Francis hasn't been the same since he crawled out of the Philippine jungle

Rating: 4/10 (3 July 2001)

What the hell happened to Francis Coppola? How could the man who made I and II be the same guy who dropped this stinkbomb? Every movie he's made since Apocalypse Now has reeked of a guy who has lost his grip on reality and who is so powerful, and surrounded by so many people who kiss his butt all day, that he is doomed. It's the same thing that happened to Oliver Stone and George Lucas.
I hate this movie, because it tries to change the way we think about characters from the first two films, because it resorts to weird '90s crap like the helicopter attack, because the ending plays like it was written in 15 minutes and filmed in 20, and because, worst of all, it's boring.
So much could have been done with this. Michael's son an opera star, who berates his dad with corny speeches? C'mon, in II the kid was practically a clone of Vito, the sins of the father being visited on the son. George Hamilton? Puh-leeze. The pope? Who exactly was Coppola trying to impress?
Almost the only thing I like about this movie is Sofia Coppola. She can't act, but she's gorgeous. And Andy Garcia proving whose son he is by wiping out the two hit men, that's at least entertaining. Otherwise, as Roger Ebert once said about another clunker, this film should be cut up and distributed to the poor for use as ukelele picks.