The Big Train: Part 1

Firstly I would like to expose that The Untouchables has been one of my favorite series due it somehow is a Noir show, put it aside the whole episodes is blatant far-fetched because such dry law impose in America is undoubtedly abusive and aimless when it was approved at it's time, yielding more troubles than intended effects, thus Eliot Ness over this point of view is more guilty than never in this wrong resolution in American ground.

Now we be back with Al Capone (Neville Brand that already played this character in the pilot also this one and others twice episodes) that was arrested in Atlanta prison, meanwhile Eliot Ness advice they superior officers and board members to construction a fortress Alcatraz to able to gathered the most dangerous criminals of the country there, by unanimous decision Alcatraz was approved and start building at Rock, as long as the news spreading all around reaching at Scarface's ears, he is qualified to be in-house due its record, he plans a escape when the inescapable fortress is ready in a matter of years.

Thus previously the number one gangster already planning together with his gang located at Chicago aiming for founds to Al Capone set free and aftermaths fly away to Italy to live there for good with a cover name in a secret hideout at his home country afield from the clutches of the American law, in other hand Eliot Ness and his staff aware their move also have a plan to thwart such predicable thing, then in this first half story focusing in planning how Scarface could do it meanwhile their partners sell its properties in their own way, butcherly of course!!

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First watch: 2023 / Source: DVD / How many: 1 / Rating: 7.5.

Although he didn't have the body shape or Al Capone's facial look, Neville Brand still made a decent "Scarface." Brand also had a menacing face that made him a good choice to play villains in many roles during his time. Brand was never dull in whatever roll he played, including this one as America's "most famous gangster.

Capone has been put away in Atlanta for tax invasion and, as most people know, never enjoyed freedom again. However, it wasn't because he and his peers didn't try to break him out. The time to do so, they figured, was on the train trip from Atlanta to a new jail, just built in the San Francisco Bay - a place called Alcatraz. You may have heard of it. Ness had campaigned for a jail which would house nothing but the most hardened criminals. Places like Atlanta had made it too easy for bigshots like Capone to run the joint.

Anyway, how Capone's unexpected release was almost pulled off is the subject of a two-part story, this first part being mostly about how the plan evolved. The story is okay - nothing super - but it will keep your attention. Brand will make sure of that.

This and the follow-up episode of "The Big Train" begin with a prologue that says that the show has some fictional elements and no guards involved with caring for Al Capone were actually working for the mob! So, you know from the outset that the show is mostly fictional.

The episode is set just before Alcatraz was opened as a federal prison in 1933. It wasn't surprising that the opening of this prison would lead to Capone being moved from his prison cell in Atlanta to this seemingly escape-proof prison in California...and that actually did occur. But what did NOT occur was the planned escape by Capone from the train...and that makes up most of this show. Part one is all about the conspiracy to fund Capone in his new life in Italy after he is sprung from the prison train. And, it ends with the train leaving the prison in Atlanta.

As far as casting goes, Neville Brand was wonderful because he was an incredibly scary looking actor...but looked very little like Capone. In particular, Brand had a lovely full head of hair and was well-muscled--Capone was bald and a bit paunchy. As far as the fictionalized story goes, it was entertaining and fun but also pure crap. Overall, enjoyable but a historical mess of a show.

Nothing as exciting as this episode happened while transporting Al Capone from Atlanta to Alcatraz prison. This episode is a rare chance to see Neville Brand play Alphonse Capone during the entire episode versus just him having a line or just a cameo since most of the Untouchables takes place after Capone goes to prison.

The story is this - Capone is initially sent to Atlanta Federal Prison. But Elliott Ness worries that he will be a big man down there and so he pitches the idea of a remote prison on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay as a place to remove big gangsters such as Al Capone from any kind of special treatment and from any kind of press coverage due to its remote location.

Capone doesn't like this idea. He is OK with doing time in Atlanta where he can pay off guards and basically have everything he wants except his technical freedom, but he does not want to go to this remote punitive place. So he hatches a scheme where he escapes the train somewhere between Atlanta and San Francisco. Ness becomes suspicious when he sees large amounts of Capone's property being converted into cash and sent to Italy. He rightly surmises that Capone plans to escape on the train to Alcatraz and then flee to Italy, but in the beginning Ness completely misunderstands how Capone plans to do that.

As usual, the audience sees all that is happening. The fun is having Ness and company figure what is going on. Enjoy the police procedural aspect of it, just remember it is completely untrue. Capone did go from Atlanta to Alcatraz, but his trip was uneventful. And Eliot Ness was not the grand architect of Alcatraz prison.