50 Fun Facts About Scarface

Who directed the 1983 Scarface?

He was Martin Bregman's replacement for Sidney Lumet, who had first been attached.

Who wrote the screenplay for the 1983 Scarface?

He researched it while fighting his own cocaine habit and moved to Paris to write it clean.

Where did the screenwriter go to write the script, believing he could not kick his addiction in the US?

He has said the film's cocaine paranoia came straight out of his own experience.

Which director was originally attached to the 1983 film before being replaced?

Lumet's idea to make Tony a Cuban refugee survived his departure.

Who produced the 1983 Scarface?

Bregman was also Al Pacino's longtime manager and produced Serpico and Dog Day Afternoon.

The 1983 film is a remake of a gangster picture from which year?

The original was Howard Hawks's pre-Code shocker inspired by Al Capone.

Al Pacino's Tony Montana arrives in Miami as part of which real 1980 event?

Some 125,000 Cubans reached Florida over six months when Castro briefly opened the port of Mariel.

Who plays Manny Ribera, Tony's best friend?

Bauer, born in Havana, was the only Cuban among the leads and earned a Golden Globe nomination.

Which actress plays Elvira Hancock?

Glenn Close had been the original choice for the role.

Who was the original choice to play Elvira before the part went elsewhere?

The role instead launched a then little-known actress into stardom.

Which actor was considered for the role of Manny?

Travolta was coming off Grease and Urban Cowboy at the time.

Who plays Tony's sister Gina?

It was her film debut; she later starred in The Abyss and The Color of Money.

Which actor plays Miami drug lord Frank Lopez?

Loggia's Frank teaches Tony the two rules: never underestimate the other guy's greed, and never get high on your own supply.

Which future Amadeus Oscar winner plays Omar Suarez?

Omar ends up hanged from a helicopter on Sosa's orders.

Who plays the Bolivian cocaine kingpin Alejandro Sosa?

Frank sends Tony and Omar to Bolivia to negotiate with him.

How does Frank Lopez arrange green cards for Tony and Manny?

The killing happens in the Freedomtown refugee camp during a riot.

What weapon do the Colombians use to kill Angel while Tony is forced to watch?

Two prominent novelists said they walked out of the film after that scene.

Which two novelists reportedly walked out of the film after the motel torture scene?

The scene is actually far less graphic than viewers remember; the camera cuts away.

Where does Frank send Tony and Omar to meet Sosa?

The meeting sets up Tony's rise and Omar's very short helicopter ride.

Who actually pulls the trigger on Frank Lopez?

Tony has Manny do it, then personally shoots the corrupt cop Bernstein.

What role does Tony take on after marrying Elvira?

He builds a mansion, a tiger enclosure and a mountain of paranoia on the proceeds.

Why does Tony refuse to complete Sosa's assassination in New York?

He shoots Sosa's bomber Alberto instead, sealing his own fate.

Tony's body falls into the pool at the base of a globe bearing what motto?

He first sees the phrase on a Goodyear-style blimp over Miami.

What is the film's running time?

Nearly three hours, and the studio never asked De Palma to cut it for the R.

What was the 1983 film's US box office gross?

A modest hit in 1983, it became a monster on home video and in hip-hop culture.

On what date did Scarface open in US theaters?

It had premiered in New York City eight days earlier, on December 1.

What rating did the MPAA initially give the film?

The board cited 'excessive and cumulative violence and language'; the appeal board overturned it 17-3.

By what vote did the appeals board overturn the X rating in favour of an R?

De Palma later admitted he released the version he had originally submitted anyway.

How many times is the F-word used in the film?

That works out to more than once a minute for nearly three hours.

Why was much of the picture shot in Los Angeles rather than Florida?

Cuban-American groups had objected to the script's portrayal of refugees.

Who composed the synth-driven score?

The Italian disco producer earned a Golden Globe nomination for it.

How did Al Pacino injure his hand during production?

He tripped during a fight scene and grabbed the barrel that had just been fired.

Which boxer helped train Pacino for the role?

Pacino also worked with knife-combat experts to build Tony's physicality.

The mansion used as Tony's home, El Fureidis, is near which California city?

The Roman-styled estate in Montecito stood in for a Miami palace.

Which director reportedly warned a cast member at the premiere: 'You guys are great - but be prepared'?

He predicted, correctly, that Hollywood would hate it before audiences embraced it.

Which critic gave Scarface four stars out of four in 1983?

Most of his peers were far harsher; the film's reputation was rebuilt on video.

What is the film's approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes?

The consensus says De Palma and Pacino 'take it to the limit'.

In what year was the Scarface video game, in which Tony survives the mansion shootout, released?

It imagines Tony surviving the mansion shootout and rebuilding his empire.

Who plays Tony's mother, Georgina Montana?

Her character throws Tony out of the house and calls him a bum.

Where does the AFI's 10 Top 10 list rank Scarface among gangster films?

The Godfather topped the gangster list; Scarface squeaked in at the bottom.

Who directed the original 1932 Scarface?

He co-produced it with Howard Hughes and shot the death scenes with a recurring 'X' motif.

Who played Tony Camonte in the 1932 film?

Muni was an Italian immigrant gangster on screen; Pacino's Cuban Tony was a deliberate update.

The 1932 film was based on a novel inspired by which real gangster?

Capone was rumored to have liked it so much he owned a print.

What visual motif did the 1932 film use to foreshadow deaths, echoing Tony's cheek scar?

Hawks hid the letter in window frames, beams and bowling scorecards.

Which actor was told to flip a coin repeatedly throughout the 1932 film?

The habit became Raft's trademark and was later parodied in Some Like It Hot.

In what year was the 1932 Scarface added to the National Film Registry?

The Library of Congress selects films it deems culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.

Which horror icon appears in the 1932 film as gangster Tom Gaffney?

He is gunned down at a bowling alley, mid-strike.

Which Chicago rapper took the nickname 'Sosa' from the film's Bolivian kingpin?

The film's release coincided with the rise of hip-hop, and Nicki Minaj's 'Chun-Li' also reworks Tony Montana lines.

Which hip-hop label released the 2003 compilation Music Inspired by Scarface?

Rapper Cuban Link, who had once planned a sequel called Son of Tony, released his own 'Scarface 2' the year before.

Oliver Stone modelled Alejandro Sosa on which real Bolivian drug lord?

The character was an addition to the original 1932 story; Suárez Gómez was nicknamed the 'King of Cocaine'.