A sequel that equals the excellence of the first

Rating: 10/10 (23 June 1999)

Now, this film was superior, to say the least. One of my top 10 favorite films of all time. I thought this film was every bit as excellent as the first Godfather. What elevates this film making it better than any other film sequel ever made, is the fact that the film is a sequel and a prequel in one.
Robert DeNiro does a brilliant job reprising the role that Marlon Brando made so famous as Vito Corleone, showing how the Corleone family rose to power, and in the present day Michael Corleone, (Al Pacino in his best performance yet) is now the head of the family business, who gets so caught up in success and himself that he ends up losing his entire family. Diane Keaton, Robert Duvall, and Talia Shire also do fine jobs reprising their roles.
My favorite scene in The Godfather Part II is at the end, when Michael has flashbacks to the way his family used to be, and how everyone left him alone at the table when he announced he enlisted in the Marines, which fades into the final shot of the film as you see Michael Corleone sitting all alone with no one else in his life (as if he were in hell for his sins). It was an intensely gripping scene.
You haven't seen enough if you have only seen The Godfather, so Part II is one of those rare sequels which completes the story. Need I say more?