Disappointing addition to the Godfather legacy

Rating: 3/10 (22 May 2006)

Just saw it again without seeing the first two in years, and it's even worse than I remember. I don't feel any connection to the characters, some scenes are nonsensical, and I leave with a taste of "what was the point of that." Compare Al Pacino here with Al Pacino in DONNIE BRASCO, and you can see he wasn't crappy here because he got old. It's not his fault. The whole project is simply a massive failure.
All the dialogue that seemed so slick and smart in the first two films has disappeared, replaced with monotonous 3-liners. Don't even get me started about assassination by glasses. You don't have to compare this movie with its namesakes either. Just see how it matches up with GOODFELLAS, a movie released around the same time.
So in essence, what makes this movie good? Is it the worn out tried and tested formula being (mis)used? Is it the complete lack of wit? Is it the amateur quality flashback methods? Is it the fact that none of the actors really seem interested? Is it Sofia Coppola? None of those are part of my good movie criteria.
The film does work better than it should, and it's all because of the help it gets from the previous two. If this were considered as a stand-alone product, it would appear much, much, much worse.