The Godfather, Parts I, II, & III (Al Pacino, Marlon Brando)
The fact that I purchased the box set for these movies would normally be enough proof that I am a fan. What I will remark on is that I bought the trilogy having only seen the first film, Part One, once. I hadn't even seen the other two. In addition, I don't own a DVD player, but I wanted to have this set very badly; so much so, that when the day comes when I do own a player, I will already have these wonderful companion pieces on hand.
Now that I've finally watched them, I won't be so presumptuous as to critique The Godfather Trilogy. If you know that I enjoy all three, that is all I need to say about my impression of the films. But how do the films stack up to each other? This will be the subject of my subjective review.
It's hard to fathom, but after having recently watched all three in consecutive order, I would have to rate Part One as the best, Part Three as a close runner-up, and Part Two just on the heels. In Part One, we are introduced to the Corleone family, headed by the methodical Don Vito Corleone (Oscar winner Marlon Brando). His daughter (Talia Shire) is getting married and some people are asking for favours. When a Turk named Sollozzo (Al Lettieri) is turned down after a proposition to enter into the drugs racket, an attempt is made on the Don's life. While his eldest son Sonny (James Caan) fumes and retaliates, his youngest son Michael (Al Pacino) is forced to step into a new role unexpectedly. The differences between Caan and Pacino's performances are outstanding. Their onscreen presence, plus Brando and Robert Duvall as the right hand man Tom Hagen, keep Part One on top in my book.
In Part Two, Michael has inherited an empire, but has decided to move it to Nevada. This time out his own brother (John Cazale) has fallen off the sacred path of loyalty, and Michael must decide how best to dole out the punishment. The movie is surprisingly devoid of mob hits, violence, or thugs. The highlight is a series of flashbacks to his father's youth, played by Robert Deniro. The material is lifted directly from the novel that is mostly chronicled in Part One, but in Part Two it is much more apt, since the events which happen to Don Vito correspond better to Michael's situation in the second film. The parallels work very well. Director Francis Ford Coppolla avoids retreading old ground, but scenes such as the hearings where Michael is forced to testify or the extended sequence in Cuba, are relatively slow moving -- only, however, when regarding the trilogy as a whole. In any other movie... well, Hollywood would be lucky to have even a fraction of the precision these scenes project.
By the time I viewed the end of Part Three, I was highly impressed. I found a lot of story arcs were neatly resolved, and I felt Coppolla and writer Mario Puzo weren't just hashing out another sequel. They really maintained focus on the lives of the characters. Pacino is back as a man still tortured by ghosts from his past. His daughter (Sofia Coppolla) has fallen for one of Sonny's illegitimate children (Andy Garcia as Vincent Mancini). If their fathers are brothers, this would make them first cousins. Suffice to say, their inevitable love scene is a little awkward. Otherwise, Garcia is great as the hotheaded re-incarnation of Sonny and there are a good half a dozen supporting performances that give the film a richly full feeling. This time around, will Michael be able to break free from the deep mobster ties that have forged his destiny? Finding out proved to be a very rewarding experience for me, and the last 45 minutes of the picture, which take place at an opera house, left me breathless.
So there you have it. I really love my DVDs, I really love The Godfather Trilogy. All three are top notch films, and the bonus disc features several interesting documentaries, interviews and trivial tidbits that will make any movie buff drool.
