Amazon.com Essentials:
Al Pacino cuts a noble figure in this very enjoyable drama by
director Brian De Palma (Scarface), based
on a pair of books by Edwin Torres. Pacino plays a Puerto Rican ex-con
trying hard to go straight, but his loyalty to his lowlife attorney (a
virtually unrecognizable Sean Penn) and enemies on the street make
that choice difficult. Penelope Ann Miller plays, somewhat unlikely, a
stripper who has a romance with Pacino's character. The film finds De
Palma tempering his more outlandish moves (think of Body Double or
Snake Eyes) just as he did with the popular Untouchables and
Mission:
Impossible. But while Carlito's Way was not
commercially successful and never rises to the level of greatness, it
is a genuinely compelling movie graced with a fine performance by
Pacino and a surprising one from Penn. The DVD release has a
widescreen presentation, closed captioning, Dolby sound, optional
French soundtrack, and optional Spanish subtitles. --Tom Keogh
