Starring:
Al Pacino as Tony Montana
Steven Bauer as Manny Ribera
Michelle Pfeiffer as Elvira Hancock
Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio as Gina Montana
Robert Loggia as Frank Lopez
Miriam Colon as Mama Montana
F. Murray Abraham as Omar Suarez
Paul Shenar as Alejandro Sosa
Harris Yulin as Mel Bernstein
Ángel Salazar as Chi Chi
Arnaldo Santana as Ernie
Pepe Serna as Angel
Michael P. Moran as Nick The Pig
Al Israel as Hector The Toad
Dennis Holahan as Jerry The Banker
Special Features:
Scarface Scorecard
Deleted Scenes
The World of Montana
Scarface Scorecard
Making of Scarface: The Video Game
The Rebirth
The Acting
The Creating
TV Clips
Other Info:
Widescreen (2.35:1)
English DTS 5.1 Surround
English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
French Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
English SDH, French, Spanish Subtitles
Running Time: 2 Hours 50 Minutes
Synopsis:
“Scarface” was originally released in 1983. The following is from the DVD cover:
“Experience ‘Scarface’ like you’ve always wanted with an entirely new audio track. Every sound effect has been replaced and remixed for the ultimate ‘Scarface’ experience. Prepare for bigger guns, bigger explosions and bigger sound. The epic gangster phenomenon lives on – with a vengeance – in this 2-disc Platinum Edition that will blow you away.”
“Scarface: Platinum Edition” is rated R.
Mini-Review:
“Scarface” is yet another one of those classic movies that I somehow missed seeing over the years. I was familiar with lines like, “Say hello to my little friend!” and Al Pacino’s performance, but I just never had the opportunity to see it till now. After having seen it, I felt it was a mix of good and bad. The 80’s music really dates the movie and is quite annoying. I guess it makes it more of a period piece, but it’s hard to listen to. The film is also almost 3 hours long and it certainly feels like it. It could have been shorter and just as effective. And then there’s Pacinos heavily accented performance. It’s kind of an acquired taste. Sometimes it makes him seem more legitimately Cuban, other times it comes across as very fake.
All that being said, there are parts of the film that I enjoyed a lot. It’s an interesting and classical rise and fall story of a character. It’s also set against a unique backdrop of an influx of Cuban criminals in 1980. The supporting cast is also star studded. It includes Michelle Pfeiffer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Robert Loggia, F. Murray Abraham, and more. The script was also written by Oliver Stone. And the violence, while shockingly over-the-top at times, still holds against action movies today.
I’d recommend “Scarface” to anyone that likes gangster movies, crime movies, Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, Brian DePalma, or Oliver Stone. You should be well pleased with this film. However, if you have a short attention span, pass on it.
Most of the bonus features on this DVD were released on the version that came out in 2003. There are 22 minutes of deleted scenes, three ‘making of’ featurettes, and a comparison between the TV version and the theatrical version. New this time around is a counter that keeps track of how many times ‘f**k’ and its variants are said in the movie along with the number of gunshots. Another new featurette is entitled “The World of Tony Montana” and it discusses the drug underworld and the gangs that run it. This is discussed by such experts as former DEA agents and the editor of Maxim. (You read that right.) The final bonus feature is a special on the making of the “Scarface” video game. Like the movie, it has a surprisingly strong cast including Ice-T, Michael Rappaport, Robert Loggia, and more. (It doesn’t appear that Al Pacino reprises his role.) So if you already own the DVD, this is what it has to offer you.
