Francis Ford Coppola takes a story written by Mario Puzo and makes it into one of the greatest films ever made.

Rating: 10/10 (30 August 2001)

Italian films have quite often come under some sort of controversy, in large part because of the fact that Italian immigrants have been given an undeserved reputation of being inherently violent and universally tied to some sort of organized crime. Mass media is one of the main reasons for this, which is why Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather instigated such fierce opposition and controversy when it was released in 1972. Coppola has insisted that the film is not about Italians involved in organized crime, but that it is instead a metaphorical representation of the American government. Personally, I don't believe that at all, if only because no one is going to watch a film like that and overlook exactly what they see and make the connection between the film and the American government.

However, this does not take away from the overall accomplishment that the film makes. The genius of The Godfather lies in Coppola's obvious directing skills, as well as author Mario Puzo's skill as a storyteller. The film tells the story of five tremendously powerful crime families that are at war with one another, but no one seems to be quite sure who committed the crimes that instigated the war, which makes for an interesting investigation as a subplot. Marlon Brando's performance as Don Vito Corleone is one of the best in history, and one of the major accomplishments of the film as a whole is that it is able to take this man, who is really a despicable person, and make him into an endearing character that we really care about. He is the leader of a crime family, but he is made into an antagonist. The film twists things around like that, which is one of the things that really makes it so watch-able.
Aside from making Don Corleone into such a likeable character, he is also made to be tremendously respectable. Personally, I noticed this because I watched The Godfather again recently while going through and watching all of the James Bond films. Here is James Bond, who is supposed to be one of the most tasteful, refined, and high-class figures in action film, and Brando's Don Corleone effortlessly makes even Sean Connery's Bond look like a Spice Girl. The story of The Godfather is complex and involved enough to have taken up three very long films, and they are tied together brilliantly. This film ends with Vito Corleone's son Michael taking over his leadership position, in a scene that doesn't only leave room for a sequel, but demands one.
The film ends with Michael Corleone in his father's office, being addressed by two of his father's assistants as Don Corleone, a title attributed only to his father until that point in the film. It would have been an unsatisfactory to end the film that way without continuing the story, and this was done two years later, with yet another Best Picture winner. The Godfather is a landmark in film history, because of the incredible story, the astronomical performances, the expert direction, and the picture perfect cinematography. The film is literally packed with memorable and famous scenes, and the performances from everyone involved are spectacular. Even at three hours, The Godfather never gets boring or slow. It is a stunningly intense ride from beginning to end.