Nicky Santoro making Doggs bark. (Casino)
2) Casino – Charlie M. (“Don’t Make Me Have to be a Bad Guy”)
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Though not as acclaimed as Goodfellas, Casino is still one helluva movie. One of the film’s highlights is Joe Pesci as Nicky Santoro, a mob enforcer looking to muscle in on Las Vegas. In a film generously peppered with brutal moments, one scene stands out as particularly brutal – the epic torture session of Tony Dogs (Carl Ciarfalio) to extract information on who shot up a bar. Mind you, Tony wasn’t a good guy himself. He’s the one one who shot up the bar, killing 2 gangsters and an innocent waitress. However, by a certain point you have to wonder, “How much is too much, even for an obvious low-life?”
In fact, Nicky himself respects Anthony for being tough. He tortures him for 2 days and 2 nights, and he still doesn’t talk! That is until Nicky puts his head in a vice. “Don’t make me have to do this…don’t make me have to be a bad guy,” Nicky shouts. Then, when the vice does its thing, Nicky – a brutal mob enforcer – even says, “Oh, god.” When Dogs finally barks out “It was Charlie M!,” Nicky relents, adding: “You make me pop your eye out of your head [to protect] Charlie M.?!…” Then Nicky’s associate, Frankie (Frank Vincent), puts an end to the epic session, and Nicky is poised to be the new boss in town.