Released: November 10, 1993
Director: Brian De Palma
Starring: Al Pacino, Sean Penn, Penelope Ann Miller, Luis Guzmán, Joseph Siravo, John Leguizamo
Brian de Palma is known for his crime epics, from Scarface to The Untouchables. Brian de Palma and Pacino teamed up again in the early 90's with another epic, this time set in 1970's New York. Al Pacino plays Carlito Brigante a former heavy hitter in the criminal underworld who has just been released from prison, but this isn't a Tony Montana 2.0, Carlito's main quest is to go legit and save up some money so he can high tail it out of New York, but throughout the journey Carlito finds out that he can't escape his past.
Since his role in Scent of a Woman Pacino's roles onward have felt identical and stale from the raspy voice to the "hooah" catchphrase but he brought a down to Earth personality in this role. The film had me rooting for Carlito and his struggle to be free of the streets of New York all the way to the end. Sean Penn is great as Carlito's Lawyer/friend David Kleinfeld, which was main inspiration for Ken Rosenberg in GTA: Vice City. There were some great moments like the Grand Central escalator shootout, however the movie was lacking in the remaining supporting cast. I've never been a fan of John Leguizamo and the remaining mob characters were very lackluster and made random out of nowhere appearances without any real buildup or introductions despite a small bit part from Viggo Mortensen. With the exception of Pacino and Penn this is a crime epic lite, still worth a viewing though.
The Verdict: 3.5
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