With "Carlito's Way", Brian De Palma has attempted to present us with a "life as a gangster" type story much in the same way as his colleague Martin Scorcese did in "Goodfellas". The latter produced a compelling narrative with fantastic performances from his cast (De Niro, Joe Pesci and Ray Liotta) and a hard-line message. Not so Brian De Palma however.
De Palma's inconsistency has never been in doubt, it's always prevalent. Yet surely one would question a man who casts Al Pacino first as a Cuban ("Scarface") and then as a Puerto Rican. Pacino is the most Italian looking guy in Hollywood. Mind you he gives a professional performance, and Sean Penn, as his corrupt Jewish lawyer, is again outstanding.
"Carlito's Way" is impressively shot too, but De Palma lets the film ramble on too long, and makes the mistake of showing the conclusion of the story at the beginning of the show (ala "Intersection"). A shorter, more action-thriller type approach would have worked much better than this failed endeavour. "Carlito" did not require the depth this movie tries to supply.
A reasonable night's entertainment, highlighted by a well staged action sequence in the underground at Grand Central Station.
Friday, May 13, 1994 - Astor Theatre
De Palma's inconsistency has never been in doubt, it's always prevalent. Yet surely one would question a man who casts Al Pacino first as a Cuban ("Scarface") and then as a Puerto Rican. Pacino is the most Italian looking guy in Hollywood. Mind you he gives a professional performance, and Sean Penn, as his corrupt Jewish lawyer, is again outstanding.
"Carlito's Way" is impressively shot too, but De Palma lets the film ramble on too long, and makes the mistake of showing the conclusion of the story at the beginning of the show (ala "Intersection"). A shorter, more action-thriller type approach would have worked much better than this failed endeavour. "Carlito" did not require the depth this movie tries to supply.
A reasonable night's entertainment, highlighted by a well staged action sequence in the underground at Grand Central Station.
Friday, May 13, 1994 - Astor Theatre