Carlito's Way

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.

Great movie..and I can see why it is underrated...possibly due to obvious comparisons to Scarface (Brian De Palma, Martin Bregman, Al Pacino team), which was much more brutal in its approach.

Al Pacino as Carlito, awesome as he is, is still much softer compared to the sledgehammer Tony Montana. And then there is some romance mixed in with the story of a gangster trying to reform himself.

I didn't like the romantic scenes myself...thought they interrupted the flow of the story...hence I gave it a 9 instead of a 10! There is also some clichéd dialogue. I happen to be a big Pacino fan and so I am being a little bit (though not entirely) biased and am sidelining all these things. If you excuse these small potatoes, this one is a great flick from start to finish, very entertaining, with some fantastic performances from the supporting cast, e.g. Sean Penn. Special mention, also, of Viggo Mortensen who comes in for a short role, but plays the part wonderfully.

As for Al Pacino in lead role, he makes sure he steals the show, as usual. Brilliant!

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.

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.

Carlito's Way is an extrememely underated Al Pacino movie. This film is probubly the best crime story ive seen, next to Goodfellas(1990), Pacino gives another superb performance as well as the rest of the cast. The story in Carlito's Way is extremely compelling and can be very sad at times. Unlike Pacino's similar film Scarface(1983), Carlito's Way is not just a blood bath without much of a story. I dont know why this film fizzled at the box office and failed to recieve any academy award nominations because it sure deserved to. 9 out of 10.