Review: Read this, then watch the Movie again.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 12 11, 2013
A fascinating insight into the back story of this iconic movie. Some of the things I learned: Pacino's career was on the skids before he got involved in Scarface; Oliver Stone was 'getting high on his own supply' until writing this screenplay proved to be the catalyst that straightened him out, and we all know he went on to do many great films afterwards. That's enough little spoilers! Damian Stevenson balances film-buffery with an easy and informative writing style that doesn't waste your time. There's some remarkable investigation into the evolution of the movie, from the original/remake idea to how it morphed into the contemporary masterpiece that it eventually became. I read this book out of curiosity, but immediately went back and watched the film over again for the first time in more than twenty years. Knowing so much detail made a real difference to my appreciation of it as a piece of art, and learning about the research that went into it gave the whole thing new context. A finer piece of Pacino acting is hard to find (possibly Scent of a Woman comes close), and a finer piece of Movie Writing is also rare. Excellent book; read it, then watch the film again. Highly recommended.