It's lonely at the top

Rating: 9/10 (29 November 2008)

"Scarface" has aged really well. It was deemed trashy cult twenty years ago; now, it is undoubtedly one of the landmarks of the 80s, a monster tale about outsider ambition vs. loser fatalism that handsomely beats "Wall Street" at its own game.
Stylish and super-charged throughout, what takes "Scarface" to the next level is the uncanny way the movie embodies its message. In true DePalma-style the direction is way too lavish; Moroder's soundtrack borderline kitschy; Pacino's Montana so inhumanly goal-oriented we know he's really headed nowhere; and Stone's otherwise pointed script full of drawn-out scenes about seemingly nothing, effectively underlining the emptiness of his characters. (A technique that wasn't lost on Tarantino.)
Yet this is not, as some have stated, a vulgar flick about vulgarity. There's a deeper layer here... Montana never smiles; he enjoys neither his violence nor his opulence; and even after his loved ones die, he doesn't gain insight. The inevitable grand finale still exceeds expectations, with DePalma & Pacino burning Rome to the ground with the grandiosity Montana deserves.
Epic in every aspect, "Scarface" is a must-see if only because you'll feel strongly about it.