The Untouchables is a 1987 American gangster film directed by Brian De Palma and written by David Mamet. Based on the book The Untouchables (1957), the film stars Kevin Costner as government agent Eliot Ness, Robert De Niro as gang leader Al Capone, and Sean Connery as Irish-American officer Jimmy Malone (based on the real life Irish-American agent and "Untouchables" member Marty Lahart). The film follows Ness' autobiographical account of the efforts his Untouchables team to bring Capone to justice during Prohibition. The Grammy Award-winning score was composed by Ennio Morricone and features some period-correct music by Duke Ellington.