Organised Crime Goes To Hollywood! What's changed? Nothing!

Rating: 10/10 (3 July 2005)

Francis Coppola's The Godfather, and Godfather pt. II have made their names known rightfully as masterpieces of cinema. They are both executed with razor-like care and crafted atop a foundation of brilliant actors, a brilliant director, a brilliant script by a brilliant writer, brilliant photography, brilliant production design, and a brilliant score. And it was the first film to give mainstream insight to the world of Ogranised Crime - an insight so true that Mario Puzo was questioned by the Mafia about his sources.
But The Godfather is not just a vehicle of power for its wonderful foundations and brilliant everything, it is a drama about war between families - about destruction within families. From the film's buoyant wedding opening scene, we are instantly emerged in Coppola and Puzo's world of rich characters and gripping stories. This film could have been about a mining family in the nineteenth century - though things would have to change - and it would still be as entertaining, as tragic, as exciting, and as masterful as it is just now.