Universal Pictures released Scarface in December 1983, Brian De Palma's operatic remake of the 1932 original, scripted by Oliver Stone and starring Al Pacino as Tony Montana. Dismissed by some critics on arrival for its excess, the film was reclaimed over the following decades as a landmark of crime cinema and a defining touchstone of 1980s pop culture, its imagery absorbed into music, fashion, and countless homages. The trailer campaign that preceded its release played a real role in building the film's mythology before audiences ever reached the theater.
This cell comes from that trailer material and bears the name Gina Montana, Tony's sister, played by Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio in her screen debut. Gina's arc runs beneath the film's surface of ambition and violence, tied closely to Tony's own downfall, which makes her a meaningful inclusion in any promotional reel built around the Montana family. A trailer cell like this represents a frame drawn from the theatrical preview reels used to market the film, distinct from the feature print itself, and collectors value these pieces for preserving the early marketing identity built around the saga's central characters.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm positive release print strip of the Scarface (1983) trailer.
Gauge
35mm layout with four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames, each framed between solid dark bars.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced, with rounded-rectangle holes that look cleanly punched and uniform in size.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track runs along one edge as two parallel white wavering lines; no Dolby Digital blocks, DTS timecode or SDDS tracks are visible.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Base looks neutral to slightly warm grey-cream, with a tan margin along one edge; the dye image shows full colour with no obvious fade or red shift.
Projection history
No scratches, splices or cue marks seen at this size; a small yellowish speck sits near the upper perforations, and the oval ring on the middle frame is a camera reflection.
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames repeat the same shot with no visible change, so they read as consecutive frames of one shot. Match to the film on record cannot be confirmed from the picture alone.
Era check
A positive colour print with a variable-area optical track on 35mm is consistent with a 1983 theatrical trailer, which would carry analogue optical sound and no digital audio.
Read from the original intake capture shown below. Observations only — film is authenticated, not graded.
This original motion picture film element has been examined and authenticated by Crown Grading in partnership with National Film Vault, and encapsulated for archival preservation.
Why so little survivesRelease prints were leased to theaters, not sold. When the run ended they went back to the distributor to be destroyed, and most were. What collectors hold today came from the prints that escaped that order, and no new 35mm prints of these films are being struck.
CROWN SERIAL 000070195
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
