--- title: "Scarface: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/scarface/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/scarface" critics_score: 65 critics_reviews: 9 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Scarface (1983): what the critics said Critics' score 65 from 9 reviews: 6 positive, 1 mixed, 2 negative. Most critics respond warmly to Scarface’s excess, with praise clustering around Al Pacino’s swaggering, ferocious performance as Tony Montana. Even the harsher reviews find him magnetic, while supporters credit Brian De Palma’s direction with giving the criminal world both visual flair and a sense of sleaze. The favourable readings see a bitter satire of greed and acquisitive culture, with sharp dialogue, dark humour and forceful set pieces making its broad style feel purposeful. The spread is wide, however, and the same excess attracts complaints about overacting, length and garishness. The Hollywood Reporter admires Pacino but finds little else to recommend, criticising Oliver Stone’s dialogue and De Palma’s plodding direction; Eye for Film likewise finds the film dated and lacking in heart despite its lead performance. Between those positions, the reservations concern whether the outrageous behaviour yields much insight, and whether the pacing can sustain the film’s scale. ## Empire — Andy Gill Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. The critic praises Al Pacino's spectacular performance as Tony Montana, highlighting his demonic intensity and swagger. They note the film's initial critical disdain but defend it as a black-hearted satire on excess and acquisitive culture. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/scarface-review/) ## Radio Times — Alan Jones Rating 4/5. This update of the 1932 classic relocates the story to Miami and follows the rise and fall of a Cuban refugee turned cocaine kingpin. Al Pacino delivers one of his finest performances alongside strong support, with sharp dialogue and vivid cinematography making it a modern classic, though some may find the excesses off-putting. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-kh2sot/scarface/) ## Slant Magazine — Martyn Bamber Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 7 September 2006. Praises the remake as superior to most updates of classics, highlighting De Palma's visual restraint and the film's portrayal of a gaudy, sleazy world with humor and horror elements. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/scarface/) ## Evening Standard Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 10 April 2012. The critic highlights Al Pacino's spectacularly over-the-top performance as Tony Montana in the drug trade rise-and-fall story. They praise De Palma's notable sequences and describe the film as visceral with flair. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/pacino-is-spectacularly-over-the-top-in-scarface-7416181.html) ## The AV Club — Scott Tobias Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 7 October 2003. The review discusses how the film has been misinterpreted in hip-hop culture but praises De Palma's subversive, raw take on the gangster genre as a trashy counterpoint to The Godfather, highlighting Pacino's energetic performance. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/scarface-dvd-1798198957) ## Time Out — Tom Huddleston Rating 3/5. 18 August 2009. The film’s outrageous excess powers a fun, unashamed study of selfish criminality without any Godfather-style honour and family guff, though its unironic adoption by certain subcultures highlights its ludicrous aspects over piercing insight. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/scarface-1) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Duane Byrge Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 1 December 2018. The critic finds the film gruesome and violent with little to recommend beyond Pacino's extraordinary performance; criticizes Stone's dialogue and De Palma's plodding direction. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/scarface-review-1983-movie-1163028/) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert 9 December 1983. The film succeeds as a portrait of a flawed, evil man made human through Al Pacino's performance as Tony Montana. It observes the criminal's rise and self-destruction with anthropological detachment while delivering an exciting crime story. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/scarface-1983) ## The New York Times — Vincent Canby 9 December 1983. Brian De Palma's update is the most stylish and provocative serious film about the American underworld since The Godfather. It is a relentlessly bitter, satirical tale of greed focused on one young hood's rapid rise and fall in the cocaine trade. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1983/12/09/movies/screen-al-pacino-stars-in-scarface.html) ## Collider — Andre Dellamorte Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 20 September 2011. The critic calls Scarface one of the most entertaining bad movies ever made, praising its quotable dialogue, set pieces like the chainsaw sequence, and cultural impact while criticizing its overlong runtime, overacting, and weaker sections borrowed from the original film. [Read the review](https://collider.com/scarface-united-93-blu-ray-review/) ## Eye for Film — Stephen Carty Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 9 April 2010. The critic finds the film overrated and extremely dated, a flawed epic lacking in heart despite Pacino's magnetic performance and some memorable scenes. They single out the overlong runtime and garish style as complaints, while noting an attempt at depth in critiquing the American dream. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/scarface-film-review-by-stephen-carty) ## Den of Geek — Luke Holland 2 September 2011. The critic finds Scarface a tour-de-force that holds up as one of the great gangster films, praising its exuberant performances, irresistible script and striking direction. The broad, brash style and Pacino's larger-than-life turn as Tony Montana are singled out as strengths despite some uneven pacing and dated elements. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/scarface-blu-ray-review/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/scarface.md