With all the buzz generated to promote the recent Blu-ray release of the 1983 classic Scarface, studio executives have been talking about just what a great movie the epic crime flick really was, and how it’s remained so popular nearly 30 years after it was first released, and have now come to the conclusion that it’s time to produce a new Scarface film.
While the Al Pacino starring 1983 movie was itself a remake of the 1932 film of the same name, the new film; which is being produced for Universal Pictures, by Martin Bregman (who worked on Brian DePalma’s ’83 movie); isn’t designed to be a remake or a sequel, but will instead borrow elements of both films (namely following an immigrant who bursts into the criminal underworld in order to chase his own perverted version of the American dream, and work his way up to become a kingpin) in order to create a new, and distinctly separate film.
So far there’s no word of the background of the new Tony Montana character (as both previous releases have used ethnicity to brilliant, timely, and poignant, effect; with the original character being an Italian Mafioso who took over Chicago in the ‘30s, and the remake following a Cuban cocaine peddler in ‘80s Miami), or if audiences really want a new film; because given the superb way in which DePalma’s classic has aged, it’s highly likely fans will scream heresy (just as they did upon hearing the news of remaking the 1932 film back in the ‘80s); but nevertheless Universal is currently meeting with writers to script the film, which they undoubtedly hope will be less of a flop than DePalma’s film; which, despite it’s cult status and home media sales figures, was fairly poorly received upon its initial release.
Matt Wheeldon.
Source: Deadline.
