A great movie that completes it's prequel

Rating: 8/10 (25 June 2013)

A foreword: I watched Part I with my friends three days ago. Now I know it is a classic, but the style of the first movie is really anything but modern - a very long slow sit-through that younger movie goers like me might be perplexed with. Which is why I wanted to watch the second part.
Now that was a good decision! sure I won't say part II is a better movie, but it has a slightly different pace, for example it has more scenes. But the more important thing is that it completes part I brilliantly, and perhaps necessarily;
Because the strength of this movie is how the stories of Michael and the story of Vito reflect each other. Separated, those are simple Mafia-esque plots. But the movie shows us the bigger picture: how these men's lives came to be what they are, how they connect, where they differ, etc. The viewer is overwhelmed by the complex meaning underlying this connection and all it's subtle truths, putting everything into a grand perspective like no other movie has done before.
For me this film hasn't been so much about crime and the ethical questions behind it, but more a story of a family, and perhaps a story about an inevitable connection between people's lives, how are bound by this thread of revenge and violence. I mean, all Michael has ever wanted is to keep his family safe and make the corleone legitimate, but alas, he is of course bound by a things that happened decades before he was born.
It's a dark conclusion but the humanity of it is just portrayed great- Making Mikael a very good anti-hero character, much thanx to the excellent Al Pachino of course. Great movie and I will check out the third part once I get the chance.