This movie is a thinly veiled biography of Al Capone. Some names and incidents were changed, but many were left intact (such as the nickname "Scarface" and the St. Valentine's Day Massacre). The biggest difference was the ending. In the film, Scarface died in an expectedly melodramatic way, whereas in real life, Capone slowly wasted away due to the ravages of syphilis.
For the most part, the film is what you'd expect from a film about gangsters, but it was a little more crude in its execution. In contrast, Warner's other two big gangster hits from the year before, LITTLE CAESAR and PUBLIC ENEMY, seemed more polished and with better, less shrill acting (particularly Muni's and Dvorak's). I definitely prefer these other two films.
About the only really unusual and unexpected thing about the film was its strongly implied incestuous relationship between Scarface and his trampy sister. While they never exactly said they slept together, their relationship was very, very unnatural and the audience was left to wonder and draw their own sordid conclusions! The addition of this plot element and liberal sprinkling of violence and sexual innuendo isn't all that surprising, really, as Howard Hughes produced this film and these are pretty much the norms for his films.
For the most part, the film is what you'd expect from a film about gangsters, but it was a little more crude in its execution. In contrast, Warner's other two big gangster hits from the year before, LITTLE CAESAR and PUBLIC ENEMY, seemed more polished and with better, less shrill acting (particularly Muni's and Dvorak's). I definitely prefer these other two films.
About the only really unusual and unexpected thing about the film was its strongly implied incestuous relationship between Scarface and his trampy sister. While they never exactly said they slept together, their relationship was very, very unnatural and the audience was left to wonder and draw their own sordid conclusions! The addition of this plot element and liberal sprinkling of violence and sexual innuendo isn't all that surprising, really, as Howard Hughes produced this film and these are pretty much the norms for his films.