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Rating: 8 stars

Tags

Criterion Chicago gangsters power struggle machine guns brother and sister

All movies seen on 12/31/2024

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Scarface (1932)

Directed by Howard Hawks

Action | Crime | Gangster

Most recently watched by sensoria

Overview

In 1920s Chicago, Italian immigrant and notorious thug, Antonio ‘Tony’ Camonte, aka Scarface, shoots his way to the top of the mobs while trying to protect his sister from the criminal life.

Rated NR | Length 93 minutes

Actors

Paul Muni | Ann Dvorak | Karen Morley | Osgood Perkins | C. Henry Gordon | George Raft | Vince Barnett | Boris Karloff | Purnell Pratt | Tully Marshall | Inez Palange | Edwin Maxwell | Jean Harlow | Henry Armetta | Gus Arnheim | Eugenie Besserer | Maurice Black | James Conaty | Gino Corrado | Virginia Dabney | William B. Davidson | James Durkin | Bill Elliott | Eddie Fetherston | Paul Fix | Dick Gordon | Howard Hawks | Brandon Hurst | Sydney Jarvis | John Kelly | John Lee Mahin | Hank Mann | Frank McLure | Frank Mills | William H. O'Brien | Dennis O'Keefe | Jack Perry | Pedro Regas | Warner Richmond | Constantine Romanoff | Ronald R. Rondell | Bert Starkey | Charles Sullivan | Harry Tenbrook | Helen C. Thompson | Nick Thompson | Ellinor Vanderveer | Harry J. Vejar | Sailor Vincent | Douglas Walton | Stanhope Wheatcroft

Viewing History (seen 1 time)

Viewing Notes

One of the three great gangster films of the pre-code era (along with PUBLIC ENEMY and LITTLE CAESAR) and probably the best. The sheer amount of mayhem and violence is incredible for a film of this period.

Howard Hawks does an amazing job bringing a real visual energy and creativity to the action (watch for the visual “X"s that appear when someone is killed). 

Paul Muni is good, but I definitely prefer Cagney and Robinson.  George Raft, with his iconic coin-tossing, is pretty cool.

I noticed Osgood Perkins was one of the leads, but didn’t realize he was Anthony Perkins’ father, and the grandfather of current horror director Osgood Perkins.

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