The Godfather: An American Dream Story
The Godfather is the “dark-side of the American dream story” (Turan, pp2). The film follows the practices of a fictional Italian mafia family, the Corleone’s. Though most Americans do not condone the practices of the Italian mafia, they cannot deny that Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather is a cinematic masterpiece. This film gave insight to a mysterious way of life that the average person does not have knowledge of. As the audience is educated about the mafia they also are introduced to many stereotypes. Many of the film’s important scenes begin with one key character, Don Vito Corleone and the word “Godfather…” The setting is very dark as the film opens and a man is asking for
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The women of the Corleone and other families are subservient to their men; Sonny, the Don’s son is engaging in an affair during the wedding. Of course there are big uneducated men to carry out Corleone’s dirty business. There is also an added character that plays an interesting role; he is a singer, Johnny Fontane, from Hollywood and Corleone is his Godfather. Many people suspect that he is actually Frank Sinatra and it is the story of how he made it big in the entertainment business.
Vito Corleone and his family have been made an offer by another family to join the narcotics business. To clear up any hostility on their turning down the idea he sends one of his men, Luca Brasi, to settle things. Luca is killed at a bar during his meeting at which he was supposed to kill the other man. Meanwhile the Godfather is leaving work without his regular driver. As he is purchasing fruit from a stand two men run by and shoot him. The press and the other families believe the Don Vito Corleone is dead from gunshot wounds. This scene begins the uproar between all of the families causing many changes and problems for the Corleone family. Another important part of the film is the change of Michael, the good son; he becomes involved in the family business of cleaning up the mess caused by the shooting of his father. This takes place after the Don has been shot and he has been beaten up by a corrupt police officer in a restaurant. Michael
The two major themes in this movie is friendship and greed, and the two themes often come in conflict with each other. The mafia is made up of a very select few individuals, who are together all the time and don't affiliate with outsiders. This makes them grow strong bonds and develop friendships with each other. According to Jimmy Conway, the two most important things to remember is "to never rat on your friends,
The gangster genre within films in America has accomplished numerous positive criticisms and constant willing audiences due to containing outstanding spectacles and mind-blowing action. The Godfather, being second on the IMDb Top 250 Movies, has set a new popular concept to life within the Mafia from their point of view. Doing so, creating a positive association. Yet within Italy, the same topic contains a complete different view. Movies such as I Cento Passi demonstrate unenthusiastic view by those whom are outside yet negatively affected by those members. Unlike American films, the gangsters are not as often viewed at the protagonist and are the main causes for the problematic events. But how different is Italian Mafia and American
Francis Ford Coppola’s gangster movie, “ The Godfather”, examines two views of the condemnation of the American dream and America, through the eyes of father and son through many specific aspects of drugs, conflicting views, and balance.
Francis Ford Coppola directed the gangster crime drama film, The Godfather (1972), inspired by the novel of the same name, written by Author Mario Puzo. The film plays out in the beginning how Don Corleone declined to join the narcotics business with notorious drug lord Sollozzo. With this in mind, one of the greatest gangster films created by a man who decided to lead, and not follows. Moreover, explaining the formalist approach for this film which covers an array of elements that include plot structure, camera techniques, editing, mise en scene, and sound. The following film critique will analyze “The Godfather,” beginning by utilizing the formalist approach theory, camera technique and sound gradually introducing additional theories
One of the greatest films and novels of all time, The Godfather by Mario Puzo is the book that I chose to write my report about. This book falls under the drama and crime fiction genres, due to its dramatic story of people being shot and murdered. The Godfather takes place in New York during the years 1945-1955, right after World War II. Most of the story is written from a narrator 's perspective, save for two points in the book in which the story becomes a first person point of view. One of the themes portrayed in the novel is that family always comes first, even if it isn’t a blood-related family, but a crime family. The novel’s theme is primarily that of loyalty, which is a crucial plot device because some of the Corleone family
“ They rely on a viewer's preconceived idea of how a particular person or ethnic group should act and merely fulfill these expectations. External signs and cues are used to indicate and suggest the veneer of culture. Dress, eating habits, and language accents are exaggerated…” Even though the directors of the movie did not directly refer to Italian Americans, the way they portrayed the characters based on their language, clothes, food and etc. indirectly told the audience that the characters were of Italian background. By seeing this occur in every movie and show, the public got accustomed to seeing Italian Americans as the mafia and failed to recognize that the mafia was only a small percentage of Italian Americans and the rest were just like ordinary people trying to make a better life.
Unlike Goodfellas, the violence in The Godfather occurs mysteriously and almost magically. The organized crimes and murders simply occur without any mistake in this film. One of the bloody scenes that portray this is the one where Woltz’ bed is covered in blood. This scene was very slick the way Tom Hagen slipped away without being noticed by anyone. Hagen’s visit was to intimidate Woltz by proving that if he had to kill him, he would be able to. Another very violent act was Sonny’s death. This plan was organized carefully by Don Emilio Varzini with the help of Carlo Rizzi, his brother-in-law. Earlier in the film Sonny had beaten Carlo after he heard Carlo was abusing his sister Connie. To get back at him, Carlo viciously beats Connie using his belt. When Sonny hears of this he speeds to Connie’s apartment. As he approaches, Barzini’s men surround Sonny and viciously shoot him to death. This act was also thought out very cautiously by masterminds. Towards the end of the movie, the planned killing of the five other mob leaders is revealed. Michael orders all of the head of the families to be killed so he can be the top Don. Although this scene is violent, it is masked by the ceremony of Michael becoming Connie’s son’s godfather. The mass murder was perfectly planned to
La Cosa Nostra Perhaps one of the most poignant moments in American cinema is the closing scene in the film “The Godfather” when Don Vito Corleone’s son Michael takes over his father’s position... and one of the most unforgettable moments, a severed horses’s head lies bloody in a man’s bed. It is this tradition and brutality that characterizes the Mafia, a secret Sicilian society that lives and functions just as much today on American soil as it did and does still in Italy. To understand this organized crime, one must begin to understand how it came to be organized in the first place. During the medieval times in Sicily, Arabs invaded the land and native Sicilians fled and took refuge in the hills. Some of these refugees formed a
This film is a prime example as to why Italian Americans are stereotyped as members of the mafia with violent tendencies. These negative traits that are depicted through the characters are why people believe that Italian-Americans are like the characters the play. The Godfathers depiction of the typical mafia gangster wearing the pin stripped suits and being extremely wealthy creates their identity and that identity is portrayed to us a viewer as to how Italian-Americans really are. The Godfather portrays how powerful, respected and feared the head of these mafia families are but also how dangerous their lifestyle is with Don Corleone head of the mafia being nearly assassinated for refusing a deal with their rival family. Family is extremely important to Italian-Americans which is evident throughout The Godfather one aspect of their ethnicity which is not over exaggerated or false, but this extreme loyalty which is portrayed by Michael Corleone when his father is assassinated shows how brutal the mafia can be because of their loyalty.
The Godfather is the story of a Mafia family. It follows the rise of Michael Corleone within the family. Michael was once a war hero and did not want to be involved in the family business. When his father is shot though, Michael takes revenge on the people who did it and becomes a part of the Mafia lifestyle. When his older brother is murdered, Michael ascends to become the boss of the family, and proves to be more ruthless than his father and brother combined. The scene that I am analyzing is one where Michael is becoming his nephew’s godfather at his baptism.
The Godfather is a quintessential Sicilian mob movie. Set in New York, the film covers the Corleone family history and “business” from 1945 to 1955. Music and lighting set the tone of most scenes. The music pulls you in with its dramatic moments and creates suspense. Through cues from non-diegetic sound we are made aware of nearing events. This use of trumpet sounds is what draws the most suspense in the movie.
The Godfather is a mob film focuses on the Corleone Family, with its head Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) trying to find a suitable heir to his empire, while war is breathing down the neck of other crime families. Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) then steps in to organize the family back to shape. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola and based from the novel of the same name written by Mario Puzo. It received critical acclaim by critics and was cited as an influence by real life mobsters due to its rather realistic portrayal of gangster life and Cosa Nostra.
THE GODFATHER, made in 1974, details the Corleone crime family in Manhattan during the mid 1930s. The Don, Vito Corleone, played by Marlon Brando, leads his organization against a relentless narcotics push by a rival family, the Sollozzos. Vito Caleone does not want anything to do with drugs because he believes they will be the downfall of the Mafia. The story, covering a ten year time period, offers a rich tapestry of Mafia life from the inside, drawing the audience into witnessing the transfer of power within a close-knit family
'The Godfather' is the most revolutionary gangster film of all time, it rewrote the gangster genre in such a stylized way that all latter gangster films have conformed to this genre but also evolved it as films have progressed. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola 'The Godfather' re-invented the gangster genre elevating it to a Hollywood status and making it commercially profitable. It looks into the life of the 'Corleone' family and represents America at that point in time. It portrays the violence and power, corruption and justice, honour and obligation apparent at that time. Previous to 'The Godfather's' release the 'American Dream' was born, to idealists America was the country of
Let’s start with the story of “The Godfather Part II”. The movie’s story is a continuation of where the first movie left off, which is with Michael Corleone as the new don, or head of the family. However, this film is quite different from the first, or any other movie as it shows two different stories at once. One story is of Michael Corleone’s fall and the numerous legal battles he goes through as he tries to legitimize his family business, and the other is the story of Michael’s father, Vito, and his rise to power from young adult to mafia leader. The story of Vito Corleone is shown through flashbacks that happen too often for my liking, and are not as entertaining as the