, it's not something that you can't attain if you really want without buying this DVD. They should have included the behind-the-scenes documentary, a commentary track with some of the stars and supporting actors that are still alive and even some of the people involved in the reconstruction or Peter Bogdonavich who is one of the most avid admirers of Orson Welles, also the previous version or versions of the movie, and even an isolated score track. Come on Universal, even in death Orson Welles still is disrespected by the people at Universal Studios! Overall the treatment of Orson Welles' "Touch of Evil" on this DVD is so bad that it's ridiculous to call it "Restored Collector's Edition", they should have called it "The Suckers Edition of Touch of Crap"!!!!! Final Warning!!! Don't be a sucker and buy this DVD, you'd be better off buying a couple of blank tapes and recording the documentary and the movie from one of the recent TV airings. After I bought it and saw it I was so dissapointed, I felt like a sucker so I returned it as fast as I could. Hopefully if enough protests are made, they will pay attention and release a real collector's edition or give it to Criterion to give it special treatment.
Rating:
Summary: Bar? None!
Review: Universal restored this movie well. However, the studio stupidly released it in widescreen format on DVD. Welles' full-screen ONLY flick now has black bars lopping off maybe the top and bottom fourths of the picture, ruining his original composition and eliminating important details (such as the shoebox Quinlan's partner carries when leaving the Mexican youth's house). If you want to see the flick in its original format, buy the videotape.
Rating:
Summary: Buy this, even if you've already seen this film 20 times!
Review: Generally considered as the ultimate Film Noir (and the last film of the genre), TOUCH OF EVIL is certainly one of the most macabre, bizarre poignant films ever produced in Hollywood. The director Orson Welles is of course the man who made CITIZEN CANE, but many Welles affectionados such as Peter Bogdanovich actually consider TOUCH OF EVIL better than KANE; as a matter of fact the best film Welles has ever directed. Welles' bravula mise en scene, with the help of Russel Metty's startling black-and-white lighting and stunning camera movement, transform Venice, California into a chaotic frontier town between the US and Mexico. Charlton Heston, often refereed to as the most wooden actor in American cinema, gives a performance of his life as a Mexican cop. His casting may sound funny, but please forget that it's the same guy who played BEN HUR and Moses in the TEN COMMANDMENTS watching this movie then his highly energetic, rather over-the-top performance is actually convincing, especially as opposed to Welles' deliciously vicious portrayal of a corrupted American cop. It was actually Heston who suggested Universal that Welles would not only act in this film but also direct it, so you should give him some credit. Janet Leigh plays Heston's all-American wife "from Philadelphia", and is also quite marvelous in the way she turns out to be something else that we first think she is. With Hitchcock's PSYCHO and Anthony Mann's THE NAKED SPUR, this is probably her best performance. Metty's contrasty black-and-white photography also makes her very beautiful. She looks always better in blacho and white than in color, don't you think so? This unorthodox casting works, because the film is a bigger than life caricature. It is often unbelievably funny indeed, which makes the viewer unconfortable because the thematic matter treated in this film is certainly not a humorous one. Of course that was Welles' intention, to challenge and provoke the audience. The magnificent supporting cast including Welles' favorite actors Ray Collins and Joe Cotten (from the Mercury Theatre and CITIZEN KANE) and Akim Tamirof hightens the caricature nature of the film. Joseph Caleia who plays Welles' side-kick proves to be a marvelous actor, one of the best performance in the entire Welles filmography (that is, from another actor than Orson himself). The dark hummour of the film reaches one of the darkest, poignant criticism about justice and how the idea is executed in reality. How much is it allowed for a police officer to execute justice, what is the thin line between justice and the abuse of justice that leads to fascism and a police state? This important question in our modern society is the theme Welles attacks in this film. But as in most of Welles great achievments, the political/social concerns turns out to be only one aspect of the story. It also becomes deeply deeply emotional in the way it becomes a personal moral conflict as well. There used to be two versions of the film. The one hour and a half theatrical released version and the nearly two hours restored version. Though the longer version includes shots that were not done by Welles and Metty, the story is more comprehensible and Welles often proclaimed that he preferred the longer one (it was Universal who made the retakes and made the longer version, and why they did not released this one is a big mystery). But in the early 90's, a memo by Welles suggesting re-editing the 110 minutes version was discovered. So this so-called newly restored version (which should be called a re-construction since this version never existed; a great injustice that Welles was not allowed to touch the footage he himself had directed) was made, which is now on this DVD; with a beautiful digital wide-screen transfer that captures the deep blacks, menacing shadows and brilliant whites of Russel Metty's cinematography. The heaviest changes are made on the sequence that you might have imagined no re-editing could be done; the celebrated 3 minutes long take which opens the film. This newly reconstructed version (and Welles' memo reproduced as a supplement of this DVD) confirms one important aspect of Welles' works that he was almost obsessive about, but few critics have been noticing; his close attention in the use of sound. You can also notice his obbsession about making a film that sound distinctively different from conventional movies by listening to the audio commenatary by Bogdanovich on THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI-DVD (and reading the huge book of Welles-Bogdanovich interview edited by Jonathan Rosenbaum THIS IS ORSON WELLES; check the amazon.com bookstore!). Some TOUCH OF EVIL fanatics may regret that the famous Henry Manicini's opening theme music is now gone, but one has to admit that in the way Welles envisioned, the opening long take becomes far more powerful. As a stylish echnical tour-de-force as it is, the opening shot has now an almost documentary feeling about it, so immediate and raw, which obviously must have been the touch that Welles intended in this picture. Though there are not too many obvious changes made in what you see from the former restored version (except that most of the explanatory re-takes done by Harry Keller are mostly gone now), what you hear is very different and the atmosphere you get from the entire film is now something else. The film that used to be concerned as the ultimate example of Welles stylism has now became a great example of Welles' realism. His "realism" is something different from Rossellini's realism or Ken Loach realism. I would venture to say it's closer to something like Scorsese realism or Oliver Stone realism (if Orson were alive today, he ceratinly would have worked with Robert Richardson as his DP), and this amazing realistic feeling you get from the new TOUCH OF EVIL will certainly blow your mind away, even to those whom who have seen the movie for more than 20 times.
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