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| Godfather: Part II, The |
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 (10/10)
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Runtime: 200 |
| Public Rating: 9.22 (119 votes) |
Director: Francis Ford Coppola |
MPAA Rating:  |
| Genre: Crime/Drama |
Year: 1974 |
| Writer(s): Francis Ford Coppola |
| Reviewed by: Arturo García Lasca |
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I always wanted to do a "Godfather" review for this site, but I admire the film so much that I was afraid I couldn't do the perfect review it deserves, and because I spent too much time thinking about other things, another reviewer got to it before me. Well, at least that encouraged me to review the Part II, which is... Well, read more to find out what it is.
The Godfather: Part II mixes two "somehow related-but different" stories at the same time; We get to see what would be the main story, which invovles Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) running his 'Family' business which was started by his father Vito (in the first "Godfather" film played by Marlon Brando), and we also get to see Vito Corleone's life from the beggining, how he traveled from Italy to the United States when he was just a boy, and the way he starts his mafia business as a young man (played by Robert De Niro).
The story is in this Part II is as deep as the one in the first film, the problems' nature are basically the same, and the way of solving them is the same old fashioned style which mobsters are supossed to use. Once again Coppola shows the psychological side of the main character(s), and how they are willing to put everything aside, including their families, and give all the priorities to the 'business'. Michael's wife Kay is still here (again played by Diane Keaton) but she's getting tired of the life she's having; Kay realized Michael has changed a lot since he took over the business and she wants no more of this.
Vadim mentioned on his "The Godfather" review the following: "The Godfather obviously wants to be the definitive Mafia film". Well, this sequel did not only try to be the definitive Mafia film, but it also succeded. It's very rare to see a sequel that even matches the quality of the original film, and it's very ironic the fact that one of the very few cases of this it's actually the sequel to "The Godfather", a film that I personally rate with a 10.
Al Pacino gave another great performance as the cold, smart head of his family, it was oscar-worthy, but just as in the first film, it was the Vito Corleone character that was better portrayed and ended up winning an Academy Award, this time due to the efforts of Robert De Niro. Some people refuse to say this sequel is more powerful than the first "Godfather" film just because Marlon Brando isn't in it, now while that's a pretty good reason I must say that De Niro did a great job filling the hole that Brando left, he makes it up with his wonderful performance, and because of that and the beauty of the story I say this film is as good as the original "Godfather".
Nobody could complain about Coppola's direction, which was masterful just as the acting by nearly every single member of the cast (The ones mentioned before, plus Rubert Duvall, John Cazale, Talia Shire, etc). Once again you get to hear the so called "Godfather Theme", originally composed by Nino Rota, I believe; this music is so deep that could turn around your feelings about the scene you're watching at the moment it's being played.
A few people have actually complained about the 'goodness' of the characters on this film; all these people who organize big crimes and kill people like nothing are good guys. Life in Mafia is full of troubles, that's a fact I guess, but the way the Corleone's problems are showed in this film manages to make them look like charming people who are just doing what they do because they have no other choice, in the end you end up liking these characters. That's how good this film is. The final scene is terrific, I wont say a thing so I don't spoil it for you, but I'll just say it was a wonderful way to close this masterpiece. I'd recommend you to watch this movie just a short time after watching the first part, it works better that way.
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