Critic Reviews

Scarface is one of best of the early gangster movies; its wit and building velocity speeds it past Little Caesar and keeps pace with Public Enemy.

One of Hawks's undisputed masterpieces, and a landmark in the screen depiction of gangsters.

Its seminal importance in the early gangster movie cycle outweighed only by its still exhilarating brilliance, this Howard Hughes production was the one unflawed classic the tycoon was involved with.

Gangster classic. [21 Jan 2005, p.C6]

Perhaps the best (and certainly the most realistic and violent) of the great 1930s gangster films, with Paul Muni as an Al Capone surrogate. Directed by Howard Hawks at a flat-out pace, with thrilling shoot-outs and intriguing if depraved characters. [18 Jun 2013]

Scarface is by far the most visually inventive and tonally anarchic movie that Hawks made. Among other things, it’s a tribute to the freedom that independent producers afforded directors then—and still do today.

A dark, brutal, exhilaratingly violent film, blending comedy and horror in a manner that suggests Chico Marx let loose with a live machine gun.

Here's the third classic you'd better know if you're going to know anything about American gangster movies. This one is powered by Paul Muni's thinly disguised and daringly simian take on Al Capone. [01 Nov 1991, p.35]

Some of the humour is dated, but mostly it's astonishingly modern, full of unforgettable images. Muni is stunning and George Raft, who, like Sinatra, enjoyed the company of mobsters, gives an iconic performance: his cool, coin-tossing habit is referred to both in Singin' in the Rain and Some Like it Hot. [09 Apr 2006, p.18]

Overall, it's a terrific movie, even though the pacing doesn't always seem quite right.