Scarface (1984) is a remake of the 1932 film of the same name, loosely based on the 1929 novel by Armitage Trail, which was inspired by Al Capone. The 1932 movie was written by Howards Hawks and Ben Hecht and provided much of the foundation for the 1984 film, written by Oliver Stone. The movie received no accolades but was nominated for three Golden Globes for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama), Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role, and Best Original Score in a Motion Picture. The movie was directed by suspense, crime, and psychological thriller genre genius, Brian De Palma.
Even though the movie was set in Miami, Florida, much of the film was shot in Los Angeles due to the Miami Tourist Board declining requests to film there as it feared the film would deter tourism to the city with its themes of drugs and gangsters. Scarface is on the 104th spot on IMDb’s Top 250 Films list despite its criticisms. The lead role of Tony “Scarface” Montana was played by Al Pacino with co-stars Steven Bauer, Michelle Pfeiffer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and the late Robert Loggia. The movie shows a determined Cuban immigrant, Montana, who takes over a drug cartel and succumbs to greed in 1980 Miami. The movie was a critical failure at its release because it was an indictment of its own era. In the 1980s, films that touched on contemporary values and topics were not well received, which explains their popularity today. In Scarface, several groups are discriminated against and treated horribly, particularly the women. How are women treated in the movie, and why is Scarface trashy and misogynistic?
Scarface constantly objectifies women, sexualizes them, and gives them little importance. All the women are portrayed as weak, uneducated, irrational, and a hindrance, all common stereotypes associated with women. In addition to their stereotypical personalities, they are all thin and tall. They wear revealing dresses designed to show the most amount of skin. The women’s purpose in the film is to show that Tony is a saintly figure because he “saves” them from their old lives. Tony’s sister and mother are poor, uneducated, and speak broken English. While Tony still has an accent, he is presented as more educated than the women because he is fluent in English while they are not. Elvira, Tony’s eventual wife, is another woman who is shown to need Tony. She is characterized as having no skills besides spending money and snorting cocaine. Elvira is portrayed as a helpless cocaine addict in need of saving. Furthermore, none of the women in the film have stable jobs; therefore, they constantly rely on men for monetary support. They are also shown to be morally corrupt and weak, ending up as cocaine addicts, alcoholics, and burnouts.
In addition to the poor representation of women, there are several very graphic instances of violence against women. The most terrifying is when Tony beats his own sister, Gina. Tony caught Gina flirting with a man, and Tony thought that the correct reaction was to beat her bloody. This sets a precedent for women, showing that it’s okay for men to flirt with women, but if a woman is flirtatious in response, she needs to be punished. In another instance, Tony beats his wife for abusing cocaine, an ironic scene. Being a cocaine kingpin addicted to cocaine, Tony is directly responsible for Elvira’s addiction. Tony does nothing to help his wife deal with her substance abuse but instead assaults her. In addition to the overt acts of misogyny, there are plenty of misogynistic undertones. Women are never given any role in the business and are only put on screen to be a pretty face or obstruction. The women do not earn anything of their own and are barred from achieving something of their own.
Although Elvira leaves at the film’s end, she spends the whole movie being mistreated by Tony, who considers her another pretty object to decorate his mansion with. Ultimately, he measures her worth depending on whether or not she can be a mother.
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