Dec 07, 2006 12:43 PM
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(Updated Dec 07, 2006 12:49 PM)
Scaface, written by Oliver Stone and filmed by Brian De Palma, has to be one of the most graphic and exlosive gangster films ever made in the history of cinema.
In 1980's Mariel Boatlift agreement between the United States and Cuba, a young, wannabe, rough and ruthless cuban refugee Tony Montana sets foot into the US with big dreams in his eyes - dreams to be big and powerful at any cost. He gives a &*#$ for communism.
From this point on - the movie traces the growth path of Tony from being a petty drug dealer to the biggest cocaine lord in Miami and his subsequent fall.
There are many important characters that come in his way to the top - right from family to the professional - and everyone shapes his life and his attitudinal trajectory.
The screenplay penned by Oliver Stone is extremely graphic, poweful, explosive and provocative. The violence is never used subtely - perhaps the intention was to drive home the point that the trade is nasty and all that you take home is the filth. The language is (colorful) to me, but it might seem to be extremely profane (for some weak-hearted). Well! u need stomach to digest such a movie!
Brian De Palma deserves distinction marks for treating the film with such authenticity and reflecting the lifestyle and the period so precisely. Even the initial sequence (Mariel Boatlift) provides a resonance for Tony's subsequent life path. Choosing to keep the movie violent is also more than justified. Profanity keeps the mood of the movie alive. But the biggest triumph of the director lies in keeping Scarface away from all the comparisons with The Godfather. And this largely happens because of the difference in the characters' background and the treatment.
The soundrack by Giorgio Moroder is arresting and at the same time extremely powerful. Boy ! do I wanna have this soundtrack??
Performancewise everybody does a fine job, but it is Al Pacino, who owns the movie. His body language, sarcasm, anger, frusration, restlessness, helplessness and practically every expression is remarkably conveyed. He is the King!
Scarface - a truly remarkable film!
