The Greatest. Truly.

Rating: 10/10 (19 August 2012)

Now, let's take a look at what anyone who is serious about film says is the greatest of all time. They're right. Both Godfathers stand alone as the two of the best scripted, acted, and directed films of all time. In all, they come out to the two best films. If you read some of my other reviews, you'll find that I consider a saga one film. A saga is best watched simultaneously. The Godfathers are a perfect example of how a series can get it right. Except the third. The third was just plain bad. Did Coppola really need to do this? Throw in another addition to the greatest saga in history? Sure, Andy Garcia was pretty spot-on as Sonny's illegitimate child. But they might as well have had someone like Dustin Hoffman play Michael, because he would've looked and sounded more like him than Pacino did at the time. And Sofia sucked. Good director, bad actress. It was not needed, because the first two were flawless. The ways of how this crime family rose, fell, rose, fell, etc., was perfect. I distinctly remember saying in one of my film classes (in front of a bunch of total film snobs) that Coppola is one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. The other students stared at me with blank looks on their faces, as if I had told some horribly offensive jokes. Screw them. Why shouldn't he be considered? He deserves it, with The Godfather, Part II, Apocalypse Now, and The Conversation. Four classics. Did the other students not like it because he made a couple of flops (Jack, The Rainmaker)? All the best did (Kubrick-Eyes Wide Shut, Nolan-Insomnia), and they continue to be praised. I did enjoy The Outsiders, even if it doesn't come close to touching The Godfathers. Apart, they are masterpieces. Together, they are the definition of flawless filmmaking.
The genius behind the storyline is that we never see the Don at his peak. We see him just before his peak, and just after as well. Everything, from the script to the directing, makes this storyline perfect. But it is the acting that has the biggest aspect on the story. Two actors (De Niro and Branda, both two-time winners) won for the role of Don Vito. Also, the surrounding cast of Pacino, Duvall, Caan, and Keaton, make the film what it is, attached to a pitch-perfect script by Mario Puzo and Coppola. to quote Richard Roeper, saying you like film but have never seen The Godfather is like "saying you love to drink but you've never had water." Too true.