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| The sharp image of heir-to-the-throne Michael Corleone is right-of-centre and also throws the title off balance in this text and symbolism-heavy poster for Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather Part II |
Michael Coleone takes over the New York mob family empire after his late father in 1958. SPOILER He and his wife Kay survive an assassination attempt, and the hunt for the traitor begins, followed by a failure in Cuba, miscarriage and more death.
The Godfather Part II is written by Mario Puzo (Superman (1978)), based partially on his novel The Godfather (1969), and Michigander master filmmaker, co-writer/producer/director Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather (1972)). It is the second part in the Godfather trilogy, which ends with The Godfather: Part III (1990).
Coppola boldly attacks his sequel to one of the biggest hits in 1970s cinema and fearlessly places everything on black, as he opens the film similarly to The Godfather with a large family celebration, but here a First Communion party for Michael and Kay's son with an atmosphere that is in stark contrast to the warm festivity at the Godfather wedding party. This icy-cold, highly different mood continues to seep from Part II, SPOILER which in large part centers on Michael's realization and dealing with the fact that his brother Fredo is the traitor.
Warmth and glow are found in the epic film in its sequences that follow Michael's father, Vito's childhood and youth in Sicily and New York, stylized and delicious visually (cinematography by Gordon Willis (Zelig (1983)) with Robert De Niro (Everybody's Fine (2009)) innovative and terrific as Vito.
None of the performances in Part II are less than great; and Nino Rota's (Roma (1972)) music is central to the film's power.
It is a matter of taste whether one prefers the first film or the drastically different tone of The Godfather Part II, which is very dark, full of bitterness and loss of values, certainly a very cold great achievement in film.
Related posts:
Francis Ford Coppola: Twixt (2011) - Coppola's dreamlike Gothic is a late-night gem
Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Coppola goes for the jugular with unsubtle, overlong adaptation
Top 10: The best adaptations reviewed by Film Excess to date
Apocalypse Now (1979) redux version - The horror of war
The Godfather (1972) - Coppola and Co.'s epic cinema magic
Dementia 13/The Haunted and the Hunted (1963) - Coppola's gothic AIP castle horror
Watch a trailer for the film here
Cost: 13-15 mil. $ (different reports)
Box office: Reportedly 88 mil. $
= Huge hit (returned at least 5.86 times its cost)
[The Godfather Part II premiered 12 December (New York) and runs 200 minutes. Puzo started writing the screenplay in 1971, before the release of the first film. Coppola was given great freedom following Godfather's enormous success, and the initial 6 mil. $ budget was allowed to more than double during production. James Cagney refused a part in the film. Coppola had to change the script to appease Pacino's misgivings just prior to production. Shooting took place from October 1973 - June 1974 in California, New York, Las Vegas, Nevada, Miami, Florida, Washington DC, Italy and the Dominican Republic. Marlon Brando failed to appear for his one day of shooting (a flashback scene), and the script was immediately changed to accommodate the no-show. Paramount opposed the 'Part II' in the title, as this had not been put in the title of a mainstream movie before, but Coppola had his way, and the practice was soon commonplace afterwards. The film grossed 47.5 mil. $ in North America (54 % of the total gross). Both domestically and internationally the film did far less business than its landmark predecessor, but it was still Paramount's highest-grossing movie of the year and the 7th highest-grossing film of the year in North America overall. The film won 6 out of 11 Oscar nominations. It won Best Picture (the first sequel to achieve this), Supporting Actor (De Niro), Director, Adapted Screenplay, Art-Set Direction and Score. It lost Actor (Pacino) to Art Carney for Harry and Tonto, two more Supporting Actor nominations (Michael V. Gazzo and Lee Strasberg), Supporting Actress (Talia Shire) to Ingrid Bergman for Murder on the Orient Express and Costume Design to The Great Gatsby. It was also nominated for 6 Golden Globes, won 1/4 BAFTA noms and several other awards. Roger Ebert initially gave the film a 3/4 star review, translating to a notch under this one, but later changed it to a 4/4 star review, translating to a notch higher than this one. IMDb's users have voted the film in at #3 on the site's Top 250 list, sitting between The Godfather (1972) and The Dark Knight (2008). Coppola returned with Apocalypse Now (1979). Pacino returned in Dog Day Afternoon (1975). The Godfather Part II is certified fresh at 97 % with a 9.62/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]
What do you think of The Godfather Part II?
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