Scarface (1983)
I’m not stoned - you’re stoned.
THE SUMMARY: A Cuban refugee finds wealth and power in the Miami drug hustle, shooting faces and stealing women until he realizes the futility of it all and dies in a coked-out mass shooting in his own mansion. It’s a graphic and gory depiction of the destiny of downfall a man faces if he doesn’t prioritize his life properly. There is no substitute for family - not even a pre-ban automatic M16 with an under-barrel grenade launcher.
FROM MOVIE-PICKER ALEX M: A movie that doesn’t require much introduction. I picked it because it’s a classic guy movie with shootouts, cars and that 1980s aesthetic sorely missing from America today. I can’t count the amount of times I have seen it and it never gets old.
JAMIE AND JEANNE’S SHOW AI ART FOR THE WEEK:
I took off my chin and gave it to Blonde. Who is now Brunette.
If you thought the painting was weird, just wait for the video.
THE BEST:
Money and power are nothing without family: Sure, most people remember the violence and specifically the final shootout, and it is a memorable and quotable scene, but the most important piece of the movie is the dinner scene at the restaurant. Here they sit, with all the money, power, and indulgences possibly imaginable, and yet they’re miserable. Tony resents Elvira for her ‘polluted womb.’ Elvira resents Tony for his total unpreparedness and unsuitability for fatherhood. They have everything in the world except the only thing that matters - a child to secure their bond and their legacy. So they hate each other, and they become enraged and violent.
For everything that may seem exaggerated in this movie, this lesson isn’t at all. It doesn’t matter what you build if you have nobody for whom to leave it. The first brick in your castle must be your family, always.
I sure hope you like violence: As much as I appreciate that serious point, I also appreciate the violence, in the pure popcorn entertainment way. As soon as the chainsaw came out, I had a flashback to the often-mentioned Mexican cartel montage a listener sent me years ago, which features this exact same execution method without the camera angles to spare you the worst imagery. I thought that scene was as brutal as it gets, and it actually probably is the movie’s roughest, but then the helicopter hanging hits to provide some possible competition. Commies, snitches, and more - helicopter rides can solve a lot of problems.
Tony has a great death too - not just the gunfight leading to it, but the symbolism of it: falling over the balcony after losing his wife, killing his best friend, getting his sister killed, and having absolutely nothing to show for himself except a monument falsely claiming ‘the world is yours.’ To the prior point, ‘the world’ without those he loved and without a future with them means nothing.
Elvira’s character and commentary: Elvira’s character is so much like Blonde it’s striking, in both appearance and personality. As foul-mouthed and alpha as she is in temperament, she still obeys a woman’s primary instinct: to be a mother. And she resents Tony for his inability to provide that for her. My favorite Elvira lines: calling Tony an ‘immigrant spic millionaire,' and calling Frank a fatty, ‘you’re always hungry - you should try starving.’
Women respond to leadership, good or bad: The seemingly odd thing about Elvira (that actually isn’t odd at all) as that she’s never really attracted to Tony, at least according to what she says, and yet she marries him. She flatly rejects Tony on his initial attempt, saying she’d never sleep with him. Later she’s not enthusiastic when Tony says he wants to marry her. And of course even when they live in luxury, she still berates her now husband.
What’s the lesson here? Women respond to leadership. Even if a woman isn’t immediately attracted to a man, him providing her with a plan and security will earn that attraction more often than not. Don’t pedestalize a women. Lead her. Describe the future you see with her, and then work to make it happen. Odds are her instincts will override her words.
The most important scene in the movie.
Very close to the real cartel footage.
Commies, snitches, helicopter rides can do it all.
THE WORST:
What the hell is going on between Tony and his sister?: I thought this relationship was bizarre upon introduction, with strangely close touching for a brother and sister, and by the end, it accelerated all the way to sis in skimpy lingerie begging bro to f**k her. I get this is more mockery than a sincere request, but the punchline of the joke is that Tony wants to bang his sister. I simply do not understand this plot point. Isn’t Tony’s strong protection of his sister sufficient for its own sake? Why is the weird sexual tension necessary? Are we supposed to view Tony as some sort of incestual pervert? Why? What does that add to the story?
Why would Gina and Manny want to surprise Tony?: And on the topic of Tony’s protection of Gina, the way Tony killed Manny makes no sense, either in the moment, or the circumstance that was planned. Early in the movie, Tony tells Manny to stay away from his sister. Tony then beats a guy up for playing grab ass with his sister, which Manny witnesses. And through all his other behavior, everybody knows Tony is a drug-addicted psychopath with a hot temper and guns.
And yet, Manny and Gina plan to surprise Tony with the marriage news? Even aside from the obvious risk of him finding out the way he did and the consequences that would bring, wouldn’t they expect Tony to be pissed off because he was excluded from the wedding, or pissed off that there was no formal wedding at all? And even in the moment, if Manny knows how dangerous and angry Tony would be if he found him sleeping with Gina, Manny’s immediate reaction upon this confrontation should be to explain exactly what is going on so Tony doesn’t freak out and kill him. Yet Manny just smiles, and so does Gina, as though they don’t expect a violent reaction from a crazed Tony at all. The whole concept and scene make no sense.
Frank and Bernstein’s total lack of defense is hard to believe: It’s also hard to believe that Frank and his crooked cop friend Bernstein would simply allow themselves to be murdered so easily. This is a major drug kingpin, and a law enforcement officer, and they both just fold without any attempt to defend themselves at all. I get that Frank’s security guy is supposed to have turned on him, or at least let it happen for whatever reason, but Frank doesn’t carry himself? And Bernstein, the cop, has a gun holstered the whole time, but doesn’t intervene to help Frank, or even to help himself? How did these two succeed in such a dangerous business for so long?
We get it - these Cubans womanize. Move along: Scarface is nearly three hours long, and while most time isn’t wasted, there’s plenty of time spent with Cubans ogling women instead of doing more entertaining drug cartel business. Cut out the party boy bullshit, maximize the action and violence, and you have a movie closer to a Five Wicky™ production. Elvira and Gina already fill the female roles well. The others are just filler.
Sisters don’t walk in on brothers this way.
How did anyone think this was a good idea?
THE RATING: 4/5 Wickies. A true man’s movie that satisfies both violent delights and deeper themes about successful manhood beyond them. A little long and occasionally distracted, it’s still a classic and worthwhile watch.
YOUR RATING: Vote here ⬇ Note: if you get a notification saying you have already voted and you haven’t, this is because of an issue with iOS (Apple mobile devices). Try voting on a desktop or laptop computer.
NEXT WEEK: Equilibrium (2002)
AFTER THAT? YOU PICK - VOTE! November’s nominations are from listener Alex M. Note: if you get a notification saying you have already voted and you haven’t, this is because of an issue with iOS (Apple mobile devices). Try voting on a desktop or laptop computer.
Want to be the movie nominator for the month? Here’s how - fill out the form below. Note: once you are entered, you are eligible for selection on an ongoing basis. One entry per participant - multiple entries will be rejected.