A view from the other side of life.

Rating: 10/10 (17 November 2009)

The mafia was always seen as evil, secretive and not interesting enough to be a story. Then came The Godfather and today countless movies and television shows take place about gangsters and the mafia. But what a great risk it must have been for Francis Ford Coppola to adapt Mario Puzo's best-seller to the big screen. He succeeded in the two areas I believe are the most important in film: acting and writing.
The screenplay by Coppola and Puzo is one of the tightest and carefully constructed scripts of any movie. The film takes place completely within the world of the Corleone family, so we are never asked to hate these people nor sympathize with them. Yet we do, due to the countless scenes involving them eating, drinking, talking. There is a 30 minute wedding scene in the beginning that sets the mood and tone, showing how these people have taken advantage of the American dream. Now that we know them, we care for what happens to them despite the fact that they are evil.
The acting is so powerful, so effective that it is impossible to think anyone could have filled these roles instead. Al Pacino, who was hated by the producers but loved by Coppola, plays Michael very straight and emotionless. His blank stare says everything and nothing, but all along we see change and it is his change of heart and personality that is the most amazing development in the whole film. James Caan is perfect as the hot-headed Sonny, Robert Duvall perfect as the level-headed Tom Hagen, and of course Marlon Brando overtakes everyone as the aging patriarch, Don Vito Corleone. Brando is usually considered the greatest actor ever, and here he goes full length, portraying a man who has been in America most of his life and is growing weary of the direction in which business seems to be going.
The Godfather is one of the best films ever if only for the fact that it is able to suck you in completely to this world. It is long but never plods and always builds with every scene. Indeed, each early scene is somewhat of a set-up for something later. The actors all play it so straight and smooth, everything is completely convincing. And Gordon Willis' dark, moody photography adds to the drama, evoking hidden agendas and secrets. Nino Rota composed one of the most famous of all movie themes, and here it seems to tell us that life is going to get bad and we should have listened to Don Vito. This film put Coppola on the map and made him a director to reckon with. Just like the Corleones.