Movie Review: The Godfather
Genre: Drama
Starring: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan
Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola
Rating: 5/5
An offer you can't refuse? How about a movie you can't miss!
Ever since it was release back in 1972, The Godfather has been known as a masterpiece. Not only considered to be the best mafia flick of all time, but one of the best movies in general. After seeing this film for the first time, I now know why it is still so acclaimed to this day. The actors are brilliantly casted, the characters are likeable and believable, and has one of the best stories in cinema Hollywood has to offer.
Don Vito Corleone (Brando) is the leader/head of the Corleone Mafia Family, and hosts his daughter's wedding while arranging business plans. His youngest son, Michael (Pacino), returns to New York from World War 2 in time for the wedding, and is the only one in the family not involved with "the business". When the Don is attacked and is almost killed, it is up to Michael to avenge his father. After the revenge is complete, Michael goes into hiding in Italy while war wages between the five Mafia families in NY. The members of the Corleone family need to figure out how to settle the war, as well as decide what will become of the Don and his unknown successor.
Probably the most interesting character in the movie is Michael, the aspiring college student destined for great things. His development from being a civilian to a boss leader is one of the biggest aspects of the plot, and really drives the story. If there is a thing to critique about this otherwise fantastic development of a character, it is that Michael's motives are never really made clear. We don't know why he suddenly changes his mind about joining the family business, or why he's willing to kill for them. Maybe it's because of his love for his father, or the business somehow seduced him into it, but we never find out, leaving his intentions a mystery.
Every actor in The Godfather is fantastic and wonderfully casted. Brando and Pacino make great leading roles, and even smaller parts like Bonasara and Solozzo do terrific jobs in creating a believable world of crime. It is their performances that make watching the nearly three hour flick great, though cutting the movie's length down would certainly help move it along.
It is astounding to know then, that this perfect cast almost never was. Paramount Pictures hated the idea of Brando playing as the Don, and even stars Al Pacino and Robert Duvall were thought to have been poor choices. Thanks to Coppola's persistence and determination however, the studio gave in and allowed Coppola to have the actors he desired. Who knows how the movie would've fared if Coppola decided to back down?
There is no doubt on The Godfather's legacy. Even with some slight confusion on character development and being quite a lengthy film, it's still a phenomenal movie that deserves the praise that it gets. It has a great plot with fantastic characters to boot. Go see The Godfather, or you'll be missing one of the timeless movies of all time.
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Oh ya, and on a side note, sorry for not being here in like a month. School had been really pressing with all these projects and exams coming up. Luckily the summer break is almost here, and I'll be able to continue doing blogs and other reviews and such. This review was one of my assignments I had to make, so I thought I might as well post it. See you guys in a few weeks!