Where to Watch:
8.5/10
FilmFascination Rating
Scarface is one of the greatest gangster films and is even praised by the master of gangster films himself, Martin Scorsese. Over the years it has become a cult classic.
It begins with scenes where Cuban refugees were allowed to enter America in 1981. Fidel Castro takes his little revenge by emptying his jails at the same time as Cuban refugees. This is when we meet Tony Montana (Al Pacino), an ex-convict who bluffs his way out of interrogation by federal agents. His best friend Manny Ray (Steven Bauer) brings him a deal for murdering a former Cuban general at the request of Miami drug lord Frank Lopez (Robert Loggia). It is obvious what they would get in return- green cards. “I kill a communist for fun,” he says, “but for a green card, I gonna carve him up real nice.”
Now for Tony Montana after getting his way through in Miami, the choices are simple. He can work hard, make humble wages by being a dishwasher and just adore the beauty of the girls he sees around. Or he can work for organized crime, have some courage and confidence, gain trust, beat the competitors, and get the big cars, mansions, beautiful women, and even the attention from nightclub doormen that only the powerful men get. It is obvious that he did not wash many dishes. After a messed-up cocaine deal from Colombian dealers where Tony is forced to watch his friend Angel die, he starts working for drug lord Frank Lopez. Frank isn’t vicious. He is a guy who came across drugs and just wants to keep the business low-key to avoid getting caught and still make some nice money. But not Tony; he wants it all. “I want what’s coming to me. The world, chico, and everything in it” he says.
Frank has two things Tony wants: power and a bored blonde (Michelle Pfeiffer) who has an ‘I don’t care’ attitude and a bad habit of snorting drugs. This journey of getting power and money turns out to be blood-splattering, violent, ruthless, and more or less ugly. He even breaks the first rule of his boss (Frank Lopez)- Don’t get high on your own supply. Once he gets everything, he is high almost all the time. The combination of greed and blood lust is too much for this bad guy to handle; if one doesn’t get him, the other will. The circumstances and even his short temper problem make him against the strongest bulls in the country. Most gangster movies focus on the action and the gun fights and not the personality. But Scarface is an exception. Scarface is all about Tony and his life. Its focus does not deter any time in the film.
As Roger Ebert says “One of the fascinations of the movie is that we aren’t watching crime movie cliches, we’re watching people who are criminals”. No one is too strong and no one has an easy life without problems. In a sense, it turns out to be very realistic. It does not run behind Tony being the supreme hero or him being the most powerful criminal. It is very honest with his bad attitude and irascibility.
The character development and plot get predictable at times but it never affects the enjoyment. Even with all the power, money, and the girl he always wanted, he is what he always was, violently trying to seek something greater. One of the impressive details of the movie is showing how little Tony enjoys while he has it all. Perhaps in this brutal journey of getting to the world, he loses his soul and even his emotions altogether. Or may I say, he never really had them at all. He keeps on wanting more.
“Scarface” takes its title from the 1932 Howard Hawks movie, which was inspired by the career of Al Capone. Hawks “Scarface” was considered to be one of the most violent films of its time. Pacino became interested in a remake of the 1932 version after seeing it and began to develop it along with producer Martin Bregman. Brian DePalma’s (director) Scarface also had been surrounded by controversy over its violence, profanity, and graphic drug use when it was released. Visual Consultant Ferdinando Scarfiotti designed the film in a riot of evocative colors: gold (for money), white (cocaine), red (blood), and black (death).
Oliver Stone wrote the script for Scarface while struggling with his own cocaine addiction. On the visual level, credit must be given to the director of photography John Alonzo, and the art director Ed Richardson. The flamboyant lifestyle, action scenes, dance scenes in the club, and drug deal scenes are thrilling enough because of the way they have been shot.
A movie 170 minutes long needs a stellar cast to keep the audience hooked on and Scarface has the best one you can get. Steven Bauer (the only actual Cuban in the cast), Manny Ribera in the film, plays a great brother-like character and partner of Tony. Robert Loggia (Frank Lopez) and Michelle Pfeiffer (Elvira Hancock) have also given great performances. And who can forget Al Pacino who played one of the most famous movie characters- Tony Montana. His Cuban accent, rage, violence, addiction, and obsession with getting the world are played incredibly by Pacino.
Al Pacino is absolutely a complete actor. He shows emotions in the film such that they were the only ones he has had in his entire life. That is how much he has worked on his character. He has an amazing range of characters over which he has worked in his career. That is why when we think of Pacino no one character comes to our mind. The reason being, he has nailed so many characters that they become memorable in their own way and grab different places in our minds. Now for the people who thought that Pacino’s character in the film was too flamboyant, then that was because the character led Pacino to such extravagance. Tony Montana lives on his overconfidence and bluffing to acquire what he wants-the world. He is in a way a performance artist. He exists to gloriously be himself in his own bravado.
Favourite Quotes
Tony Montana: Me, I want what’s coming to me.
Manny Ribera: Oh, well what’s coming to you?
Tony Montana: The world, chico, and everything in it.
Tony Montana: I got my balls, and I got my word, and I don’t break ’em for anybody.
Tony Montana: You need people like me, so you can point your fucking fingers and say ‘That’s the bad guy’.
Elvira Hancock: [getting into his car] What would Frank say?
Tony Montana: I like Frank, you know. Only I like you better.
Tony Montana: The only thing in this world that gives orders… is balls.
Tony Montana: This is paradise, I’m tellin’ ya. This town like a great big pussy just waiting to get fucked.
Tony Montana: What you tell ’em?
Manny Ribera: I told ’em what you told me to tell ’em, I told ’em I was in sanitation. They didn’t go for it.
Tony Montana: Sanitation? I told you to tell ’em that you was in a sanatorium. Not sanitation, sanatorium.
Tony Montana: [to Manny] You should have kept your mouth shut, they’d have thought you was a horse and let you out.
Join the FilmFascination Club!
All the updates right in your Inbox! (We will never spam you with junk mails)
You will get a message on the top of the form once your subscription is successful.
It’s going to be finish of my day, but before finishing, I am reading this wonderful article to improve my
know-how.
I like the comprehensive information you provide in your blog. The topic is kinda complex but I’d have to say you nailed it!
Thanks, Felix. If you are really interested you can be a part of the FilmFascination Club(it’s free). I give email updates on the latest posts and talk more about movies there.
It’s amazing to go to see this website and reading the views of all friends
regarding this paragraph, while I am also zealous of getting familiarity.