a classic when first released; only improves with age

Rating: 10/10 (22 November 2010)

The first words in Francis Coppola's organized crime saga ("I believe in America") are spoken by a wronged father seeking justice from Mafia Don Vito Corleone, and with an immigrant's passion invoke the spirit of his adapted homeland. It's an ironic gesture in a film which embraces the American Dream with a vengeance, beginning with a joyful celebration of marriage, ending with a solemn Catholic Church baptism, and continuing in between with murder after bloody murder: for vengeance; for punishment; or (with a severed horse head under the bed sheets) simply for leverage. The film gained notoriety for such epic displays of gangland violence, but its real power lies in nuance: a shading of phrase; a deceptive fall of lamplight; the sound of footsteps on a hospital stairway. Credit goes to co-writers Coppola and Mario Puzo for the leisurely paced but tightly plotted screenplay, by itself a remarkable study in contrasts, showing the thin line dividing patriotism and graft; honor and brutality; family affections and ritual violence. Seeing Part One independent from its companion/sequel is like reading only the middle chapters of a long and complex historical novel, rich in detail and drama, about an immigrant family coping with changing times in the New World. The result is one of the few truly effective adaptations of a popular novel, and together with Part Two perhaps the last word in gangster film dramas.