Say hello to a rocking flick!!

Rating: 9/10 (24 October 2007)

Scarface is one movie about which I've heard a lot from everyone who has seen it. I've got extreme reactions from the people who saw this movie. Either they fell in love with it or they loathed it. I belong to the former category.
Scarface is a character driven gangster movie about the life & journey of Antonio Montana. Antonio Montana is an anti-communist who is held as a political prisoner in Cuba by Fidel Castro's men. In the 1970's Castro decides to deport all such prisoners to US. Most of them including Antonio (Tony) end up in Miami which is booming with narcotic trade. Tony starts of in Miami as a small time drug dealer, working for the big sharks. He is confident, ambitious & rational thinking person who understands the power equation very well & is also a family man. He rises to the top to become a big shot drug dealer himself. In this process he ends up killing his erstwhile boss Frank Lopez & marries Frank's girl friend Elvira Hancock. He is ably assisted in his rise by his trusted friend Manny.
In his hunger for power, Tony becomes overconfident, insecure & a megalomaniac. This subtle change of approach with the rise in money & power is the main theme of the movie as Tony starts losing his rationality and starts distrusting his close allies including Manny & Elvira. He starts making the wrong decisions and ultimately falls prey to his megalomania.
Besides an amazing performance of a life time by Al Pacino, the biggest USP of the movie are its dialogues & one-liners. It has got the most amazing one-liners which really come alive when they are said by Al Pacino. It also contains a lot of violence & profanity like in most of the gangster movies. The whole characterization of Tony Montana & the vignettes of his character are superbly written by none other than Oliver Stone. Brian De Palma has also done a remarkable job of bringing out the Tony Montana character like no one else could have done. Steven Bauer & Michelle Pfeiffer who play Manny & Elvira are also pretty good. However, the last fight sequence plays a spoil-sport of some sorts as it is way too unrealistic to digest. And off course don't miss the "bad guy" scene at the fancy restaurant. Al has given his fans a real treat in this scene by his superlative performance as a drunkard trying to reflect on his life. I've watched this scene over & over again for uncountable number of times.
It is a must watch for all those who love watching gangster flicks & for all the Al Pacino fans.