Scarface (1983)

Scarface parents guide

It stays inside its R, with moderate sex and nudity, and brutal violence.

Scare

Mildly scary

A few tense or eerie moments.

Jump scares

None noted

Gore

Graphic gore

Blood and wounds shown clearly.

Violence

Brutal violence

Our top level for violence.

Sex and nudity

Moderate

Moderate means a sex scene or nudity on screen, even brief, or sexual violence that is described or implied but never shown.

Language

Strong

Frequent strong profanity or slurs.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

Three questions

Is Scarface scary?

Only a little. Scarface has a few tense moments, nothing that follows you to bed.

How gory is Scarface?

Graphic gore and brutal violence. If graphic gore is a dealbreaker, skip it.

What is Scarface rated, and is it OK for kids?

It is an R, with moderate sex and nudity, brutal violence, and frequent strong language. Keep it for adults.

What is Scarface about?

After getting a green card in exchange for assassinating a Cuban government official, Tony Montana stakes a claim on the drug trade in Miami. Viciously murdering anyone who stands in his way, Tony eventually becomes the biggest drug lord in the state, controlling nearly all the cocaine that comes through Miami. But increased pressure from the police, wars with Colombian drug cartels and his own drug-fueled paranoia serve to fuel the flames of his eventual downfall.

Cast and crew

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Scarface is on our Most violent, Tearjerkers, Mob and gangsters, 1980s and Netflix lists.

More like this feeling

Prompts we typed into CouchRot, and the lists that share its tags.

• “a movie that will make me cry”
• “a thriller with a twist, no spoilers”
• “funny but not stupid, under two hours”