The epitome of great cinema.

Rating: Null/10 (7 April 2001)

`Do you spend time with your family? Good. Because a man that doesn't spend time with his family can never be a real man,' remarked Vito Corleone, played by Marlon Brando. By reading that quote, one might have thought that Vito was a virtuous and wonderful family man. However, he was the Godfather to the most powerful crime family in New York who dealt with murder every day. Little by little throughout the film, the viewer easily bought into the myth of the mafia: the family togetherness and their rich traditional background. But, director Francis Ford Coppola also exposed the viewer to what actually goes on in the mafia: death, blood, and calculated murders. Coppola used the elements such as camera angles, lighting, editing and dialogue to compare and contrast the myth versus the reality if the mafia in the scenes in the film, which were the events during Connie Corleone's (Talia Shire) wedding, the baptism of her child and the confrontation between Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) and his abusive brother-in-law, Carlo (Gianni Russo). Before the Corleone family lures the viewer in, they should take into consideration what is actually going on.
A drastic difference between the reality and the myth of the mafia was blatantly expressed during the scene in which Connie Corleone got married. While everyone gathered around outside for a traditional, family oriented Italian wedding, the inside of their Corleone compound hosted crime negotiations between Don Vito Corleone and various members of his crime family. Outside of the compound, the Corleone family members gathered together to sing traditional Italian songs, wore traditional and classic wedding attire, danced joyously and took the family picture. Meanwhile, indoors, Don Corleone granted favors for the wedding guests, these favors often involving murder. To contrast the two scenes, Coppola implemented them with camera angles. Outdoors, the camera angle represented an onlooker and followed the festivities during the day. This gave a sense of belonging to the audience, and helped them `buy into' the myth of the mafia. Simultaneously, during the negotiations indoors, the camera angle represented Don Corleone's point of view. This made the viewer realize the intensity of the mafia and the importance of the role of the `Godfather' because everyone gathered around Vito and was humbled by his presence. Also, Coppola contrasted the scenes by the use of lighting. For example, outdoors, the lighting was very bright and there were barely any shadows. This created an air of happiness and showed the audience how the family made each other happy. In contrast, indoors, everyone and everything was cast in dark shadows to show the dark underworld of what was actually occurring in the mafia.
Another scene that showed a comparison of the myth versus the reality of the mafia was the baptism montage. Coppola ensured that this scene was implemented by using an editing technique called parallel action, in which two scenes are shifted back and forth to compare and contrast. In this example, the parts of the scene undergoing parallel action were when Michael was witnessing his godson's baptism and when the murders of all of the Dons that Michael had planned were being executed. At the baptism, the Corleone's proved their family togetherness and showed their belief in God. Michael even renounced the devil and pledged his allegiance to the church. However, he knew that as he as saying this, the murders he had planned were taking place. The brutal murders obviously showed how fiercely protective the mafia is and also served as irony, considering that Michael was renouncing Satan as people he ordered to die were being slain. In the order that the scenes were placed proved how both aspects of the mafia were considered to be alike in some ways to Michael. For example, the dripping of holy water off the baby's head and the dripping of the blood of the victims and the crying of the baby and the murders blended together to show how they were perceived as being quite mixed up and distorted in the heads of the mafia.
Lastly, a scene that contrasts and compares the myth versus the reality of the mafia was the confrontation between Michael and Carlo after his child's baptism. Coppola accomplished this comparison chiefly by the use of dialogue. Michael explained to him how he knew of his beating Connie and his plan to kill Sonny. After Carlo obviously feared for his life, Michael gently explained that he would only banish him off to Las Vegas and that he wasn't allowed to partake in the `family business'. He then said that he would never make his sister a widow, rather kill the father of his godchild. This showed that Michael had family values and prioritized his family over his `family business'. Then, Carlo was escorted to a car, and then strangled. The reality of the mafia, in this case, was that they would deceive anyone to achieve revenge and wouldn't let anyone stand in their way, even their families.
I believe that the mafia isn't all about killing and crime. The people involved truly believed that they were doing the best they possibly could to protect their families, even if that meant murdering people along the way. However, I admitted that while watching The Godfather, I bought into the myth of the mafia. I found myself legitimizing the terrible events that Michael had orchestrated because his was trying to carry on his father's legacy and to protect his beloved family. This was a product of Coppola's intent to create almost a `home video' from the Corleone family: the frequent murders were as essential to them as their lavish weddings and their family dinners. So, if a viewer heard the quote, `a man that doesn't spend time with his family can never be a real man' might think that Vito Corleone is incredibly enraptured with his family but which one?