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Stars:
Al Pacino, Sean Penn, Penelope Ann Miller, Luis Guzman, Viggo Mortensen, John
Leguizamo, and Paul Mazursky
Writer:
David Koepp
Based
On The Books “Carlito’s Way” And “After Hours” By: Edwin Torres
Director:
Brian De Palma
Feature
length: 144 minutes
Extras:
Making Of Documentary, Still Galleries, and Theatrical Trailer
Languages:
English and French Language Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and Spanish
Language Monaural Sound
Subtitles:
English Captions and French and Spanish Language Subtitles
Packaging:
Keep Case
Chapter
Stops: 20
Sound:
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and Monaural Sound
Year
of Theatrical Release: 1993/DVD Release: 2003
Theatrical
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Home
Video Distributor: Universal Studios Home Video
MPAA
Rating: R
Reviewer:
Mark A. Rivera
When
I went to see “Carlito’s Way” in the theater when it first opened I missed
the opening credits and came in on the first scene afterwards, which shows
Carlito (Pacino) being released from jail on a technicality after serving five
years of a thirty year sentence. From then on the films mix of drama and tragedy
through to the action packed finale riveted me. In fact I was the most shocked
by the film’s ending and walked out thinking, “Wow this was a good flick.”
Then I read newspaper reviews and was surprised by the lukewarm reception the
critics were giving it. I wondered if they saw the same film I did and the
answer was yes they saw that and more. When “Carlito’s Way” finally came
to laser disc I check it out again and saw how the film opened with the ending
that I thought was the biggest surprise and consequently I realized that if I
walked in on the film from the opening credits, I probably would have felt
differently about it afterwards. Now I had no idea at the time the movie was
based primarily on the Edwin Torres book “After Hours” at that time. I just
saw it as a Brian De Palma film reuniting the Director with Al Pacino. So I
understand now the difficulty Screenwriter David Koepp faced in adapting the
book and understand why the film was structured as it was with the interior
dialogue voiceover, but I still think that if the film just started the way I
saw it then maybe it might have played better theatrically.
Ten
years have passed by quite fast and “Carlito’s Way” does not seem as great
to me as it did when I first saw it. The basic problem with the film is it is
too long and has not enough tension and action to sustain the 2 hours and 24
minutes running time. The best scene in the film is the ending chase and
gunfight on the escalator at Grand Central. Pacino’s performance is pretty
good and thankfully he is not screaming his dialogue out with that raspy voice
of his, but he has absolutely no onscreen chemistry with Penelope Ann Miller,
which ultimately makes the film even more difficult to watch. It is great to see
the amount of supporting actors who have gone on to become more recognizable
like Comedian John Leguizamo, Actor Luis Guzman, and Actor Viggo Mortensen. Sean
Penn is also unforgettable as Carlito’s crooked attorney. Another thing I like
about the film is to see how certain recognizable Brooklyn locations among
others were used to stand in for Spanish Harlem.
This
reissue of “Carlito’s Way” features a beautiful anamorphic widescreen
(2.35:1) transfer that retains a real film like quality on home video with
virtually no imperfections to speak of. The muted tones contrasting with the
colorful dance club segments look wonderful and one can appreciate the fine
textures of the costume and production design very well too. There is a very
fine grain on this DVD, but it is so easy to dismiss that I doubt it will bother
even those with the keenest vision. Unfortunately the English Dolby Digital 5.1
Surround Soundtrack seemed rather ordinary and not at all outstanding. I was
really hoping for something with a lot more punch than what the soundtrack on
this DVD delivers. A French Language Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Soundtrack and a
Spanish Language Two-Channel Monaural Soundtrack are also encoded onto the dual
layered DVD along with English Captions for the hearing impaired and French and
Spanish Language Subtitles as options.
The
extra value features include a new documentary on “The Making Of Carlito’s
Way” (34:34) produced, written, and directed by Laurent Bouzerearu. The
documentary features interview clips with Author Edwin Torres discussing the
books as well as the talent that appeared in the film and the impact it has had
when fans meet him. Screenwriter David Koepp discusses the difficulty in
adapting the novels for the film and his appreciation of Torres’ support while
Producer Michael S. Bregman discusses the development of the project along with
Brian De Palma. There is some behind-the-scenes videotaped production footage
with Pacino in the documentary too.
Next
are three short still galleries comprised of cast photos, one-sheet art, and
photos of De Palma from the production and the film’s theatrical trailer
(2:48). Promotional DVD trailers for Universal Studios Home Video’s upcoming
reissue of “Scarface” and the recently released “National Lampoon’s
Animal House: Double Secret Probation Edition” and “Monty Python And The
Meaning Of Life” precede the opening main animated interactive menu. The
subsequent menus are standard interactive still frames that are easy to
navigate.
While
I was disappointed by the sound quality, the picture looks terrific and this is
likely to be the best home video version of “Carlito’s Way” fans will be
able to watch for awhile so if you like this film, rent it out for yourself
first before buying to make sure the sound fits your liking. The soundtrack is
not bad, but not as vibrant and aggressive as I was hoping for personally so
potential consumers may really like it. “Carlito’s Way: Collector’s
Edition” is available on DVD-Video now from Universal Studios Home Video.
©
Copyright 2003 By Mark A. Rivera
All Rights Reserved.
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