theme

The greatest influence upon Scarface was the silent film Underworld which was also written by Ben Hecht. Not only do Underworld and Scarface share the symbolism of signs outside the windows that speak to the ambition of the protagonist, but the staging, lighting and editing of the final shootouts that take the lives of Bull Weed and Tony Camonte so similar as to verge upon the identical. And yet, it is the sign and the death of Camonte that has become remembered, not the death of Bull Weed.