While Godfather Part 3 was generally considered the worst of them, with some legitimate criticisms in its execution, the movie was a necessary conclusion.
In the first Godfather movie, it shows very clearly that while Michael is a war hero and not averse to violence itself, he doesn't support the direction his family goes in. He exists outside the family business and is understood to be a civilian, and shows a distaste for the way his family operates. "That's my family," he says to Kay, "it's not me." He's a man with two moral codes. On one hand, he believes in right and wrong, and doesn't want to be a criminal. On the other hand, he believes in family above all else.
The events of the Godfather force him to compromise his belief in right and wrong, but he does so always in protection of his family. He kills Solozzo to protect his father, and when he takes control of the Family, he does so reluctantly, as there's no one else who can protect those he cares about. He starts out betraying one moral code in service of the other.
In Part 2, however, his final act in killing Fredo throws everything away. His justification for every evil he'd committed up to that point was in service of his family, but this fratricide destroyed that justification. He is then just a thug. With this unforgivable crime committed, he must be punished.
Godfather Part 3 is where he is punished. People didn't love the "confused" tone of the movie, but it was a necessary conclusion. He had gone from being a moral man to being the man his family needed him to be, and from that to sacrificing his family for the sake of his business. His pursuit of business now had to cost him his family.
The "confused" tonality of the film seems less confused when you think about it. The Michael Corleone you see here is an imposter, a fraud, accepting high Vatican honors in exchange for generous donations, and it all seems empty because it is. With all his moral codes washed away, all he has left to strive for is a vain attempt to wash his sins away. His wife despises him; his son distrusts him. The only time he feels like himself is when he's Don Corleone. He's drawn to teaching Vincent because it's a chance to be a gangster again, to strike at his enemies. This is also the only time the audience feels like they're watching a Godfather movie. They want the ruthless and cunning Michael Corleone, not the guilt-ridden wreck that confesses Fredo's murder to the new pope. But it's the ruthless and cunni
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EDIT: That's all for now, folks! Thanks so much for all your wonderful questions, we had so much fun answering them.
Christopher’s gone but 100 years from now people will still be watching CLEAVER.
I'm asking after reading a little bit about The Godfather Part II's originally mixed reception and criticism for certain features such as the disjointed, non-linear story-telling. It later became reappraised as one of the greatest films of all time and won the Academy Award for Best Picture that same year.
Is it because these films, either in substance or in structure, are slightly ahead of the curve? Are they slow burners that need re-watching and thinking about to be truly appreciated?
In terms of pure spectacle, and without meaning to jump on the Christopher Nolan bandwagon, I could see a film like Interstellar being looked upon much more fondly further down the line after it's lukewarm reviews on release.
Tbh it tried to copy Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi and did better than both of them.
Happy April.
Francis Ford made a Coppola great movies..
I recently finished The Godfather Part II for the first time. In my own humble opinion, it is the greatest film ever made. Opinions?
