Truly masterly film-making, right up there with Citizen Kane, Lawrence of Arabia and Schindler's List

Rating: 10/10 (13 May 2005)

STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All Costs
The epic tale of Don Vito (Marlon Brando) head and patriarch of the Corleone crime family.When a rival family tries to muscle in on their patch,they offer the usual resistance.But when the Don is brutally gunned down in the street,a vicious attempt on his life,it falls to his sons,Michael (Al Pacino),the youngest,a Vietnam vet just returned home from active service,Fredo (John Cazele) the more reserved,prone-to-mistakes brother and Scillio (James Caan) his hot-headed,violent son,to settle the score both amicably and with mettle.
It's funny that just six days ago I was reviewing a film that ranked #18 on the bottom 100 list and yet today I'm reviewing a film that ranks right up at #1 on the top 250.Yet,indeed,this is truly an epic film that everyone who would like to call themselves a film connoisseur owes it to themselves to see.
Brando sadly passed away last year.If not for his extroverted private life,he will undoubtedly be best remembered for his leading role here,despite the staggeringly short amount of screen-time he actually occupies.Pacino too really launched his career here,and it's amazing to look back and see how young and fresh-faced he looked.In supporting roles,the film also undoubtedly helped make big names out of Caan and Robert Duvall as the family lawyer.Even the director,Francis Ford Coppola,probably never made anything that matched this (especially if you consider the chunks of cr*p he was shooting out later in his career.)
What I found most notable about the film is actually the sweeping,powerful score that plays over all the scenes with a majesty that is truly compelling and will stick in your mind for a while after you've seen it.But more than that,it is a film that is truly rich and flowing with texture and depth,that manages to flow with the vitality of the characters.I have a short attention span,like a lot of people of the MTV generation,so it's a film you might find hard to settle down and watch without fidgeting around a lot.But anyone who sees it would be unable to deny that it is,well,really what film-making is all about,truly masterful,fulfilled,dynamic stuff that puts a lot of the rubbish that gets spewed out today to shame.*****