Looks good, has good acting... but number 1? Pfft.

Rating: 6/10 (15 February 2002)

Number one movie of all time? Come on there isn't much going
on here. It's strictly a movie for fans of "actors" and "great casts,"
as evidenced by the many user reviews that fail to find anything
else to say about it.
The story's long and dull, unless you happen to be obsessed with
mafioso and the little details of Italain Americana of the period,
which I must admit it captures well. But there isn't really any soul
or mystery to this movie. It doesn't really even try to grapple with
any issues. (See Casablanca, or even Empire Strikes Back, and
you'll know what I mean. You wanna see Brando acting? "On the
Waterfront." Now that's a movie with heart!)
I think the real reason it stays ranked so high is that even people
that don't like it very much (like me) can't give it much lower than a
7 or 8, because it is so strong in its acting, cinematography, and
mise en scene. Whereas the (few) people who don't get
Casablanca find it so antique and alien that they feel free to vote it
down with 1s and 2s. A real shame, that I think even Coppola
would admit.
Oh, I'd even recommend Apocalypse Now over Godfather. There's
just so much more mystery and human story going on. Godfather's just about some violent stereotypes rehashed with a
"redeeming" sense of "Family Honor."