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Carlitos Way
Melodramatic tale of a Puerto Rican former convict who tries to get enough money to get out but is continually dragged back into the life he is so desperately trying to escape.
4 March 1945, New York City, New York, USA
14 July 1946, Bronx, New York, USA
16 September 1968, New York City, New York, USA
October 05, 2005
A great story told by a master filmmaker; sterling actors playing some truly fascinating characters; and a bunch of cinematic set-pieces that are worthy of repeat viewings.January 01, 2000
"Carlito's Way," like "Scarface," is first and last a character study, a portrait of a man who wants to be better than he is.January 01, 2000
About halfway through, the overwhelming fact that the movie is a complete nothing becomes too much to ignore.September 09, 2006
As with so many De Palma films, Carlito's Way soon manifests as an essay on its own forms.July 06, 2010
Beautifully shot and extremely well acted, Carlito's Way is not only a great crime movie but is also a tragic story of redemption, as one man tries to escape the ghost's of his past and start again.July 30, 2012
Perhaps the last great DePalma film, using his trademarks well but not overusing them.June 24, 2006
Pacino looks every inch a movie star, and De Palma provides a timely reminder of just how impoverished the Hollywood lexicon has become since the glory days of the '70s.September 23, 2006
A lengthy cat-and-mouse chase scene at the film's climax practically surpasses Hitchcock and even gives Scorsese's GoodFellas a run for its money.May 20, 2003
"Carlito's Way" is best watched as lively, colorful posturing and as a fine demonstration of this director's bravura visual style.January 01, 2000
Pacino has his moments but for the most part he's surprisingly underwhelming. He's a great actor but even I can do a better Puerto Rican accent.March 23, 2015
Penn, in curled hair and wire-rims, makes a brilliant, slippery high-end shyster; his modulated hysteria is amazing. So is Brian De Palma's direction.December 21, 2013
Although still distinctly sleek a la de Palma, it's the rare instance in which romantic optimism & warm, careful character observation trump his penchant for coolly detached cynicism. It's not nihilistic, fetishistic or misogynistic. It's humanistic.