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The Godfather
Directed by	Francis Ford Coppola
Written by	Novel: Mario Puzo Screenplay: Mario Puzo Francis Ford Coppola
Produced by	Albert Ruddy
Starring	Marlon Brando Al Pacino James Caan Robert Duvall Diane Keaton Talia Shire John Cazale
Cinematography	Gordon Willis
Music by	Nino Rota and Carmine Coppola
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release dates	March 15, 1972
Running time	175 min.
Languages	English, Sicilian, Latin
Budget	$6,000,000

The Godfather is a 1972 crime film directed and co-written by Francis Ford Coppola based on the the novel of the same name authored by the screenplay's co-writer Mario Puzo. The film starred Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton and James Caan. The film was subsequently followed with The Godfather Part II in 1974, The Godfather Part III in 1990, and a 2006 video game based on the film.

The film's story spans nine years from late 1945 to late 1954 as the leader of a New York mafia organization hands his family business over to his reluctant son. It is ranked as the third best American film in history by the American Film Institute and as the greatest film of all time according to the Internet Movie Database's Top 250 list with a 9.1/10 rating. It is also the number one movie on Metacritic's top 100 list.

Production

Mario Puzo helped in the making of the movie and its sequels and co-wrote the screenplay. Most of the shooting spanned from March 29, 1971, to August 6 of that year. A scene with Pacino and Keaton was shot in autumn. Due to skepticism about the film's expected success, a modest budget was set, forcing the crew to use regular lighting as opposed to production lighting, which resulted in a more realistic appearance to the film. One of the movie's most shocking moments comes early, involving the real severed head of a horse. Animal rights groups protested the inclusion of the scene. Coppola later stated that the horse's head was delivered to him from a dog food company; a horse had not been killed specifically for the movie.

Italian director Sergio Leone was offered the chance to direct The Godfather, but he declined on the basis that he did not find the story interesting. He went on to direct his own gangster opus, focusing instead on Jewish-American gangsters in Once Upon a Time in America. There was intense friction between director Coppola (who was at least the third choice to direct) and the studio, Paramount Pictures, and several times Coppola was almost replaced. Paramount maintains that its skepticism was due to a rocky start to production, though Coppola believes that the first week went extremely well. Paramount perceived that Coppola failed to stay on schedule, frequently made production and casting errors, and insisted on unnecessary expenses. The studio strongly opposed the casting of Al Pacino and Marlon Brando, insisting both perform in multiple screen tests and that Coppola consider other actors. Despite intense pressure, Coppola managed to defend his decisions and avoid being fired. The final cut seemed remarkably free of the changes the studio had previously demanded.

Synopsis

Template:Spoiler The film begins at the wedding of Don Vito Corleone's daughter, Connie, to Carlo Rizzi in late summer of 1945, in Long Beach, New York, on Long Island. Because "no Sicilian can refuse a request on his daughter's wedding day," the "Godfather" and Tom Hagen (the family consigliere) are preoccupied with hearing requests from friends and employees. Meanwhile, the Don's youngest son Michael, who has returned from World War II service as a highly decorated war hero, tells his girlfriend Kay Adams anecdotes about his father's criminal life, reassuring her that he is not like his family. Tom Hagen is sent to Hollywood to attempt to persuade a business deal upon film producer Jack Woltz. After refusing, Woltz awakens in the morning to discover his prize stud horse's severed head laying beside him. Woltz immediately agrees to the Corleone's deal. The family takes a meeting with heroin dealer Virgil "The Turk" Sollozzo, who has influence with the Tattaglia family. He asks Don Corleone for political protection and financing to start the mass import and distribution of heroin but, despite the huge returns promised, the Don Corleone. The Don's oldest son, hotheaded Sonny breaks rank during indirectly expresses interest in the deal, which his father privately rebukes him for doing.

After Don Corleone's refusal, Tom Hagen is abducted by Sollozzo and his henchmen, while the Don himself suffers an assassination attempt. Sollozzo convinces Hagen to offer Sonny the deal previously offered to his father, who manages to survive despite being shot six times. Sonny refuses to consider the deal, promising an all mob war with the Tattaglias and Sollozzo. The Corleones now prepare for the likelihood of all-out warfare with the Five Families, who will unite against the Corleones to prevent a long destructive conflict. Michael visits his father in the hospital, where he finds nobody guarding him. Michael realizes that his father is being set up to be killed, and moves him to another room. He calls Sonny with a report, and goes outside to watch the door. After bluffing away some of Sollozzo's goons, police cars quickly arrive with the corrupt Captain McCluskey, who breaks Michael's jaw with a single punch. Just then, Tom Hagen arrives with "private detectives" licensed to carry guns to protect Don Corleone. Later, the Corleones discuss the ongoing war, and Michael volunteers to kill Sollozzo and Captain McCluskey, who is acting as his Bodyguard. They arrange a meeting in a restaurant, ostensibly to discuss peace. Michael excuses himself to go to the restroom, retrieves a planted snubnosed revolver, and shoots Sollozzo and McCluskey. To avoid arrest for the murders, Michael is sent to Sicily. While there, he marries a local girl, Apollonia, who is subsequently murdered during an attempt on Michael's life.

Don Corleone returns home from the hospital and is distraught to learn that Michael was the one who killed Sollozzo and McCluskey. Some months later, Sonny severely beats Carlo for hitting Connie. The next time Carlo does it, Sonny drives off to find him, but is ambushed at an expressway toll booth where he is brutally shot to death by several carloads of unidentified hitmen. Instead of perpetuating the revenge cycle, Don Corleone meets with the heads of the Five Families to arrange the peace and traffic heroin with Philip Tattaglia so Michael can return home safely. At the meeting, Don Corleone realizes that Don Barzini, not Tattaglia, was responsible for the mob war. With his safety guaranteed, Michael returns from Sicily. More than a year later, he reunites with his former girlfriend, Kay, telling her that he wishes to marry her. With Sonny dead and middle brother Fredo considered incapable of running the family business, Michael is now in charge, and he claims and that the family business will soon be completely legitimate. Caporegimes Clemenza and Tessio complain that they are being pushed around by the Barzini Family, and want permission to strike back, but Michael refuses. Michael plans to move the family operations to Nevada and after that, Clemenza and Tessio may break away to go on their own. Connie's husband, Carlo, is going to be Michael's right hand in Nevada, and Hagen has moved out there ahead of Michael, having been replaced as consigliere by Vito.

In Las Vegas Michael is greeted by Fredo in the hotel-casino partly financed by the Corleones, run by Moe Greene. During the meeting Michael offers to buy out Greene but is rudely rebuffed. Greene believes the Corleones are weak, and he can secure a better deal from Barzini. Michael returns home, along with his wife Kay and son Anthony. In a private meeting, Vito mentions that Michael's enemies will attempt to kill him by using a trusted acquaintance to arrange a meeting. He then dies of a heart attack. During the funeral, Tessio conveys a proposal for a meeting with Barzini, as predicted by Vito. Michael decides to make his move after the baptism of Connie and Carlo's second son, Michael Francis Rizzi, in which he will be serving as godfather. Michael arranges the murders of Moe Greene, Philip Tattaglia, Emilio Barzini, Salvatore Tessio, Victor Stracci, and Ottilio Cuneo. After the baptism, Michael confronts Carlo about Sonny's murder and tricks him into admitting his role in the killing. Carlo is strangled by Clemenza. Later, Connie accuses Michael of Carlo's murder. Kay questions Michael about Connie's accusation, but he refuses to answer. She insists, and Michael lies, assuring his wife that he had no role in Carlo's death. Kay is relieved by Michael's denial. As the film ends, she watches Clemenza and new caporegime Rocco Lampone pay their respects to Michael, kissing his hand and addressing him as "Don Corleone." The door closes on Kay's distraught face, as she watches the new Godfather.

Differences from novel

Many subplots had to be trimmed. These include: singer Johnny Fontane's misfortunes with women and his voice; Sonny's paramour Lucy Mancini's new-found love in Dr. Segal (a character missing from the film), and her subsequent vaginal surgery; Kay Adams's home life; Luca Brasi's demonic past; Don Corleone's ingenious plan used to take Michael out of exile in Sicily; and the detailed attack on the two men who assaulted Bonasera's daughter, which was led by Paulie Gatto and was only alluded to in the film. Characters with smaller roles in the film than in the novel include Johnny Fontane, Lucy Mancini, Rocco Lampone, and Al Neri (the latter two are reduced to non-speaking roles). Characters dropped in adaptation include Genco Abbandando (only spoken of; appears in The Godfather II in the Vito Corleone flashback, since he dies in the book just after Connie's wedding), Nino Valenti (Johnny Fontane's "nice guy" friend, dying from alcoholism), Dr. Jules Segal (Lucy's lover) and Dr. Taza (from Sicily).

Quite notably, the film skips the major flashback of Don Corleone's ascent in the mafia. Including his arrival in America, marriage and fatherhood, Don Fanucci's murder, and his rise in the mafia. All of which were later interpreted in The Godfather Part II. The novel and film also differ on the fates of Michael's bodyguards in Sicily, Fabrizio and Calo. The film has them both surviving (Calo, in fact, appears in the third installment). In the book, Calo dies along with Apollonia in the car explosion, and Fabrizio dies at the end as one more victim in the famous "baptism scene", shot in his restaurant in America after he's traced and found (he is killed in a scene in The Godfather Saga, which was deleted from The Godfather: Part II).

The ending of the book differs drastically from the end of the movie: whereas in the film Kay suddenly realizes that Michael has become "like his family," the drama is toned down in the book, where Tom Hagen lets her in on secrets for which, according to him, he would be killed should Michael find out. During the film's baptism scene, the heads of the remaining four of five families are assassinated. In the novel, only Barzini and Tattaglia, previously at war with the Corleones, are killed.

Template:Endspoiler

Reaction

Template:Infobox movie certificates The Godfather was released on March 15, 1972. Coppola, whose several prior films had none of the same impact upon the public, although he had received an Academy Award for co-writing Patton in 1970. The film is greatly respected among international critics and the public. It was voted greatest film of all time by Entertainment Weekly, and #3 of all time by the American Film Institute. It has consistently ranked #1 on IMDb's Top 250. In the 2002 Sight & Sound poll of international critics, it was ranked as the 4th best film of all time. The soundtrack's main theme by Nino Rota was also critically acclaimed; the main theme is well-known and widely used. It is the personal favorite film of many film critics including Peter Travers of Rolling Stone, Charles Taylor of Salon and Richard Roeper of Ebert & Roeper. Both The Godfather and The Godfather Part II have been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. This is not the case for the third installment.

The trilogy had a powerful impact upon the public at large. Don Vito's line, "I'm going to make him an offer he can't refuse" was voted as the second most memorable line in cinema history in a 2005 poll, called AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes by the American Film Institute, and it is often parodied. Vito refers to Hollywood producer Woltz in saying, "I'm going to make him an offer he can't refuse."

Reports from Mafia trials and confessions suggest that Mafia families began a "real life" tradition of paying respect to the family don by kissing his ring, in imitation of the ending scene of The Godfather.

The film was an enormous box office hit, smashing previous records to become the highest grossing film of all time (until that record was broken by Jaws in 1975). It made USD $5,264,402 in its opening weekend and went on to gross $81,500,000 in its initial run; nearly fourteen times its budget and marketing campaign. Re-releases boosted its North American total to $134 million.

The Godfather won the Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role (Marlon Brando refused to accept the award and sent actress Sacheen Littlefeather in his stead to the Oscars to explain why) and Best Writing (adapted screenplay) (Francis Coppola, Mario Puzo). The film was also nominated for eight additional Academy Awards. Furthermore, it won five Golden Globes, one Grammy and numerous other awards. Nino Rota's music score for the film was initially nominated for an Oscar, but was subsequently withdrawn when it was discovered that Rota recycled some of the music he had written for an obscure 1958 Italian film Fortunella.

Cinematic influence

The image of the Mafia as being a medieval-style organization with a "royal family" doing favors for underlings is very popular. For example, in John Grisham's novel The Firm, the Mafia is depicted as having an organization wherein the top mobsters marry into the "royal family". However, this image bears little resemblance to the more sordid reality of lower level Mafia "familial" entanglements, as depicted in various post-Godfather mafia fare (e.g, the Martin Scorcese films, Mean Streets, Goodfellas, & Casino, & David Chase's HBO-TV series The Sopranos).

The Sopranos pays homage to The Godfather in a humorous episode where they discuss the feasibility of bootlegging copies of the DVD. Paramount returned the favor by including this clip as an Easter Egg on the Godfather DVD Collection. Moreover, characters in The Sopranos sometimes discuss The Godfather and The Godfather Part II as both favorite films and images to live up to in the less glamorous real world of organized crime. In the series premiere of The Sopranos, Silvio Dante (Steven Van Zandt) says, "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!"—a line from The Godfather Part III. Often, the characters will refer to the movies as simply "One" and "Two".

Other releases

Coppola reedited the two movies together, in chronological order (adding some previously unseen footage but also toning down the violence), into one long saga for TV broadcast, entitled The Godfather Saga. While easier to understand, many consider this version to be less interesting than the original from a structural or artistic standpoint.

In 1992, Coppola once again re-edited to the film along with Part II, this time including Part III in a one chronological package. The film was a direct to video release that had a running time of 583 minutes. In addition to featuring Part III, the film also incorporated new deleted scenes that had not been seen in The Godfather Saga.

DVD release

The film was released on DVD for the first time on October 9, 2001 as apart of DVD package known as The Godfather DVD Collection. The collection contained all three films with commentary from Francis Ford Coppola and a bonus disc that featured a 73 minute "Making Of" documentary titled The Godfather Family: A Look Inside plus the original 1971 documentary. Deleted Footage was released including the additional scenes originally contained in the re-edited 1977 The Godfather Saga. "Francis Coppola's Notebook" a look inside a notebook the director kept with him at all times during the production of the film. Rehearsal footage was also included along with video segments on Gordon Willis' cinematography, Nino Rota and Carmine Coppola's music, Francis Ford Coppola, Locations and Mario Puzo's screenplays. The DVD also held a Corleone family tree, a "Godfather" timeline, and footage of the Academy Award acceptance speeches.

Cast

• Marlon Brando as Don Vito Corleone. Vito is the Don of the Corleone family. He is the father of Michael, Sonny, Fredo, and surrogate father to Tom Hagen.
• Al Pacino as Michael Corleone. Michael is the Don's youngest son. He recently returned from the Marines to recover from wounds. He wants nothing to do with the Corleone family business.
• James Caan as Santino "Sonny" Corleone. Sonny is the hot-headed oldest brother of the Corleone children. He is likely to takeover the family business after Vito Corleone retires.
• John Cazale as Frederico "Fredo" Corleone. Fredo is the youngest son of Vito Corleone.
• Robert Duvall as Tom Hagen. Tom is an adopted son of Vito Corleone, he is also the family lawyer is likely to become the new consigliere.
• Diane Keaton as Kay Adams. Kay is Michael's girlfriend.
• Richard S. Castellano as Peter Clemenza. Clemenza is a caporegime for the Corleone Family.
• Al Lettieri as Virgil "The Turk" Sollozzo.
• Abe Vigoda as Salvatore "Sal" Tessio. Tessio, along with Clemenza, is a caporegime for the Corleone Family.
• Talia Shire as Costanza "Connie" Corleone-Rizzi
• Gianni Russo as Carlo Rizzi
• Lenny Montana as Luca Brasi

Coppola's casting choices were not popular with the studio executives at Paramount Pictures, particularly Marlon Brando as Don Vito Corleone. However, Paramount originally refused to allow Coppola to cast Brando in the role, citing the difficulties Brando had had on recent film sets. At one point, Coppola was told by the then president of Paramount that "As President of Paramount Pictures, Marlon Brando will never appear in this motion picture." After pleading with the executives, Coppola was allowed to cast Brando on the condition that he appear in the film for much less salary than his previous films, that he perform a screen-test, and that he put up a bond saying that he will not cause a delay in the production (as he had done on previous film sets). Originally, Laurence Olivier was wanted by Paramount to play Vito Corleone, but he was unable to sign on due to health problems. Coppola chose Brando over Ernest Borgnine, as the former won him over with his screen test. Brando went on to win an Academy Award for his portrayal.

The producers originally wanted Robert Redford or Ryan O'Neal to play Michael Corleone, but Coppola wanted an unknown who looked like an Italian-American, who was found in Al Pacino. Pacino was not well known at the time, and the studio did not consider him right for the part. Pacino was only granted the role after Coppola threatened to quit the production. A then unknown Robert De Niro also auditioned, not only for Michael, but for the roles of Sonny, Carlo and Paulie Gatto. Jack Nicholson, Dustin Hoffman, Warren Beatty, Martin Sheen, and James Caan also auditioned. Before Duvall was cast, Paul Newman and Steve McQueen also auditioned for the role of Tom Hagen.

Coppola cast his infant daughter, Sofia, as Connie and Carlo's newborn son, Michael Francis Rizzi, in the climactic baptism scene near the movie's end. Sofia Coppola played roles in the later Godfather movies. In Part II, she plays a nameless immigrant girl on the ship that brings Vito Corleone to New York. In Part III, she plays a major speaking role: that of Michael Corleone's daughter Mary.

Oranges

Template:Spoilers Film scholars and fans of the Godfather movies note what they believe is the symbolic significance of oranges in the films, suggesting that after the appearance of an orange in the film an important "death scene" follows. In the first film, Tom Hagen and Woltz negotiate Johnny's movie status at a dinner table with a plate of oranges on it, and Woltz soon discovers his dead horse's head; Don Vito Corleone is buying oranges from a fruit seller when he is attacked; Sonny drives past a billboard promoting Florida Oranges before he is attacked at the toll booth; oranges are placed on the table at the meeting of the Mafia bosses (and specifically in front of the ones who will be assassinated at the film's climax); and Don Vito Corleone dies while eating an orange, as he plays with his young grandson. Tessio is also seen peeling an orange at Connie's wedding. Carlo, who is responsible for Sonny's death, is wearing an orange suit when Sonny beats him up. Template:Endspoiler

Video game

In March 2006, a video game version of The Godfather was released by Electronic Arts. The player can make his/her own mobster using a program called mobface technology, and soon become the don, and even Don of New York. The game also lets the player kill rival families, make businesses/rackets pay protection, and control New York City. Prior to his death, Marlon Brando provided voice work for Vito. However, due to poor sound quality from Brando's failing health, a sound-alike's voice had to be used instead. James Caan, Robert Duvall and Abe Vigoda lent their voices and likenesses as well, and several other Godfather cast members had their likeness in the game. Francis Ford Coppola said in April 2005 that he was not informed and did not approve of Paramount allowing the game's production, and openly criticized the move. Another notable absence of support came from Al Pacino, who did not participate reportedly because he himself already was attached to another game of one of his movies, Scarface.

References

1. "AFI's 100 YEARS...100 MOVIES". Retrieved February 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
2. "The Godfather". Retrieved February 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
3. ^ The Godfather DVD commentary featuring Francis Ford Coppola,
4. ^ The Godfather DVD Collection documentary A Look Inside,
5. ^ Jon E Lewis, ed. (1998). New American Cinema. Duke University Press. pp. 14–17.
6. "AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies". American Film Institute. Retrieved 2007-02-14.
7. "IMDB Top 250". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2007-02-14.
8. "The Godfather DVD Collection". Retrieved February 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
9. "The Godfather DVD Collection". Retrieved February 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
10. "THE GODFATHER: What's with all the ORANGES?". THE GODFATHER TRILOGY: The Web Site You Can't Refuse. Retrieved 2007-02-08.
11. "2. The Godfather". Writer's Guild of America. Retrieved 2007-02-08.
12. ""Coppola Angry over Godfather Video Game", 8 April 2005". Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)

Further reading

• Burr, T, The 100 Greatest Movies of All Time, New York: Time-Life Books ISBN 1-883013-68-2. Lists The Godfather as "the greatest film of all time."
• Cowie, Peter, The Godfather Book, London: Faber and Faber, 1997

External links

• The Godfather at IMDb
• Template:Filmsite
• The Godfather family tree and crime structure
• Plot Summary on Ruined Endings
• Godfather Films
• The Godfather Trilogy
• The Godfather Game
• 1991 US Gold version of the Godfather PC Game
• IMDb Top 250
• The Guardian, April 22, 2006, "Mob mentality"
• The Godfather Trilogy Fanlisting
• Template:Fr The Godfather Trilogy Space
• Complete list of actors who were considered for roles
• The Godfather's Spaghetti Sauce - This page gives attention to the sauce recipe explained in the movie.
• Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: Hegemony and Counter Hegemony in The Godfather Trilogy

• 1972 films
• Best Director Golden Globe
• Best Picture Academy Award winners
• Drama films
• English-language films
• Film trilogies
• Films based on fiction books
• Films directed by Francis Ford Coppola
• Films featuring a Best Actor Academy Award winning performance
• Italian-language films
• Latin-language films
• Mafia films
• Paramount films
• The Godfather
• United States National Film Registry
• Drug-related films