Reviews::Main

Director: Michael Bregman Year: 2005 Language: English Country: America

This prequel to Carlito's Way follows the rise of Puerto Rican gangster Carlito Brigante (Jay Hernandez). The main problem with the film is that Hernandez can't live up to Pacino and so it is impossible to believe that the Carlito of the prequel could ever be the Carlito of the original. Hernandez's Carlito isn't as cool as Pacino's despite his best attempts at a Pacino impersonation in the opening dialogue.

With that out of the way, if you treat Carlito's Way: Rise to Power as a film on its own, completely separate from Carlito's Way, it isn't all that bad. The plot focuses around 3 friends each from a different background who meet in prison, there's the Puerto Rican Carlito, Italian Rocco and the black Earl. The three work together dealing drugs in Harlem when they are released and their effectiveness is increased due to each of their different backgrounds. It's a plot which is reasonable and works well enough. The acting too is decent enough and the setting of 70's New York is believable.

Overall, as a prequel to Carlito's Way, this sucks. But treated as its own movie, it's not all that bad.

Dave W - 21st March, 2010 - 10:11