There Are So Many Reasons for the Movie's Greatness

Rating: 10/10 (14 August 2006)

In writing an apology for a film that really needs none, let me begin by noting how many careers were established with this movie, beginning with that of Al Pacino. Pacino had made movies before and was a respected New York stage actor, but this was his breakthrough movie. Brando was regarded as poison: he was impossible to work with, causing movies to lose money with his outrageous demands, so the studio execs despised and distrusted him. This movie, for which he had to suffer the humiliation of auditioning, resurrected him. It opened the door to the memorable "Last Tango in Paris." Of course we had all seen Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, James Caan and John Cazale in other movies, but this one made them stars. (I don't recall seeing Talia Shire before this.) And it gave Coppola the kind of artistic freedom that would lead to "Godfather II"--another masterpiece. Puzo, who wrote the book and collaborated on the screenplay, would go on to do the scripts for "Superman" and other movies. It was magic for everyone who appeared in it. I am only sorry that the success it brought people like Marlon Brando and Richard Castellano led them to price themselves out of "Godfather II."