Carlito's Way and Never Die Alone

 

Carlito's Way is overrated and badly written in my opinion. The movie does not deserve 84% on Rotten Tomatoes. It begins by showing Carlito, the character played by Pacino getting shot. The whole flashback technique does not work because right away the suspense is gone. You know within five minutes Carlito is not going to make it. So when in the end Carlito is inevitably killed the viewer has seen it coming a mile away. 

Secondly Carlito's Way is way too long. The long scenes with Carlito and his love interest stretch way too long.  Carlito's monologue in the court room is way too long and unnecessary. The movie should have been done in one and half hours but drags on for two unnecessary long hours. Carlito's Way cannot be compared to Scarface or the Godfather in any way shape or form. If I was the writer for Carlito's Way I would have scrapped the opening scene of Carlito getting shot thereby leaving the viewer in suspense.

However, I did like the plot twist where it is revealed that the lawyer had been snitching on Carlito and how Carlito gets his revenge.

Never Die Alone was a great movie. I always thought it was underrated and deserved more love. Why it got 26% on Rotten Tomatoes is unbelievable to me. It is not too long and wraps it all up in less than 90 minutes.  It is similar to Carlito's Way in the sense that they are both gangster movies about redemption where the gangster dies in the beginning of the movie. However, with Never Die Alone the movie continues to hold the viewer's attention because through the journalist listening to the tapes King David's story is retold. Meanwhile there is tension in the air because Mike is hunting Moon looking for revenge. And Never Die Alone ends with a plot twist as it is revealed that Mike was actually King David's son. There could have been a Never Die Alone 2 as the story of Mike continues to see what he does with the money.

As a writer it is tempting to use flashbacks to entice the reader and to give backstory. Personally I am not a fan of giving the reader a taste of the ending in the beginning of the story. Carlito's Way failed to keep my attention whilst Never Die Alone kept the suspense going.