Scarface (1983) * * * *

Directed by: Brian De Palma

Starring: Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, Steven Bauer, Robert Loggia


A few years back, Brian De Palma, the director of Scarface, was approached to remaster the film's score to include modern day hip-hop songs which glorify the gangster lifestyle. Why? Because many hip-hop artists (and let's face it, gangsters) patterned themselves around Pacino's Tony Montana and his seemingly extravagant lifestyle. De Palma refused this idea because his ideas for Scarface are less superficial. All you need is just a little insight to realize that De Palma isn't glorifying Montana's life, but instead shows how it can suck to be the king, especially if you are paranoid and hooked on cocaine, which is the drug you sell for a living. De Palma's Scarface is brilliant because it is about how absolute power absolutely corrupts and ultimately destroys.

Scarface is a movie about surface and how seductive it can be. As the film opens, Pacino's Montana arrives in Miami after being released from Castro's Cuba. He was a prisoner in Castro's jails and immediately makes waves with immigration due to his bravado. It doesn't take him long to fall in with drug dealers and the criminal element, which suits him fine because his goal is power and the luxuries that a cocaine millionaire can afford him. He ingratiates himself with Miami kingpin Frank Lopez (Loggia), who has a leggy blonde named Elvira (Pfeiffer) who catches Tony's eye. It doesn't much matter to Tony that she doesn't seem to like him. She is but another luxury that he desires.

Soon enough, Tony craves for more than just being second fiddle to Frank and cuts side deals with a South American drug lord named Sosa (Paul Shenar), who is much more merciless than Frank. When Frank finds out about Tony's side deals, he attempts to have him killed, but fails. This sets up a virtuoso scene in which Tony gets rid of Frank and usurps power. This was what Tony was working toward, but he finds that such luxury comes with fear that it will all go away.

We soon see Tony living a giant mansion with all of the latest security gadgets to protect him, but he seems more like a prisoner. He can't go out without bodyguards and fears constantly that he would be ripped off or killed at any minute. Another wrinkle is the arrival of his sister Gina (Mary Elizabeth Mastrontonio), whom Tony has incestuous feelings for and does his best to keep other men out of her life. With all of this to juggle, it comes as no surprise that Tony becomes hooked on his own product to the point that he keeps a mound of coke on his desk for him to dig into like a bowl of M & M's.

The score that De Palma was approached to change was done by Giorgio Moroder, whose synthesizer-laced score underlined the very vision De Palma wanted to create: the appearance of flash and style with none of the substance. To change this in any way would've been detrimental to the film's themes. There is no attempt at glorification here, just a look at what would be a tragic life.

It's difficult to discuss Scarface without discussing Pacino. He is an iconic actor of many depths. Any one scene in the film can suggest bravado mixed with loneliness and fear. Cocaine fuels the outer bravado while trying to quash the inner demons. How does the coke ultimately make Tony feel? Like George Carlin said famously, "Cocaine makes you feel like having more cocaine." But Pacino plays each scene with boundless energy. He's eminently watchable, especially as he self-destructs in the chaotic final scenes.

So why would gangsters and hip-hop artists want to emulate Tony Montana when they should see him as a cautionary tale? Because they simply see the superficial and nothing else. They see Montana as a powerful man who takes what he wants and kills anyone who gets in his way. But what they fail to see is a man who can't enjoy success and its spoils. Perhaps it's because he chose to wrong field to be successful in. It's not a profession with a long shelf life, except maybe for Frank Lopez, who seemed to stay ahead by "flying straight" as he puts it or at least having some ability to enjoy his money, despite how he got it. 

Scarface was written by Oliver Stone, who specializes in movies with tortured protagonists who consistently battle themselves. His and De Palma's vision was certainly the correct one. Had Scarface been just a tale of the rise and fall of a drug dealer, it wouldn't have worked so well. But with Pacino, Stone, and De Palma all on the same page with their vision, Scarface is masterfully done. 10 years after this film, De Palma and Pacino teamed up for Carlito's Way, Carlito could've been been an older, wiser Tony Montana if a.) he lived that long and b.) had any insight into himself. Carlito's Way itself was a great film and in a way it serves as a companion piece to this one, if Tony would've allowed himself any moment of soul in the quest to rule the world that would eventually crush him.