L'Impasse

What can I say about such a movie? Simply brilliant. I make a point of watching this movie each year and every time I watch it I simply fall in love with it even more. The direction is brilliant as is Pacino's superb on-time acting. Al deserves an Oscar for this flick. As human beings, we love story telling. It's in out nature, and this story is excellent. As mentioned before in a previous review, Carlito's way is Scarface with feeling. Simply involving. I would dare say it does leave you on the edge of your chair with great anticipation, probably due to Pacino's on screen presence and experienced acting mannerisms. Penn, once again is brilliant and shines through as the high-classed, cocaine addicted Kleinfeld. If you have not seen this movie, do yourself a favour. Rent it out, dim the lights, snuggle up tight with your loved one and enjoy one of the greatest movies of all time. 9 out of 10.

Carlito's Way (1993), is a brilliant cinematic work. Pacino's performance as Carlito Berganzi displays the duplicity and subsequent torment between his reformed spirit, and the endless seduction of the street, embodied more specifically as his reputation,legacy,those who know him, of him, and those whom he allows in his innermost circle. Sean Penn is phenomenal as the lawyer representing Carlito, his metamorphosis into character is testament to his depth of talent. Penelope Ann Miller, as the long-suffering love of Carlito's life is dramatically and visually enchanting. The casting is perfect. The supporting cast superb, perfectly augmenting the film. The script is alive with literary devices, the story line(s), characters, dialogue, themes, sub-texts,etc., make this an almost endlessly watchable film. Of this genre, Its all there, action, suspense, violence, confrontations, chases, prerequisite street and wise guy character profiling with the right dialogue to make it work. Directed, executed and rendered a cinema great. Carlito's Way is atypical of the gangster genre, although it adheres to certain basics. It is also a love story, not boy meets girl, ad nauseum, but real, destined soul mates, wrenched apart and thrown back together five years later by some abberation of fate. As one experiences spiritual,moral disintegration, the other the anti-thesis. Carlito's Way is a mix of genre's veiled with diligent artistic discretion. I even see certain thematic similarities to Casablanca. Watching Carlito's Way I had the feeling that De Palma wanted to resurrect and redeem poor old Tony Montana, Scarface (1983). Perhaps it was self-redemption, or a means to a great film with a second view or maybe the fun of bringing back that great ensemble of talent, based on a similar theme. A sequel of sorts, not to diminish either film in anyway. Released exactly ten years after Scarface, the comparisons are more than obvious. Ten years later, De Palma and Pacino. Oliver Stone missing, but another great script. In Carlito's Way, Pacino again plays a Hispanic drug lord. Now Puerto Rican in New York City, before Cuban in Miami. Now drug lord repentant, whereas in Scarface, drug lord vehemently unrepentant and devoid of remorse, from beginning to surrealistic end. Instead of classic gangster genre prerequisites employed in Scarface, such as, coming from the bottom, rising in status, trust and favour in the eyes of the mob boss, eventually killing him, and gaining his empire his woman(Michelle Pfeiffer). Love? Its not in the equation- Carlito only wants to unite with his TRUE LOVE. To redeem himself in her eyes, after causing her the heartbreak of losing him forever.(Which it would have been, if not for the quirk of intervention by Carlito's coke addicted, sociopathic lawyer). Carlito seeks solely to prove to his love that he is truly changed, honest, sincere, and even has a plan whereupon they can live happily ever after. Carlito and his girl are likeable. Upon viewing this film one is compelled to empathy, wanting them to escape insurmountable odds (the almost onmniprescent serpent-like "street"), finding and deserving of happiness as long as they may live. However, it is though The Angel of Death has been hidden somewhere in every frame of De Palma's film, casting a shadow, waiting patiently to put his hand upon...

Even the ancillary characters from Scarface are brought back in legions for Carlito's Way. Carlito's Way is Scarface with "feelings". Which is another similarity in the two films, "feelings" is the Achille's Heel of both Carlito Berganzi and Tony Montana. I also believe both films were vastly underrated and overlooked by the mainstream media, but upon populist vote, they are both widely esteemed as "classic". I'd give Carlito's Way (1993) nine out of ten. If I saw a ten, it would be a life changing event.

The tragedy of Al Pacino's character Carlo Brigante is that after his shortened stretch in the joint he realizes there is a life out there beyond his gangster world and the mean streets of East Harlem. But Pacino only finds that out way too late. And like that other iconic Pacino character Michael Corleone he gets sucked right back in. In retrospect Pacino should have had a ticket for Florida waiting for him the New York minute he got out of prison.

This would be a film totally dominated by Al Pacino had it not also been for the incredible performance of Sean Penn. If in fact Penn took the role only for the bread he certainly gave the movie-going public its money's worth when they paid to see Carlito's Way. I'm surprised that he was not given Oscar consideration.

When a lot of money comes to Pacino and I won't reveal how, he buys into a nightclub with the intention of earning just enough money to set himself up in business in Florida. But in his way Pacino is a man of honor. He does owe his lawyer Penn big time. Penn in fact found a loop hole as good lawyers do and got Pacino sprung from a long rap. So when Penn asks for a favor, Pacino has to oblige.

Penn is fascinated by the life the criminals he defends lead. The easy access to money and power and women have turned him into a pleasure maddened hedonist. Some other criminals he's been the attorney for Penn has not behaved honorably to put it mildly. He asks Pacino to help him cover up that fact though Pacino does not realize it at first. It's part of the undoing of both of them. The other part is the dismissive way he treats an up and coming gangster John Leguizamo. Think of Gregory Peck and how he treats Skip Homeier. in The Gunfighter.

Penelope Ann Miller is a young dancer who is fascinated by Carlo Brigante and is drawn to him. For the audience she embodies us and our fascination. For Pacino she represents the good life he aspires to.

In character development Carlo Brigante most resembles another of Pacino's iconic parts, that of Tony Montana. But classic film fans will recognize a strong resemblance to one of Humphrey Bogart's gangster roles in The Big Shot.

If it were not for what Sean Penn gives us in Carlito's Way this would be strictly a personal Pacino work. Their scenes together in Carlito's Way are unforgettable.

Al Pacino, Sean Penn, and Penelope Ann Miller create an artistic and romantic twist to the gangster genre in Carlito's way, story of a convicted gangster by the name of Carlito Brigante, known to his ex-lover as Charlie, who manages to get his way out of jail thanks to crooked drug-addicted lawyer David Kleinfield. After his release, he's convinced himself that he's never going back to his life of crime, but before he knows it, he's inevitably being pulled back thanks to his corrupt friends and family.

While Scareface centered around the action and grittiness of the gangster life more then anything else, Carlito's Way tends to lean to the romantic side, giving the film an artsy twist. For example, in one scene there is a close up shot of a revolver, the chamber slowly moving to an empty slot. There is another famous scene with Carlito inside of a dark bathroom, his back against a wall with a pistol in hand. The way the camera is placed, the way Carlito is standing, and the way the lighting reflects off of the wall and his leather jacket are all taken in to account by De Palma. To make a long story short, Carlito's Way is very beautiful, and this is all thanks to De Palma. He directs the movie very well, you can tell that he put some true dedication in to this film.

Needless to say, the acting is incredible, no matter what you might be hearing. Al Pacino is as always great, and Penelope Ann Miller is as well. But most of the time you'll find yourself deeper inside Sean Penn's character then Pacino's or anyone else's. He's steals nearly every scene he's in, if not then he steals all of them. He's almost too convincing.

The scores are very, very strong and add on to the artistic feel to the movie. Not only do they add on to that, but it adds to the tension, the romance, and the tears as well.

To sum it all up, Carlito's Way is the best gangster film ever made. I love it more and more every time I think about it.

*****/*****

Riveting.

"Scarface" was a great operatic film rooted in Greek tragedy, primarily the downfall of its protagonist related to his own hubris and pride. Its over-the-top theatrics and scenery-chewing acting complemented the absurdist tone of the film; some carping critics complained it was "too violent," but it was silly violence...and it worked.

"Carlito's Way" is considered by many to be a companion piece of sorts to "Scarface" - but in its own ways it is vastly different. As "GoodFellas" differed a great deal from "Casino" in its narrative methods, "Carlito's Way" isn't as broad and theatrical as "Scarface." Of course, it's still a DePalma film, and that means we get some beautiful set pieces - but for the most part DePalma avoids his excessive visuals and instead opts for a balanced mixture of both storyline and directorial flair. It is not a sequel to "Scarface" - it is an expansion, and it seems entirely apt that its narrative is more mature, considering that Carlito Brigante (the main character) is wiser than Tony Montana from "Scarface." Carlito is a Puerto Rican ex-con who gets out of a thirty-year jail sentence based on a technicality after serving a mere five years of sentence. Faced with a new life and fresh horizons, he decides to heed the lessons he learned in jail and embark on a new and honest lifestyle.

"Scarface" was Greek tragedy insofar as Tony Montana was doomed to a downfall based on his own egotism and stubbornness. Like Oedipus in Sophocles' classic story, Montana was too bull-headed to take the advice of his wife and friends and was entirely responsible for his own emotional (and, in "Scarface's" case, physical) demise.

"Carlito's Way" is the flip side of the coin. It's still Greek tragedy, but it offers a new perspective. This time, the protagonist tries to change his fate, but his life is doomed to its inevitable conclusion. Carlito tries to change his ways, but - to paraphrase a character from another film - there is only one guarantee...Carlito Brigante will never see heaven. That's the fundamental truth of this movie, and DePalma's less showy camera-work, and the more mature characterizations by the actors, and the believable script, ensure that "Carlito's Way" is an entirely human experience - far more so than "Scarface." (Which is still a great film based on its own goals.)