FROM "DICK TRACY"
WARNING: THERE WILL BE SPOILERS!
I did say that I would be putting a few live action Disney villains on the list, and what better way to start off with a live action Disney villain than Al Pacino hamming it up as a gangster from a famous comic-strip. And yes, "Dick Tracy" does indeed count as a Disney film. It may be released under "Touchstone", but its still parent to Disney, just like how Disney is parent to Pixar. I'll admit that while the film "Dick Tracy" is an overall cool looking movie that has the best comic-book look that I've ever seen in a comic-book movie, it certainly is a very hit and miss movie, especially when it comes to story and characters. But one of the hits that the film does have to offer that I find myself still enjoying whenever I watch this movie, are the gangsters lead by Al Pacino!
Before I would recognize Pacino for playing famous gangster roles like Tony Montana in "Scarface", and Michael Corleone in "The Godfather" films; the first time I was first ever introduced to Al Pacino is seeing him go full out over the top as a hot headed walnut loving gangster, who's completely determined to get rid the cop Dick Tracy (Warren Beatty) for interfering with his operations. Whenever Al Pacino is on-screen there's never ever a dull moment! Every scene he's in, he's always yucking it up! Whether he's ranting about killing Tracy, trying to make deals with people, or threatening people with death; Pacino never ever takes a break from his cartoony villainous behavior! And I have to admit, watching his performance again after now knowing him from his early works of career, I'm pretty impressed with how much energy that Pacino puts into his performance as he constantly yells and screams, while making over exaggerated facial expressions through that cool Make-Up that Pacino designed himself. Sure in "Scarface" we see Pacino giving an energetic performance as he kills people while shouting out F-bombs, but at least that film gave Pacino enough scenes for him to act subtle and laid back, unlike in "Dick Tracy" where he has to be funny and energetic all the way through. Apparently people found his comical performance to be so good, that he was actually nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. Now as much as I enjoy Pacino's performance in this movie, I don't at all think that there's anything Oscar Worthy about it. I can see his performance being nominated for a Golden Globe under the best Musical or Comedy category, but in the Best Supporting Actor category for the Oscars, definitely not. I mean really, if him hamming it up like a cartoon bad guy is considered to be Oscar winning gold, then why don't we see other actors playing live action comic-book baddies that love to play it up for laughs get nominated for an Oscar too? Ironically, the person who would bring home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor that Pacino was nominated for is Joe Pesci for his role as the crazy loose cannon gangster Tommy in "Goodfellas". And if Pacino's performance as a comical gangster being rivaled against Joe Pesci playing a psychotic gangster for an Oscar in one of the greatest gangsters flicks of all time doesn't sound like an interesting year for gangster films for you; Pacino was also giving one of the weakest performances in his career as an old Michael Corleone in the infamous Third and unnecessary installment to "The Godfather Saga", while being covered in Make-Up that looks laughably bad!
As fun and hysterical that Pacino is in this movie, the one important thing that I find lacking about this villain is being intimidating. I honestly can't think of a single moment where I found Pacino's performance to be cold and intimidating. He commits all these various crimes and murders, and is very skilled at negotiating; but I can't say that I found his presence to be terrifying since he's too busy being funny. The previous villain I put on the list which was the loan shark gangster Sykes from "Oliver And Company" voiced Robert Loggia, is way more intimidating than Pacino is for crying out loud. And I find that to be an interesting twist in both of these performances and casting choices, because in the film "Scarface" that both starred Pacino and Loggia, they were both the complete opposite from the roles that Disney would later give them. Loggia was an over the top and carefree Mafia Boss who enjoyed the life of being a gangster, while Pacino was subtle and laid-back, but was also cold and intimidating. And to see Disney cast Loggia as an intimidating cold villain that's a force to reckon with, while Pacino is casted to play a fun loving gangster who loves to joke around, is an interesting change of direction for both of these actors.
However, while not being as intimidating as the gangster Sykes, Big Boy is way more of a loose-cannon compared to him. Sykes maybe a reckless driver, a murderer, and a kidnapper, but there was still a side of mercy to his character, where with Big Boy there isn't. If he feels that somebody should be killed, he goes for the kill! If somebody pisses him off and deserves to be hit or smacked around for it, he'll do it without a second thought! Literally the first thing he does in the movie is kill his protégé Lips Manils (Played by Paul Sorvino, who of course was playing the cold and intimidating Mafia Boss Paulie in "Goodfellas" that very same year) by wiping out his crew, forcing him to give him ownership to the night club that he owns at gun point, and gives him the cement shoes (Aka "The Bath") as Big Boy watches Lips cry and beg to be spared, while also taunting him and taking his girlfriend Breathless, before dropping him in the ocean. There's also another scene in the movie where Big Boy kills a gangster played by James Caan (which both he and Pacino have previously been in "The Godfather films" together) who refuses his offer, and rather than killing him on the spot, he lets him leave. But once he gets into his car, it suddenly explodes, revealing that Big Boy had planted a bomb in his car knowing that he wouldn't accept his deal. Funny enough, in this scene where Big Boy kills off Caan, there does seem to be a reference to "The Godfather" during that scene because Caan's character in “The Godfather” would also get killed inside a car (Only he would be shot down by gangsters), and in a few scenes that follow after his death, Michael's Wife would be killed by a bomb planted inside his car. Being a big fan of gangsters films (Especially "The Godfather" Saga), its little nods and casting choices like this that make me appreciate this movie. But I digress! While Big Boy orders hits that are a little too violent for a Disney film (Which explains perfectly why the film is under the "Touchstone" logo), Big Boy being the cartoony villain that he is, would also set-up traps that are similar to the classic mustache twirling villain that loves to tie women to the train tracks, such as having his men tie-up Tracy towards a boiler that's about to explode, and tying Tracy's girlfriend Tess to a giant gear where her head will eventually be crushed by the gear that mashes together with the one that she's tied to. I actually admire how the film manages to make Big Boy’s action be both violent, but at the same time comical. Wait, why does this all sound familiar? A comic-book gangster who's completely over the top and played by a famous actor that's covered in Make-Up, who kills people in both a brutal and yet comical way? As well as making a mob boss think that he accepts his refusal to his offer, but then suddenly kills him in the same exact scene? I know I've seen this somewhere before this film was made, but I just can't...
IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW! Yeeah, this film did rip a lot of things from Tim Burton's "Batman" (I'm not just speaking in terms of the villain), and it doesn't help either that Big Boy falls to his death just like how The Joker died, that look very similar from the way these scenes are both shot.
However, unlike The Joker where his motivation is to just spread chaos (Which is not a bad motivation considering that he is The Joker); and what makes this villain more interesting than Sykes, is his motivation to run the city by combining all forces of the criminal underworld together under his leadership, which is a cooler motivation than Sykes' motivation revolving around a bum who owes him money. Plus, this combining of forces also leads to more gangsters working for Big Boy, which gives him more criminal operations to run such as gambling, extortion, and even prostitution (Don't worry, that part is only hinted at). The gangsters that work for Big Boy are all perfectly casted who each give a really fun performances, as they're covered in Make-Up that looks just as awesome as Pacino's, while wearing colorful flashy suits. However since there are so many people that work for Big Boy (Some that don't even get a line, or hardly have that much screen-time), I'm only going to talk about the ones that stand-out the most.
Starting with one of the leading supporting character's working for Big Boy, is the night club singer Breathless Mahoney (Madonna). Despite mostly working in the entertainment field for Big Boy, she really isn't on his side, but she doesn't lean towards the hero’s side either. She's pretty much as neutral as Catwoman is, as she takes on the identity of "The Blank" (A faceless gangster) to put Tracy in jail by framing him rather than killing him because of her attraction towards him, while also planning to put Big Boy out of business, so she can rule the city. Some question why she tries to recruit Tracy after going through the trouble of framing him when they meet at the climax, but I think that's because she was at that point improvising since she didn't think that Tracy would ever break out. While she is on her own side, it is fun seeing Al Pacino interact with her. My favorite moment has to be the scene where he directs a rehearsal for a song and dance number at the night club that he runs, by forcing Breathless, the staff, and the chorus girls to work all night long. I just find it funny that everybody in the club is tired and ready to call it a night, while Big Boy is full of energy as he keeps pushing and slapping everyone around (Including Breathless) to get the rehearsal right. Even when he's being taken away by the cops, he still commands them to keep rehearsing! That's one determined director!
Also working at the club in the entertainment field for Big Boy is 88 Keyes (Mandy Patinkin) the piano player. He doesn't do much dirty work for Big Boy either, except work with Breathless' alter-ego "The Blank" for money, and the intention to stop Tracy from breathing down Big Boy's neck.
Helping Big Boy with the legal side of his troubles is D.A. Fletcher (Dick Van Dyke) who is on his payroll to help him prevent Tracy from taking legal actions against him, even when Tracy was actually put in a life threatening situation where he and Big Boy have met face to face. Fun fact by the way, in the scene where Dyke's character is killed off by "The Blank", he actually broke his shoulder while filming the scene. It's a pity that Dick Van Dyke wasn't in that many scenes of the movie, nor does he give an over the top and comical performance that would be welcomed in a film like this.
When it comes to helping Big Boy with his fiancés, he has his nervous accountant Numbers (James Tolkan) on his side at all times. While it is funny seeing Principal Strickland from "Back To The Future" play a character who's always nervous, he hardly does anything.
One of the many Mob bosses that team up with Big Boy who we actually see him sit-down and interact with the most is Pruneface (R.G. Armstrong). Even though he stays loyal to Big Boy when he agreed to team-up with him (Even when all the other businesses are failing because of Tracy's interference), he still more than anything would love to rub-out Tracy, which Big Boy forbids since he'll be blamed for it (Though for some reason, he orders Pruneface to try to kill Tracy in the same scene where he denies his request). Whenever I have to stare at his Freddy Kugar like face as he gives a cold emotionless stare and attitude about wanting to rub-out Tracy, I can’t help but always find myself being intimidated by him. I hardly even remember a time when Armstrong ever played his character for laughs.
Out of all of Big Boy's henchmen and associates, the funniest one has to be Mumbles (Dustin Hoffman). When I found out that this was the same actor who played Captain Hook in the movie "Hook" when I was a kid, I was completely blown away for how not threatening and intimidating he was, compared to the villain that he would be playing a year after the film's release. Watching this character mumble every word of dialogue that he‘s given, as he looks completely nervous whenever he's being interrogated by Tracy are hilarious scenes that don't stop being funny until they're over. It actually makes me feel happy to see Beatty and Hoffman actually do something together after their failed attempt of making people laugh in the film "Ishtar".
If I had to choose my favorite gangster working for Big Boy, it would have to be a tie between...
FLATTOP (WILLIAM FORSYTHE)
AND ITCHY (ED O'ROSS)
The reason why I tied them together is because in almost every single scene that each of them are in, they're usually together committing crimes for Big Boy. I'm not going to say that their chemistry together is great since they hardly look each other in the eye, but they are still enjoyably fun as these vicious cartoony gangsters that have a love for killing. And watching them murder a bunch mobsters, witnessing characters being axed off, and threatening people with death, you can tell by the look on their faces that they love enjoy every second of it. While both being loose cannons, there's still a slight difference to them (Aside from how they look). As crazy and ruthless that Flattop can be, there are still a good amount of times where he'll act subtle and laid-back, even when being interrogated by Tracy, or threatening to kill Tracy. Hell, Forsythe is more over the top as the deformed gangster Cockeye in "Once Upon A Time In America" than he is here. With Itchy on the other hand, he's always acting crazy with his loud and obnoxious smart-ass attitude, which surprisingly doesn't get annoying since the film limits his dialogue. What's interesting about Itchy is while he's always talking loud and bouncing off the walls almost as much as Pacino does, he's surprisingly a pretty stealthy killer who can casually walk out of a room without you knowing that he has a surprise waiting for you for when you leave. They don't have to work together, but seeing these two crazy thugs partner up and bring ten times the chaos than what they could have brought on their own is very fun to watch.
Aside from lack of intimidation, and coming-off as a bit of knock-off to Jack Nicholson's Joker from Tim Burton's "Batman". Big Boy is one of the funniest and most violent Disney villains that I've ever seen, who has a great motivation, and a whole rogues gallery of colorful henchman and associates to help make his plan of taking over the city a success. There are so many quotable lines of dialogue and humorous moments from this villain, that if I were going to point them all out, you'd be reading this for a very long period of time. It's an overall really fun performance by a great actor. And even though I still don't think this performance is anything Oscar Worthy, I still find myself surprised that a great actor like Al Pacino, can somehow persuade the Academy to give him an Oscar nomination for playing a live action cartoony comic-strip villain in a film by Disney.
"You get behind me, we all profit; you challenge me, we all go down! There was one Napoleon, one Washington, ONE ME!"
-Big Boy Caprice
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