"Say hello to my little friend." That's the line that the majority of people imagine when they hear of Scarface. However, that line wasn't popularized until the Al Pacino remake of 1983. The original Scarface, released in 1932, is a classic tale of gang violence and criminals pre-Depression era Chicago. While this film has a basic plot and decent acting for its time, there are some strange undertones throughout the film that left me very uncomfortable and confused. This was not the entirety of the film, thank God, but overall was a decent classic.
As for the plot and acting of the film, they were both nothing extraordinary. While Tony, or Scarface, tries to balance his family life with his criminal career, things end up taking wrong turns and flipping his world upside down. Now this may have been innovative for its time, because the first motion picture with audio was released in 1927 (The Jazz Singer). Since sound in film was relatively new, there were a lot more opportunities for plot development and new ideas for the time. So granted, this story paved the way for a lot of the films that followed, but to the average viewer, it may not seem very interesting. The acting throughout the film was pretty good, as Tony (Paul Muni) and his sister Cesca (Ann Dvorak) led the show. Their relationship was definitely the most prominent character aspect of the film, and was displayed very well. However, I did have some small issues with their relationship. I understand that times were a LOT different back in 1932, but I felt some very strange incestuous undertones in their scenes together. Tony seemed to act very violent against her for going to parties without his permission and wearing clothes that he deemed unacceptable. This, of course, would not bode well if this film was released today. That was not the strangest part, however. I felt very uncomfortable watching Tony kiss the back of his sister's neck and hold her in ways that lovers might do. This suggested Tony was a bit of a creep, and I do not think that even in the 1930's that would be the norm.
Even though the film had some strange out-of-character traits and suggestive themes, it was very innovative in its use of motifs and shooting. For example, the very first shot of the film was a continuous long shot, one that is used for emphasis in film. This showed how impressive the film's set was and how the actors could pull off such a shot. This was very impressive, and is a milestone in shooting that has been used in other classic films like Citizen Kane (ugghhh). Another part of Scarface that I did not notice until reading about it in an article was the "X" motif. If you watch closely, there is always an X nearby or in the shot when someone in the film is killed or about to be killed. This was impressive, especially incorporating the X's into the different shots. My personal favorites included the bowling alley scene, where a gangster makes a strike and has an X marked on his scorecard, and when Cesca is walking out of the party wearing her dress that forms an X with the straps on the back. Re-watching some of these scenes was very helpful, and really boosted my appreciation for Hawks' film.
Even though there was some questionable material throughout the film, Scarface has proven to hold up against other worse black-and-white films of its time. Its generic plot and good acting paved the way for even better projects to appear. This film used multiple terrific techniques that were revolutionary for its time, and is necessary for anyone studying film history to see.
My Rating: ★★★½
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