Scarface (1932 film)
| Scarface | |
|---|---|
 Scarface VHS cover | |
| Directed by | Howard Hawks |
| Produced by | Howard Hughes |
| Written by | Armitage Trail (novel) Ben Hecht Seton I. Miller John Lee Mahin W.R. Burnett |
| Starring | Paul Muni Ann Dvorak George Raft |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
| Release date(s) | April 9, 1932 (USA) |
| Running time | 93 min. |
| Language | English Italian |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Scarface (also known as Scarface, the Shame of the Nation and The Shame of a Nation) is a 1932 gangster film of the Pre-Code era which tells the story of gang warfare and police intervention when rival gangs fight over control of a city. It stars Paul Muni, Ann Dvorak, Karen Morley, Osgood Perkins, C. Henry Gordon, George Raft, Vince Barnett and Boris Karloff. It was directed by Howard Hawks and produced by Howard Hughes.
The movie was adapted by Ben Hecht, Fred Pasley, (uncredited), Seton I. Miller, John Lee Mahin, W.R. Burnett and Howard Hawks (uncredited) from the novel by Armitage Trail.
The film is loosely based upon the life of Al Capone (whose nickname was "Scarface"). Capone was rumored to have liked the film so much that he had his own copy of it.
The film was completed in 1930 but censors would not allow its release until 1932, because of concerns that it glorified the gangster lifestyle and showed too much violence. Several scenes had to be edited, the subtitle "The Shame of the Nation" as well as a text introduction and epilogue had to be added, and the ending had to be modified. Howard Hawks disowned this version and it was created without his input. In the modified ending, the main gangster goes to trial and is hanged; in the original ending, which is also the one usually shown today, the gangster is shot dead by police.
There are two other important gangster movies produced at about the same time: Little Caesar (1931) and The Public Enemy (1931).
The film Scarface has been deemed "culturally significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry. It was named the best American sound film by critic/director Jean-Luc Godard in Cahiers du Cinéma. The character of Tony Camonte ranked at number 47 on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains list.
Scarface was remade in 1983 by Brian De Palma in all-modern day setting; see Scarface (1983 film).
The Aviator
In the 2004 biopic The Aviator, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Scarface is briefly mentioned, and its poster is seen in Howard Hughes's office building.
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Categories
1932 films | Mafia movies | United States National Film Registry | Films directed by Howard Hawks | United Artists films | Black and white films | Howard Hughes