What an underrated yet truly great film! The Brian De Palma-Martin Bregman-Al Pacino association sparks obvious comparisons to 1983's Scarface, their first collaboration - however 1993's CARLITO'S WAY is the richer film in so many important ways. It has so much subtext, emotion, delves far deeper into the mind and even the soul of its main character with the result that Carlito Brigante becomes someone you root for and care about - which was not necessarily true about Tony Montana, despite his gory end in "Scarface"...
The name "Brigante" makes one who speaks French immediately think of "brigand" - a bandit from the gutter right there. The irony here is that it is the name of the reformed criminal and very much worthy human being that we wind up 100% behind in his hopeless quest for a brand new life... a future... and el paraiso.
The romantic scenes were an oasis of bliss amidst the grisly world and tangled web that was weaving itself around Carlito as the movie unfolded (thanks to Carlito's crooked counselor but also, quite ironically too, thanks to Carlito's own willingness to reform and "be good"...) Verily, the romance with Gail (what a luminous -what else- performance by Penelope Ann Miller) is what humanizes this film. Whereas Scarface was soulless almost, cold and all about the underworld, this film has a soul and this romance is it. She is the angel who can lead the way to the dream of El Paraiso for Carlito - the sharpest contrast there could be; he dresses in black and she is blonde, with a porcelain complexion and ethereal almost! The problem is that she is not the only ethereal presence in the film, and the other one is a ghastly one that haunts him and will never go away until it destroys him. That ghost finds an eerie embodiment in "Benny Blanco" (another -of many reasons- to hate John Leguizamo; this role right here!) and Carlito will pay the price for sparing someone that could come back to haunt and hurt him... This unfortunate bit is my lone gripe against this masterpiece; but a happy ending would have cheapened this ode to the human frailty, probably...
For, indeed, Carlito's Way has a message - and that message is that, no matter what we do, we cannot escape what we are - "our way"- and we are destined to follow the course of that until the end. No matter what our intentions are.
The supporting cast is phenomenal here, Penelope Ann Miller and Sean Penn especially. Special mentions go to Luis Guzman and even one Viggo Mortensen, who is far from his Aragorn form here - which only proves that he has some range... He is no Pacino, but then again few are... or ever will be.
Think of it: Al Pacino has played it all; here, he is the fallen one seeking redemption. And achieving it, though not in the happy ending formulaic way. This same splendid thespian has played the same type of role before - and none were quite alike! Each role has his unique feel and proper substance. Pacino even played the fallen angel who will never seek redemption and he was MORE than believable in that role as well! Truly, he is one of the GREAT ONES. And Penelope Ann Miller holds her own opposite this great thespian. Unlike what many have said, she was NOT miscast here. AT ALL. She hits every note she has to hit, in a truly luminous performance. I would say that she has the same attributes too; every role she undertakes, she gives it a new twist, even if only through some small, almost imperceptible nuances and nothing else, making it all, in the end, new and fresh. One has only to compare all of her previous roles - Gail is unique. And beautiful - not just to Carlito either. That old Joe Cocker song never found a better subject to "give it life" than this character right here.
This film does leave us with a sad ending though - a lyrical one but one we were hoping not to see. Gail's fears and words come true in the end - and it is bitter irony to realize that we could have had the "happy ending" here only if Carlito had kept his "way" like it used to be - ruthless all the while through.
The name "Brigante" makes one who speaks French immediately think of "brigand" - a bandit from the gutter right there. The irony here is that it is the name of the reformed criminal and very much worthy human being that we wind up 100% behind in his hopeless quest for a brand new life... a future... and el paraiso.
The romantic scenes were an oasis of bliss amidst the grisly world and tangled web that was weaving itself around Carlito as the movie unfolded (thanks to Carlito's crooked counselor but also, quite ironically too, thanks to Carlito's own willingness to reform and "be good"...) Verily, the romance with Gail (what a luminous -what else- performance by Penelope Ann Miller) is what humanizes this film. Whereas Scarface was soulless almost, cold and all about the underworld, this film has a soul and this romance is it. She is the angel who can lead the way to the dream of El Paraiso for Carlito - the sharpest contrast there could be; he dresses in black and she is blonde, with a porcelain complexion and ethereal almost! The problem is that she is not the only ethereal presence in the film, and the other one is a ghastly one that haunts him and will never go away until it destroys him. That ghost finds an eerie embodiment in "Benny Blanco" (another -of many reasons- to hate John Leguizamo; this role right here!) and Carlito will pay the price for sparing someone that could come back to haunt and hurt him... This unfortunate bit is my lone gripe against this masterpiece; but a happy ending would have cheapened this ode to the human frailty, probably...
For, indeed, Carlito's Way has a message - and that message is that, no matter what we do, we cannot escape what we are - "our way"- and we are destined to follow the course of that until the end. No matter what our intentions are.
The supporting cast is phenomenal here, Penelope Ann Miller and Sean Penn especially. Special mentions go to Luis Guzman and even one Viggo Mortensen, who is far from his Aragorn form here - which only proves that he has some range... He is no Pacino, but then again few are... or ever will be.
Think of it: Al Pacino has played it all; here, he is the fallen one seeking redemption. And achieving it, though not in the happy ending formulaic way. This same splendid thespian has played the same type of role before - and none were quite alike! Each role has his unique feel and proper substance. Pacino even played the fallen angel who will never seek redemption and he was MORE than believable in that role as well! Truly, he is one of the GREAT ONES. And Penelope Ann Miller holds her own opposite this great thespian. Unlike what many have said, she was NOT miscast here. AT ALL. She hits every note she has to hit, in a truly luminous performance. I would say that she has the same attributes too; every role she undertakes, she gives it a new twist, even if only through some small, almost imperceptible nuances and nothing else, making it all, in the end, new and fresh. One has only to compare all of her previous roles - Gail is unique. And beautiful - not just to Carlito either. That old Joe Cocker song never found a better subject to "give it life" than this character right here.
This film does leave us with a sad ending though - a lyrical one but one we were hoping not to see. Gail's fears and words come true in the end - and it is bitter irony to realize that we could have had the "happy ending" here only if Carlito had kept his "way" like it used to be - ruthless all the while through.