Scarface

Scarface Analysis

For this task we had too watch Scarface (1983) directed by Brian De Palma and starring Al Pacino as Scarface, this film is set in 1980 Miami and Al Pacino plays a determined Cuban immigrant for gets a taste of drug cartel and the high life while succumbing to greed.

In this film it starts off with showing actually footage of back when Cuban’s got sent off too America with classic type of an eighties style around it, then after the introduction of the film they introduce the main character Tony Montana who is straight away betrayed as someone who has some wit too him and is a strong character from this you know he is the main character. You get too know him a bit from the police interviewing him so where is has come from and what type of lifestyle he is looking for and then he mentioned he dreamed to come too America he known one day he would this is an element the writer (Oliver Stone) uses called the American Dream which he uses in most of his films as he is a very big American Patriot towards his script writing for his country.   

From then on it sets up the theme of the American Dream for this film and this is something that grabs and keeps the audiences attention throughout this three hour film, is wanting to find out firstly what his dream is and will he get it by adding in crime/gangsters into it this is something that grabs the audience even further. How they add in that this is a gangster genre is through Tony they idolise him as most directors do in gangster films shows what type of lifestyle they have, the obvious is the violence they do use isn’t a huge amount until right at the end where they build up little bits of strong violence and then save the huge use of violence and action in ending. The whole film is set around one drug thou and that is cocaine, drugs being another convention for a gangster film but the main thing throughout this film that is a key convention of a gangster film which is used very strongly is money, too a point in the film he has so much money the bank don’t know how they are going to take it and help rinses it for Tony this is something that is shown I think to get the audience (people who want to inspire to be something and get money). This is shown through also the documentary we watched on disc two of Scarface the film inspired a lot of rap and RnB musicians that Tony came up from nothing from a slum for Cubans and then ends up with his American Dream but with a very strong cost. They were talking about him as a sort of idol, someone they look too when they were trying to make there dream in music come true and to be honest he is very easily idolised in the film because he does see a goal and he stops at nothing too get it and it’s a message a lot of people would look at and make them think they should go for the dream, even thou Tony’s dream involves death and drugs both the director and writer both find it easy to try and relate the audience and Tony together.

In Scarface just like any other gangster film they have a leading male aka Tony Montana aka Scarface (Al Pacino) and they have a leading lady aka Elvira Hancock (Michelle Pfeiffer) and both betrayed in very different ways. Firstly Tony is shown as a typical male back in Miami in the eighties and gangster films in a general, if you had money and power you get the lady but also is shown as a strong character while Elvira is shown as a settler who ever can provide her with money, power and safety she will go too and has no power over who she with even after Tony murdered her boyfriend/partner Frank Lopez (Robert Loggia) she doesn’t question him Tony or even cry over Franks death not a single emotion was given Tony just turns too her and says “Get you clothes your coming with me now” like he has taken over the property of her she doesn’t hit him and say no she grabs her clothes and goes with him and even goes off too marry him, only when she see’s what Tony is becoming and treating her she stands up for herself but it takes so much for her to leave Tony, while it took so little for her to marry him.

I once heard this film being described of being on cocaine itself and yes it’s a very over the top film but the three hour climax leaves you with the final showdown in which Tony has lost everything which made him have power and respect (he loses his wife, his best friend/partner/sister/and his business/business partner) and it leads too his downfall as in every gangster film they all have there downfall and his was greed and the greed was built up throughout the film more and more by adding more and more power and money towards Tony and that was his downfall. In Tony downfall you get left with the very famous final showdown with the famous one liner words “Say Hello To My Little Friend” which anyone they had even heard of Scarface will know that one famous line which is the begging of the final showdown, unlimited action and the end of Tony Montana’s legacy.

After the final showdown is over and Tony is dead lying in his fountain of his own blood the camera shows above the fountain too where he has a model of the world and around it in red glowing lights says “The World Is Yours” this is also shown as the begging of him becoming killing Frank and is shown after he goes to collect one of his prizes (Elvira) this shows that the world is now his and showing it on a blimp is showing he has reached the top now, while when it is shown in red after his death is showing he has the world but now his dream is dead and is contrasted with the blood in the fountains water.

Scarface is known to be a very iconic film in the gangster genre not just because of its famous one liners and famous scenes and not even because of Al Pacino’s amazing performance as the famous “Tony Montana” aka “Scarface” but because of how iconic the message/meaning of the film is too people showing someone with nothing sets out too change that and get his dream while also showing people not too be take by the greed.  

By Bradley Westall