Al Pacino's 8 Best Screaming Scenes, Ranked
For as much as Al Pacino is known for his quiet intensity — especially in the reticent and calculating role of Michael Corleone in "The Godfather" — what comes to mind when we think of the actor are usually his loud outbursts. It's amazing that such vocal power comes from this short king. But Al Pacino doesn't just yell for the sake of being overdramatic, he uses his voice to capture how the high emotions of his characters bubble to the surface, especially in high-stress situations. While some of these screaming scenes verge on self-parody, there's no denying their impact on his legacy. Pacino's volcanic energy is rooted in his love of theatre, where actors are not afraid to go big and loud. As an actor with a passion for Shakespeare, Al Pacino has a deep understanding of how important voice is in a role. He recognizes that dialogue should be treated like music, fluidly moving between different volumes and rhythms in order to evoke the strong feelings of his characters and make certain lines hit harder than others. This list breaks down some of his most memorable — and LOUDEST — moments.
8. The Devil's Advocate
Is there anything more delightfully campy than Al Pacino playing the devil? As expected, the actor seems to be having the time of his life in "The Devil's Advocate," chewing the scenery as the aptly named John Milton, Satan disguised as a slick lawyer. Pacino uses grand gestures and booming vocals to accentuate his demonic character's black humor and smarminess. In the finale, he reveals his true self to his young protege (Keanu Reeves). There's a twinkle in his eye when he berates God as a sadist and an "absentee landlord" who cruelly tempts humanity with life's pleasures but restricts them from enjoying them. Pacino bellows the nearly four-minute diatribe about the merits of the dark side: "I've nurtured every sensation man has been inspired to have! I cared about what he wanted and I never judged him. Why? Because I never rejected him, in spite of all his imperfections! I'm a fan of man!" His vocal delivery is as unrelenting and firey as the flames of hell itself.
7. Any Given Sunday
It takes a lot for this cinephile to get excited about sports, but Al Pacino makes the football movie cliché locker-room-speech-before-the-big-game feel momentous and life-affirming in "Any Given Sunday." As Tony D'Amato, the older coach of the Miami Sharks, Pacino brings his trademark ferocity to the role, constantly yelling from the sidelines or rallying his players with rousing speeches. The most memorable one is when the team is at their lowest. For over four minutes, Al Pacino emphasizes how the line between winning and losing is paper thin, especially when a team is divided and not looking out for one another. If they work together, they can "climb out of hell, one inch at a time" and emerge victorious.
The room is silent when he begins to speak, but as his gravelly voice grows louder and more passionate, the team begins to cheer. "Because that's what living is! The six inches in front of your face!" his booming voice fills the room. This speech was deeply personal to director Oliver Stone, who based it on his own college tours discussing Vietnam and filmmaking. /Film writer Devin Meenan praises Al Pacino's performance for its "off-the-cuff quality," how it does not sound rehearsed, but as if he is "formulating vague thoughts into the words as they come to him." It's quite exhilarating to have an Al Pacino screaming scene be focused more on inspiration rather than anger.
6. The Godfather Part III
This scene from "The Godfather Part III" is a bit different from Al Pacino's other film screams. Tragically, an assassination attempt intended for Michael Corleone accidentally kills his child. His daughter Mary collapses on the steps of the Teatro Massimo opera house. Overwhelmed with shock and grief, Michael leans back his head and lets out a primal scream. His face, ghostly pale with a horrifyingly wide mouth, creates a haunting visual that evokes Edvard Munch's painting "The Scream." There are no words, just an uncomfortably long emission of raw emotion.
At first, director Francis Ford Coppola cleverly mutes this scream and overlays the film's score — as if the audience cannot bear to hear the depths of his pain. The effect of his anguished wail gradually joining the soundtrack is utterly chilling. Slow-motion shots focus on Kay and Connie as they stop crying and witness Michael's gutting reaction. They have never seen him so emotionally broken and openly distraught. Despite the losses of his father and brothers, Michael maintains his cool throughout "The Godfather" trilogy. But his daughter's death is more than he can handle, shattering his stoic facade. "The Godfather Part III" is often — perhaps unfairly — maligned, especially in comparison to the first two legendary films. However, this type of overwrought drama is fitting for a film that contemplates Michael's fate and fear of eternal damnation.
5. Dog Day Afternoon
Al Pacino shouting "Attica! Attica!" in "Dog Day Afternoon" is brief, but it is one of his most well-known yelling scenes. As bank robber Sonny Wortzick, Pacino almost leaps off the screen as a ball of manic energy and sweat. Sidney Lumet's kinetic and documentary-style direction of "Dog Day Afternoon" deftly builds the tension up until this moment when Sonny finally steps out of the bank and confronts the cops, snipers, and throngs of excited onlookers. When Captian Moretti tries to goad Sonny into releasing the hostages, Sonny makes his distrust of him and his fellow "pigs" known, and frames his actions as anti-establishment, by screaming "Attica!" This references a 1971 prison riot where inmates protested their inhumane conditions. When Sonny effortlessly rouses the crowd to chant "Attica!", the surrounding officers realize they're dealing with a passionate loose canon who has taken these hostages. It's clear that this going to be one long, hot afternoon trying to resolve the situation.
4. Scarface
"Say hello to my little friend!" from Brian De Palma's controversial "Scarface" is undoubtedly one of Al Pacino's most well-known screaming scenes. The line is just as loud as the blasts of his machine gun during the battle between him and Sosa's men. As the megalomaniac drug lord Tony Montana, Al Pacino is as tense as a trip wire, ready to explode at any moment. "I bury those cockroaches!" or "You need people like me so you can point your f**kin' fingers and say, 'That's the bad guy'" or "Who put this thing together? Me, that's who! Who do I trust? Me!" are just a few of the intense lines from Oliver Stone's blistering script. This dialogue contributes to the larger-than-life characterization of Tony Montana, whose monumental ambition and ruthless determination ultimately lead to his downfall. Pacino's boisterous, fired-up performance is perfect for the film's overall bombastic style, especially the finale where he goes out in a cocaine-fueled blaze of glory.
3. Scent of a Woman
"Scent of a Woman" is considered Al Pacino's consolation prize for years of being nominated and unjustifiably not winning for Best Actor. Although it's frequently criticized as an over-the-top performance in a milquetoast movie, I find it to be one of those perfect cozy watches for a crisp, fall day. Al Pacino's loud, grizzled voice and theatricality are perfect for the role of Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade, an angry and blind veteran who cares little for social niceties. His character is frequently yelling, whether it be the random exclamations of "Hoo-ah!" or his devastating breakdown where he wails, "I'm in the dark here!" You can hear a pin drop in the final scene where Slade stands up for his new friend, Charlie, at a school disciplinary hearing. The way that Pacino so effortlessly glides between sarcasm, rage, painful memories, and conviction during this lengthy speech is tremendous. "If I were the man I was five years ago, I'd take a FLAME-THROWER to this place!" echoes throughout the room. When Slade talks about losing his friends in Vietnam, the agony in his voice cuts like a knife. He even tells the boys who betrayed Charlie "F**k you, too!" It's a phenomenal speech that only an actor of Al Pacino's caliber could deliver.
2. ...And Justice for All
"...And Justice For All" is a very eccentric piece of 1970s filmmaking that features one of Al Pacino's greatest performances. He plays Arthur Kirkland, a Baltimore defense lawyer who navigates corruption in the legal system. Much like the film itself, Pacino oscillates from goofy humor to gripping dramatics. One scene features him cowering like a fearful child on a helicopter ride while another has him weeping with rage about a client who died by suicide. "...And Justice For All" reaches its famously unhinged climax where the young lawyer turns against the very man he is supposed to be defending.
"My client, the Honorable Henry T. Fleming, should go right to f***ing jail!" Arthur Kirkland yells, setting off the pandemonium that follows. Pacino's sharp, syncopated delivery of the line makes this shocking moment really land. His voice wavers between frustration and heartbreak, conveying just how much he cares about the law and doing what is right — regardless of the bureaucracy surrounding the legal system. In his crazy tirade, Arthur Kirkland screams, "You're out of order! You're out of order! The whole trial is out of order! They're out of order!" as officers drag him out of the courtroom. This scene leaves a lasting impression on viewers because it injects sheer chaos into the typically buttoned-up courtroom environment. It's thrilling to see someone so passionately stand up for what is right, no matter the consequences.
1. Heat
Although it is not explicitly stated in the script, Al Pacino has confirmed that his character Detective Vincent Hanna was chipping cocaine, which would explain his erratic behavior and frequent eruptions. While "Heat" is a high-stakes action thriller with a famous final showdown that pits two acting legends together, there are a lot of humorous moments thanks to Al Pacino's strange and manic performance. Detective Hanna will randomly scream his lines, from yelling to his informant, "Gimmie all ya got!" or telling his ex-wife's lover to "SIT DOWN!" after discovering him in his "dead-tech post-modernistic bulls**t house."
The wildest moment is when Detective Hanna investigates Alan Marciano about Charlene Shiherlis. When Alan moans, "Why did I get mixed up with that b***h?" Detective Hanna screams with bulging eyes, "Cause she's got a GREAT ASS ... and you got your head all the way up it!" Pacino uses his hands to trace the shape of this amazing derriere then punctuates each word with a head bop. The actor goes completely balls-to-the-wall for this role, especially with his voice and body language. When most comedians do impressions of Al Pacino, this is typically what they draw from. It's Pacino at his most Pacino.