Al Pacino's Character in Scarface

According to the Internet Movie Database (1999), the movie Scarface is about two friends who have taken the initiative to sneak into America, the land of opportunities. When Fidel Castro decides to open the borders at port Mariel for his subjects to visit their relatives in the United States, Montana (Al Pacino) and Chico enter the U.S. as refugees. The government of the United States immediately discovers that Fidel’s plan was to dispose criminals to America. The two friends are then interrogated by the police and later freed to Freetown, a Cuban refugee camp. At the camp, a friend of Chico offers to get them a job and an American Visa only if they kill one of Fidel’s ex-allies.

Montana takes the challenge and kills the political prisoner, earning his release immediately. They manage to get jobs as fast food waiters for some time. Not much time passes, and another opportunity arises as a drug dealer offers them a drug-exchange job. The exchange trade does not go well and some of Montana’s friends get killed. Montana decides to get the drugs and the money, and this situation makes his step into the drug business. Finally, Montana makes through to the top and enjoys the benefits of his struggle. While at the top, he forgets where he came from and makes bad moves that get him killed in the end.

The character of Montana is depicted by the moves that he makes in order to rise to the top. He is an ambitious, focused and opportunistic kind of man. He is so desperate to lead a good life. When he is interrogated by the police, he tells them that he had always wanted to live and work in the U.S.  Immediately after he is released, he gets a fast food job which he abandons to become a drug dealer where he purports to make more money. When Montana gets the cocaine, he takes it directly to the top boss (Frank) and offers him the drugs and money as a gift. While at Frank’s place, Montana decides to snatch Elvira from him. He observes Frank’s disregard to her and decides to use it to get Elvira. He promises Chico that someday the world would be theirs (Pacino, 1983). The promise is realized when he gains Frank’s trust and commences to make the greatest move of his life: he overshadows Suarez and makes $18 million deal for Frank. Frank refuses to pay the way for Montana to establish his empire. Montana becomes very smart in business, and in order to stay on top he would always say the right words at the right time. Montana is a daring character, he kills the Colombian drug dealer right in the middle of the street and jokes that he was having fun. He becomes calm and composed when circumstances force him. For instance, the scene when he pays his mother and sister a visit, his mother curses him and even orders him to live her house. The character does so without any questions. Taking into account his violent and tough nature, Montana behaves in a rather peculiar manner. In another case, Tony Montana remains quiet when the chief detective, Mr. Bernstein, blackmails him for money. He is caring and loving sometimes, which can be derived from the situation, when he gives his sister $1000 dollars to have fun. When he finds his sister at the disco entertaining, he gets angry and orders her out. The reason for his behavior is that he does not want to see his sister to have the life he is living. He even decides to kill Chico (his friend for a long time) when he finds out that he was having an affair with his sister.

The character of Montana is a die-hard revolutionist: he came to the United States because he had just left the communist rule of Cuba. He kills the political prisoner not because he really wanted a job, but because he considered him a traitor. Montana refers to Colombians as cockroaches and kills them for fun. As the movie unfolds, Montana is aggressive all along and always strives to makes things work according to his plans. While still working as a waiter in the fast food, he tells Chico that he did not come to America to do dishes and states that he wished he would have arrived in the United States ten years ago. When Montana comes back from a trip organized by Frank, he asks Frank to consider expanding their drug distribution channel. When Frank turns him down, he takes the initiative to run the business alone.

As a violent and tough character, Montana tells the police that he had gotten the scar from a fight he had in young age. When he feels that he has had enough, he refuses to take orders from Frank and dares him to gain order. Montana calculates his moves and knows tactics aimed at bringing Frank closer to him.  He takes Elvira to a car exhibition center so as to cover for his desperation: he didn’t want her to realize that he was working for Frank out of his desperate situation.

When Montana manages to acquire property and lots of cash, he becomes forgetful and allows pride to lead him. He decides to counter the deal he had made earlier with the Colombian drug dealer. He forgets the advice given by Frank about the person who lasted in the business was the one flying straight and was never greedy. In the end, Montana pays for the mistakes he had made out of his pride: he was attacked and killed by a vengeful Colombian troop.