Winner of three Academy Awards including Best Picture, The Godfather was nominated for an additional eight Oscars. The brainchild of celebrated author Mario Puzo, the film is considered the crowning achievement of Francis Ford Coppola’s directing career. With intriguing depth, it provides audiences with a glimpse into the notorious underworld of warring New York crime families.
As a result, The Godfather transformed a number of relatively unknown actors into Hollywood legends, among them James Caan, Al Pacino, and Robert Duvall (all three of whom were nominated for Best Supporting Actor). In addition, Marlon Brando turns in, arguably, the most memorable performance of his career. Certainly among the top five films of all time, an excellent case could be made that The Godfather is the most perfect movie ever produced.
The film opens as “Don” Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) hosts his daughter’s wedding, where he actively entertains his friends and business associates. Vito’s favorite son Michael (Al Pacino) has come home from the war (World War II), and he’s determined to do something different with his life. His ambitious plans don’t include joining the family business. An idealist at heart, the young Michael seduces his girlfriend Kay (Diane Keaton) with inspiring tales of the fine and upstanding things he will do with his life.
Through the eyes of Michael, the audience learns of the family’s various business methods and the hierarchy of its system. Vito’s eldest son Sonny (James Caan) is the heir apparent to his father’s empire. Middle son Fredo (John Cazale) performs his part in the business, but few consider him a possible successor. Providing legal council to the family is Tom Hagen (Robert Duvall), a long-time friend of the family who Michael treats as a brother.
Life is good for the Corleone family until the day Vito is approached by an opportunistic newcomer named Virgil “The Turk” Sollozzo (Al Lettieri), an ambitious leader who aspires to become the number one distributor of illegal narcotics in New York. He asks for the Don’s blessing so he can expand his operations. But Vito sees a big difference between the traditional mafia activities of gambling and prostitution and the less-than-noble profession of selling drugs in schoolyards and family neighborhoods. The Don’s preference for placing family above all else creates a direct conflict with the changing landscape of his business world.
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