The Godfather Part II

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The Godfather Part II
This film has been preserved in the National Film Registry in 1993.
Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer
Genre: Crime Drama Gangster Family Drama Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola Produced by: Francis Ford Coppola Written by: Francis Ford Coppola Mario Puzo Based on: The Godfather by Mario Puzo Starring: Al Pacino Robert De Niro Robert Duvall Diane Keaton John Cazale Talia Shire Giuseppe Sillato Gastone Moschin Photography: Color Distributed by: Paramount Pictures Release date: December 20, 1974 Runtime: 202 minutes Country: United States Language: English Sicilian Budget: $13 million Box office: $48–88 million Franchise: The Godfather Prequel: The Godfather Sequel: The Godfather: Part III

The Godfather Part II is a 1974 American epic crime film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola from a screenplay co-written with Mario Puzo, starring Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. It is the sequel to the 1972 film The Godfather.

Plot

Partially based on Puzo's 1969 novel The Godfather, the film is both a sequel and prequel to The Godfather, presenting parallel dramas: one picks up the 1958 story of Michael Corleone (Pacino), the new Don of the Corleone crime family, protecting the family business in the aftermath of an attempt on his life; the prequel covers the journey of his father, Vito Corleone (De Niro), from his Sicilian childhood to the founding of his family enterprise in New York City.

Why It Gives Us Another Offer We Can't Refuse

1. Part II is pretty much the culmination of some creative energy. Having a sequel to such a critically acclaimed film The Godfather is a huge risk in of itself, and a large amount of movie sequels tend to be pretty much inferior retreads of the original, but this film takes a different route and expands the original story. The immensely beautiful story of family with the lives of father (Vito) & son (Michael) is juxtaposed and paralleled to tell the story in both the past and the future. It's done in such a poetic and Shakespearean manner, making for one of the greatest stories in cinematic history. It also showcases how evil can spread throughout multiple generations.
   • This would also lead to filmmakers being far more comfortable with mixed plot lines and time frames
2. For some of the reasons previously stated, this film might be one of the few sequels to exceed the original in terms of storytelling, character development, and strength.
   • Francis Ford Coppola's direction is stunning and masterful as he directs and tells the story of the film in a masterful way that would give Shakespeare a run for his money. Vito Corleone's rise to power in a previous generation is contrasted with Michael's corruption. Michael is metaphorically "killed" as he destroys his family and isolates himself from his colleagues, as he rises to the height of his power.
   • Turn-of-the-20th-century New York City is compared with the organized crime empire of the late 1950s, giving Coppola a chance to two opposite yet equally compelling worlds.
3. Career-defining performances from pretty much the entire cast.
   • Al Pacino and Robert De Niro get to shine as Michael and young Vito. They both deliver among the best performances of their career in this already spectacular movie, with De Niro being able to build on Brando's Oscar-winning performance and yet make it his own.
   • John Cazale's performance as Fredo is just as moving, especially in the scene where Michael confronts him. His role here is even expanded from the original film.
   • Lee Strasberg shows off his first film role in decades as the gangster Hyman Roth and he nails it with a stellar and subtle performance and sells his character.
4. An interesting note to reference is that while Vito Corleone and his son Michael both became crime lords, the two of them took very different routes in how they did things, which highlights that while the crime business may pass through generations, certain generations may have different end goals
   • In the first film, Vito had a lot of integrity serving as a voice of reason, with Sonny being very hot-headed and some of the henchmen either provoking or carrying out the family’s dirty work in comparison. Even in Part II, the two murders young Vito committed were Don Fanucci -- a wannabe mob boss ruling the New York community -- and Don Ciccio -- the man who murdered Vito's childhood family in cold blood and nearly killed Vito as well. Neither of them was likable people, and thus people cheer when Vito kills both of them separately, and nobody sheds a tear over their deaths (Fanucci's death in particular, poetically involved Vito walking through the parade to his family while a guitarist sang to the tune of the movie's theme). Michael's killings on the other hand are more questionably motivated and confusing.
   • Another interesting comparison: in the first film, Vito doesn't kill nor order the death of anybody; but in the second one, he kills two people and does it himself. The only characters Michael kills with his own hands are McCluskey and Solozzo. The rest of the time in the first film and this one, he just orders the death of his enemies.
   • Badass scenes with the young Vito Corleone's rise as the Godfather.
   • In short, Vito's portrayed as a loving father, thoughtful neighbor, and Robin Hood of crime which is set against the more convoluted, less ‘justifiable’ homicides and transactions of Michael — mainly efforts to salvage a crumbling empire and gratuitously settle up scores, with strategies usually left more in the dark.
5. Beautiful and haunting soundtrack, which sells during intense moments, settles down during less serious moments, and sells the mood.
6. Masterful production design and cinematography of the romanticized Little Italy, and a sumptuous Lake Tahoe and glitteringly decadent Havana by Dean Tavoularis and Gordon Willis retrospectively.
7. It's a new experience every time you watch this movie.
8. High production quality that holds up even to this day.

Bad Qualities

1. The pacing is a lot slower in this movie than in the first one, especially in the Michael storyline.
2. Having Vito and Michael Corleone's stories overlap each other will confuse some first-time watchers with its mixed plot lines and time frames.
3. Several actors that appeared in the first film such as the late Marlon Brando (who played present-day Vito Corleone) and Richard Castellano (Peter Clemenza) didn't return for the sequel due to money issues.

Trivia

• The Godfather Part II is the first sequel to be inducted into the National Film Registry.

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