Say Hello to....film infamy!!!

Rating: 8/10 (31 January 2007)

The Al Pacino of film before Scarface could be a study in rising tension through the large,scared-yet-determined and world weary brown eyes of a strange but charismatic actor. The Pacino of post-Scarface seems to be heavier on World-weariness,rising VOLUME and generally less conflicted character study(some exceptions:Sea of Love and Insomnia). To me,this movie sort of is the watershed his career;in other words,what you the viewer could expect from him started to turn after this film.
Undoubtedly,this movie is meant to be as one-note,over-the-top and stinging as piece devoted to crime drama and gangsters as possible. Cribbing the same rise-and-fall of the gangster as anti-hero as the 1932 classic,Brian DePalma's direction of OLiver Stone(neither of whom would know subtlety if the definition were read to them)'s screenplay,charting the rise and fall of Cuban ex-pat Tony Montoya(Pacino,seething and fidgety from scene one),who is one among thousands of faces that were dumped on our shores during the period in Spring of 1980 when Fidel Castro had decided to "clean up" his country AND stick it to his northern,non-Marxist neighbors by loading up all the undesirables of the nation and leaving them on the shores of Miami.From the get-go,MOntoya wants to be something special,something powerful,something strong and he knows that this country he's been sent to eyes him with suspect and contempt,so he believes(perhaps correctly)that his best avenues for "making it" in the land of the free and home of the brave is to pick up in the drug trade. Along with his best friend Ramon(Steven Bauer),he goes about rising through the ranks of Miami's drug-world until HE is the numero uno in the trade. Of course,with a rise this turbulent and violent,coupled with Tony's own paranoia and delusions,this rise and ascent will not be long and the denouement will not be without a VERY bloody price.
Featuring memorable turns of support by Mary Elizabeth Mastroantonio(in a particularly memorable role IMO as Tony's sister,for whom his loyalty and love borders incestuous),Michelle Pfeiffer(as his less-than-enthused girlfriend),Robert LOggia(as a stubborn boss who uses Tony as he mistrusts him)and F.Murray Abraham(pre-Oscar),this movie never intends to be particularly thoughtful or methodical.This is meant to hit a note,and give a larger-than-life screen talent like Pacino a chance to chew scenery,and it works on both counts.This is a sledgehammer treatment of the early '80s world of drug crime,and whether you clutch this film to your bosom or not,it is vastly effective. Film infamy in the form of everyone from average Joe video gamers to ESPN anchors using quotes from it only make that more evident.