The Godfather takes place over many years, from the end of World War II into the 1950’s. It covers many events and does not have a consistent central character. It illustrates how characters change over time, and sometimes fail to change. It launched (or solidified) the careers of a great many actors like James Caan, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire, and of course Al Pacino. Even 50 year old and victim of 2016 Abe Vigoda. But mostly it turned director Francis Ford Coppola into a directorial force to be reckoned with. He would go on to direct Part II, The Conversation, Apocalypse Now, then a whole pile of shit.
Simonetta Stefanelli plays Michael’s first wife and has a delightful nude scene, if you’re into that sort of thing. If IMDb is to be believed, she was 17 when the film was released. If her scenes were done four months prior, she wouldn’t have been that. Ah, the benefits of shooting in Italy. Hey, look, there's old friend Sterling Hayden! Once again proving he's not afraid to take acting chances. The baby being baptized at the end was director daughter Sofia Coppola, who would prove to be a far better director than actress.
Make no mistake: these are not good people. They are not heroes by any measure, even if some will see them as such. But neither are their victims. It's bad on bad and one cannot feel sorry for any of the deaths. There is no pristine protagonist to rally around and you shouldn't try to find one.
At just under three hours with no singular storyline, The Godfather does not lag, never fails to keep you enthralled. I was totally wrong to ignore it for so long. It is one of those films that everyone says is great, and that is because it is great. Solid cast, great acting, great script, great cinematography, and incredible storytelling. It has crept into popular culture in so many ways, and it forever changed the genre and film making as a whole. I will never doubt a film recommendation from my wife ever again. AMRU 5.
"Leave the gun. Take the cannoli."
No comments:
Post a Comment