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Amazon.co.uk Review
Al Pacino cuts a noble figure in this very enjoyable drama by director Brian De Palma (Scarface), based on a pair of books by Edwin Torres. Pacino plays a Puerto Rican ex-con trying hard to go straight, but his loyalty to his lowlife attorney (a virtually unrecognisable Sean Penn) and enemies on the street make that choice difficult. Penelope Ann Miller plays, somewhat unlikely, a stripper who has a romance with Pacino's character. The film finds De Palma tempering his more outlandish moves (think of Body Double or Snake Eyes) just as he did with the popular Untouchables and Mission: Impossible. But while Carlito's Way was not as commercially successful as those two movies, it is a genuinely compelling work graced with a fine performance by Pacino and a surprising one from Penn. --Tom Keogh
Amazon.co.uk Review
Al Pacino cuts a noble figure in Carlito's Way, an enjoyable drama by director Brian De Palma (Scarface), based on a pair of books by Edwin Torres. Pacino plays a Puerto Rican ex-con trying hard to go straight, but his loyalty to his lowlife attorney (a virtually unrecognisable Sean Penn) and enemies on the street make that choice difficult. In a somewhat unlikely role, Penelope Ann Miller plays a stripper who has a romance with Pacino's character. The film finds De Palma tempering his more outlandish moves (think of Body Double or Snake Eyes) just as he did with the popular The Untouchables and Mission: Impossible. But while Carlito's Way was not commercially successful and never rises to the level of greatness, it is a genuinely compelling movie graced with a fine performance by Pacino and a surprising one from Penn. --Tom Keogh
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26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another Brian De Palma masterpiece...,
This review is from: Carlito's Way [DVD] [1994] (DVD)
The very fact that Brian De Palma directed this film is a signal that this film is of a very high standard. Before Carlito's way he'd already directed Scarface, Carrie, The Untouchables, Casualties of War, and many many more, but this film with the possible exception of Scarface is, in my opinion, his best work.The film depicts the life of a former Puerto Rican drug lord Carlito Berganzi (Al Pacino) from the moment his appeal is succesful and he is released from a 30 year prison sentence after serving only 5 years. Carlito pledges to keep his hands clean of any criminal activities...but Carlito sitting at home watching Trisha and drinking tea simply didn't cut it with the filming commission so instead he gets dragged down into the underworld yet again, mostly by his cocaine-addicted lawyer David Kleinfeld (Sean Penn), whilst the opposing force in Carlito's life, Gail (Penelope Ann Miller) tries desperately to pull him back to a normal, crime-free life. The film is beautifully shot and there is no moment in the film, ever, when you think "oo I'll just pause it so I can go and make myself a coffee"...I have the attention span of a goldfish, and can rarely watch a 2hr 24mins movie without having a break in the middle for coffee, but this movie was non-stop and kept me completly engaged, 100%, from start to finish. I don't need to tell you that Al Pacino does an awesome job...you already knew that, but Sean Penn and Penelope Ann Miller compliment Pacino's incredble acting skills perfectly. If you are a fan of gangster/mob films (Scarface, Casino, Goodfella's, The Godfather Trilogy, etc) then you absoultely must see this film, NO gangster film collection can ever be complete without this momentous film. This film is fully deserving of each and every one of the five stars I've given it!
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"You ready?!! Here come da pain!!!"...,
By A Customer
This review is from: Carlito's Way [DVD] [1994] (DVD)
One of my all-time favorite movies, Al Pacino stars as Carlito Brigande, a Puerto Rican ex drug-lord trying to go straight after his release from prison 5 years into a 30 year stint. Sean Penn plays Carlito's lawyer, Kleinfeld; A brash, naive un-streetwise councellor, he is excellent in this role. Good support from Pennelope Ann Miller, as always, here playing the love interest. Great supporting roles and cameos from Luis Guzman as Pachanga, John Leguizamo as Benny Blanco from da Bronx! and hilarious stuff from Jorge Porcel as Saso (or RON! hehe) and Viggo Mortensen as Lalin. A Compelling story, brilliantly played, criminally underatted. Al Pacino at his best, a must-own movie.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
De Palma's best work,
By
This review is from: Carlito's Way [DVD] [1994] (DVD)
Based on novels by Edwin Torres, this heartfelt gangster flick makes for a fine sequel to Scarface - or at the very least a very welcome revisiting for Al Pacino and director Brian de Palma.
David Koepp's script paints a picture of a mean New York, full of thuggish opportunists and snivelling cowards (Viggo Mortensen's slimy Lalin is a must-see for all Lord of the Rings fans wishing to see that actor's range). And at the centre of it all is Pacino's Puerto Rican Carlito: relocated, reinvigorated; reborn and going straight... or so he hopes. There's something undeniably tragic about Carlito's plight. It provides a lovely narrative goal; while lawyer and best friend David Kleinfeld (Sean Penn) wilfully digs his way into a violent criminal world, Carlito wants out - and he wants to bring his stripper girlfriend Gail (a miscast Penelope Ann Miller) with him. Oliver Stone's wickedly cynical script for Scarface described a conceited monster; it's easier to warm to this redeemed version: still artful and egotistic, and yet blessed - or, as it happens, cursed - with a shrouded sense of morality. The representation of the relationship between Carlito and Gail is mawkish, but it's worth remembering that this is a portrait of broad strokes. De Palma has never been a stranger to melodrama - in fact, he fairly relishes it. Here he draws a memorable performance from Sean Penn, while his framing and movement are as dynamic and assured as ever. The pace is pulsating; Pacino's anti-hero is effortlessly sharp and angry; Patrick Doyle's music is aptly melodramatic; and the final burst for freedom - an expertly-staged, fifteen minute foot chase sequence - is pure cinema.
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