Say hello to my little facts.
1983's 'Scarface' has gone down as one of the most enduringly popular crime films of all time, catapulting
Al Pacino into a whole new level of fame and giving movie lovers a plethora of catchy quotes to whip out for years to come.
1
Tony’s “little friend” is an M16 with an M203 40mm grenade launcher attached to the barrel.
2
Despite the title, Tony Montana is called “Scarface” only once throughout the movie, and in Spanish at that (“Cara cortada”).
3
The film’s body count is 42.
4
Tony breaks all the rules Frank tells him at the Babylon Club.
5
In the scene where Tony is in the bathtub watching TV, he says to Manny, “Look at dem pelicangs fly.” This line was what Al Pacino practiced with a language coach to get the Cuban accent right.
6
Michelle Pfeiffer accidentally cut Al Pacino’s face during production.
7
Though there has long been a myth that Pacino snorted real cocaine on camera, the “cocaine” used in the movie was supposedly powdered milk.
8
But whatever it was, it created problems for Pacino’s nasal passages. “For years after, I have had things up in there,” Pacino said in 2015. “I don’t know what happened to my nose, but it’s changed.”
9
When Scarface (1983) was re-released in theaters in 2003, the studio wanted Brian De Palma to change the soundtrack so that rap songs inspired by the movie could be used. De Palma refused.
10
The film is a major influence behind the Grand Theft Auto (1997) franchise and in particular Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (2002).
11
Al Pacino stated that Tony Montana was one of his favorites of all the characters he’s played.
12
Miriam Colon, who plays Tony’s mother, was only 4 years older than Al Pacino.
13
In the film, Tony buys a Porsche to impress Elvira. In the original script, he buys a red Jaguar.
14
Brian De Palma liked the script so much that he dropped out of directing Flashdance (1983) to direct this film.
15
Al Pacino accidentally slipping on Michelle Pfeiffer’s hat while she’s looking away, and putting it on his head wasn’t scripted. Her amused reaction when she turns around was genuine and was kept in the movie to show Elvira’s gradual warming up to Montana.
16
Steven Bauer got his role without even auditioning. During the audition process, casting director Alixe Gordin saw Bauer and instantly noted that he was right for the role of Manny.
17
Tony Montana uses “yeyo” as slang for cocaine. Al Pacino learned the word while learning the Cuban accent, and ad-libbed it during the chainsaw scene. Brian De Palma liked it enough to keep using it throughout the film.
18
The international corporation set up by Saddam Hussein to launder money from his various enterprises was called Montana Management after the Scarface (1983) main character.
19
Scarface features 207 uses of the “F” word. At the time of the films’ release, this was the most of any movie in history.
20
Al Pacino wanted Glenn Close to play Elvira, but the producers didn’t think she was sexy enough.
21
The prop firearms were equipped with electronic synchronizing devices so that they would only fire when the camera shutter was open. The result was that the guns’ muzzle flashes are much more visible and consistent than in most movies.
22
To help stay in character, Al Pacino asked director of photography John A. Alonzo to speak to him only in Spanish.
23
In the final shootout, Tony is shot on screen a total of ten times, including once by Gina as well as the final kill shot.
