Greater than the sum of its parts. True art.

Rating: 10/10 (22 February 2010)

9.8
Everybody has heard of The Godfather. You may agree that everybody has seen The Godfather. You might say that everybody loves The Godfather. However, I disagree. It's been 38 years since The Godfather was released in theaters. Although everybody has heard of it, and holds it in high regards, I think that the reason why people enjoy the film is not because of its artistic merits, but its themes and pop culture phenomenon. I also believe that this type of film-making has been lost.
Every component of the film holds together well. Each individual aspect of it is finely tuned, and it is seamed together to as close to perfection as the medium allows, as far as we know it. However, it is not the sum of its parts that makes film or art, whatever medium it may be, great. It is not a group full of musicians that makes a record great. It is not great technical and artistic style that makes a painting great. It is not great dialogue, coupled with a good story that makes a novel great. I believe that when these components of an artistic medium are in harmony, it helps to allow for art to form. The Godfather has all of these components in spades and also becomes art.
The post WWII atmosphere, set in the midst of Italian crime organizations is engraved into the film. The colors are brown, gold and black, perfectly matching the antique tone. The acting is exceptional, with some performances by young actors that acted as a stepping stone for their careers. The music, while used sparingly, comes in and out at just the right times, and matches the mood of the film well.
The camera angles, cinematography and editing are why I used the term near- perfect. There are certain scenes in this film that are simply the best in all of film-making. One of the final scenes, interlaced with a baptism, is an amazing example of using the medium of film-making and its techniques such as editing and directing to inspire emotion and create art. Another scene, which simply just involves one person against a black background, and a single light source above them, is in my opinion one of the best shots of all time, not just in film-making, but photography as well.
The Godfather's greatest feat is not that it is a cultural phenomenon. It is, by all definitions, art. You might call expression and aesthetic values by themselves art, but ultimately it is pieces like The Godfather that inspires artists. There is a reason as to why half of this review is talking about art and not The Godfather. The film deserves to be seen, regardless of what you all ready know or what you think you might know about it. Regardless of its theme and setting, the work that the men and women did during the production of this film and its final form deserve to be recognized. This style of film-making is far and few between nowadays, and if you enjoy cinema, you owe it to yourself to experience Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather.