Not bad, but definitely not good either

Rating: Null/10 (26 March 2009)

I have mixed feelings about "The Godfather III". While I reckon it's a well-done film, with forceful performances by almost all of the cast -Al Pacino is always a good actor, although he certainly overacts quite a few times here; for me, the supporting actors, with the exception of Sophia Coppola, were the best part- and a good directing job, if looked at as what it is, the finale of the Godfather trilogy, I have to say that it is a completely unnecessary film, and that the saga would have been much better off if it had ended with the second movie.
My main problem with this movie is that it practically denies all that we had learned about the character of Michael Corleone, which this movie is entirely about. We find him aging and declining, together with his empire, and the turn that he takes at a point in the film, and from then onwards, is just out of character.
However, the film is flawed even if we put aside the fact that it should be coherent with the previous two "Godfather" installments. For example, I feel that Coppola was trying too hard to keep up with the previous two movies, and it shows -he tries to replace actual interesting content and a well devised plot with sequences that are perhaps spectacular and entertaining, but oftentimes too long and not always necessary -see, for example, the never-ending opera sequence toward the end. In other words, "The Godfather III" is too packed with artifice and directorial tricks where there should have been more substance and a really interesting, well-woven story to tell.
As to the story itself, while it does not lack interest, it is too full of subplots that are tackled on but left unfinished, and aren't always pertinent, or don't add any interest or meaning to the whole film. This makes the movie sometimes too messy and even boring.
All in all, it is a movie that Godfather fans will probably enjoy for what it's worth, but definitely nothing too special.