WWTW Rewind – ‘Scarface’ (1983)

Al Pacino and his lil friend in Scarface

I‘ve seen the T-shirts, the posters, the awful beach blankets and every other tacky item you can possibly emblazon with Tony Montana’s snarling mug.

But I’d never watched Brain De Palma’s 1983 drug epic “Scarface” until this week.

It’s the gangster movie that launched a merchandise flotilla, but the film itself doesn’t deserve the credit.

It’s all about Al Pacino’s thug life portrait of the Cuban hustler.

The actor was still in his prime when “Scarface” hit theaters. His annoying tics and overblown method hadn’t quite taken hold.

His Tony Montana is pure hustle, a shrimp who saw himself as a titan And, for a very brief window of time, his life lived up to his own hype.

“Scarface” soars as it recounts Montana’s rise from Cuban refugee to cocaine kingpin. He did it all through sheer force of will, never accepting the status quo, always able to con his way through any situation. Screenwriter Oliver Stone delivers a sharp portrait of not just Montana but the underworld around him.

Robert Loggia stands out as an old-school mobster who sees the fire in Montana but can’t hope to contain it. A young Michelle Pfeifer fares less well here, but her character is sketched so lazily it’s all she can do but register as the beautiful trophy Montana must own.

As soon as the Cuban gangster claws his way to the top, “Scarface” loses its appeal. His tragic fall is inevitable, and hopelessly unoriginal. Even De Palma’s usual knack for glorious set pieces fails him here. Sure, we get the bloodshed, the violence and the calamity, but where’s the grandeur, the sweeping imagery that can keep up with Pacino’s actorly largess?

Tony Montana remains the reason “Scarface” is a classic, a cultural touchstone embraced by genre fans and hip hop lovers alike. Pacino’s accent is broad but consistent, and there isn’t a wasted gesture in his performance. It’s bold, over the top and brilliant.

“Scarface” moves swiftly despite its fat running time, but by the time Montana gets his comeuppance the film has moved from iconic to rote.

(Photo: Al Pacino breaks out the heavy artillery in the gangster classic “Scarface.”)