The irony of being pretentious.

Rating: 10/10 (3 March 2009)

There is one thing that I've rarely heard anyone point out about the generic list of "BEST MOVIES OF ALL TIME". You know what they are. No matter what organization or website lists them, the list is almost always the same. And the one thing that the supposed elite movies of all time share in common: As far as story, they're all average. Not a single one of them has even a single scene of outstanding originality, or even flirts with it, for that matter. They're all generic paint-by-the-number dramas filled with pretty moving pictures and filled with people who can pretend to be someone else fairly well. But as far as story goes, these movies are all empty. There are a few exceptions—Star Wars, Pulp Fiction, a couple others—but that is a standard rule. The obsession with unoriginality that the pretentious men and women who chose what films are the best has always bothered me. And what better illustrates this than The Godfather? It is nothing but a generic crime drama, yet it's considered one of the greatest movies of all time? Something just seems wrong with that. Something seems wrong with the idea that the men who truly stand up and make original cinema get pushed to hell by critics, while a generic crime movie sits on the throne of God.
Perhaps the perfect-scored reviews of The Godfather are right. On a technical level, on a storytelling level, on an acting level, The Godfather is perfection. The directing and production value so far surpasses everything from the early 70s, it's almost unbelievable. The storytelling is done flawlessly. I cannot think of a single 70s film where every single kill has so much value and weight. The acting is the stuff of legends. I will give The Godfather all of this credit, because it earns it. But . . .
But none of that dismisses the fact that it is still simply a generic crime drama. No matter how well-done this story is told, it's a story that you've heard long before it was released. Unlike the modern gangster cinema, such as Ichi the Killer or Reservoir Dogs, The Godfather offers nothing new, even for its time. I understand that those examples I just listed are both meant to be taken as over-the-top and unrealistic, but my point still stands. People have created far more original and entertaining crime dramas than The Godfather. There is one subplot that I give this film some creative credit for—the horse—but beside that, this is just copy/paste plotting. If they had used the creativity of this scene more often throughout the movie, this truly would deserve the over-hyped credit it gets. Just because something is realistic does not mean it has to be unoriginal. Personally, I am Italian, and I have heard hundreds of real-life mob stories from my cousins, and they're all infinitely more interesting/creative than anything this film even touched. There is no excuse for The Godfather being as dry as it is.
Some will argue that The Godfather is meant to be a drama about family life, not a thriller about crime. If that is true, and it may hold some truth, then The Godfather excels. Somewhat. As far as realistic emotion of family life, it's pretty solid and mildly cliché-defying. But it's nothing you haven't seen before, and seen with more compelling presentation.
The other major flaw that is inevitable to ignore is the pure boredom that sets in every thirty minutes. I've read reviews stating that this modern generation simply can't relate to gangster films, thus it's boring. I've read reviews stating that the plot is generic, thus it's boring. Etc., etc., etc. All these may be valid reasons, but I think the point is this: The Godfather IS boring. It's filled with pointless conversation scenes that add nothing to the overall film or the generic plot or the drama, so what's the point of even including them? Pretentious-minded reviewers say that the viewer needs to be patient . . . Patient for what? Unlike Ridley Scott's Alien, there is rarely any payoff after the endless buildup in The Godfather. There is no entertainment value. While I'm completely fine with a film lacking entertainment value in order to show honest desperation or to intentionally offend, The Godfather does neither. All the reviews stating that this is a violent movie can be ignored. There is far more graphic violence in PG- and PG-13-rated movies of the past two years than this.
With all the valid flaws I just listed, anyone calling this movie absolutely flawless is in denial. Or just has extremely low standards. While The Godfather is compelling and has masterful plotting and directing, it is simply just another face in the unoriginal crowd when you look at the big picture.
Perhaps it was very influential in cinema—why should that effect how you personally view the film? Just because pretentious "film buffs" claim it's flawless, can you really not think of a single film that you enjoyed more? "CLASSIC" is just a word slapped onto films that critics are brainwashed into appreciating. It has no bearing on the true artistic or emotional value. It really shouldn't even have any bearing on public opinion, but it does. Imagine with me a world where The Godfather had been critically hated. Do you really think it would still receive the high public ratings that it has now? I highly doubt it. No one makes up their own mind anymore; anyone who does is considered a mindless shock jock, no matter how valid their reasoning is. While the best reasoning I have read for why The Godfather—other than the generic "good plot, good acting, etc."—is considered so great is, "BECAUSE IT IS. SHUT UP." Maybe what they're really trying to say is, "I have no idea why it's good, I've just been told so, and I forced myself to believe it."
4/10