Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Robert Duvall in the Francis Ford Coppola movie ‘The Godfather Part II’

Matt Lynn Digital reviewed the Francis Ford Coppola movie The Godfather (1972) in January 2023. Today, we look to Ford Coppola‘s sequel as released in December 1974, namely The Godfather Part II (1974). Both claim the Mario Puzo book The Godfather as source material, with screenwriting credit for Puzo and Ford Coppola.

(From left, Robert Duvall as Tom Hagen and Al Pacino as Michael Corleone in the Francis Ford Coppola movie The Godfather Part II).

The original movie told the story of a clandestine organized crime dynasty’s transfer from an aging patriarch to a reluctant son of the original; the second movie tells of the early life and career of that patriarch from Sicily, Italy to New York City, New York as prequel while showing the son expand and control the dynasty as sequel. This storytelling decision to expand upon the original while speaking to the fate of the Don Vito Corleone’s family broke cinematic ground with meaning while offering satisfaction.

(From left, Robert De Niro as Vito Corleone and Leopoldo Trieste as Signor Roberto in the Francis Ford Coppola movie The Godfather Part II).

The story of Don Michael Corleone within The Godfather Part II opens in 1958 in Lake Tahoe on the California and Nevada border, accepting meetings in that role on the day of his son’s First Communion. Capo Frankie Pentangeli raises dismay about extracurricular behavior in the Bronx by Jewish mobster Hyman Roth’s organization. Meanwhile, Senator Pat Geary insults the Corleones specifically and Italians generally, demanding a bribe for casino operations that Michael aims not to pay. A failed assassination attempt on Michael Corleone leads him, while departing, to confide in consiglieri Tom Hagan that he, Corleone, fears a traitor exists within the organization. Al Pacino, Michael V. Gazzo, Lee Strasberg, G.D. Spradlin and Robert Duvall portrayed Corleone, Pantengeli, Roth, Geary and Hagan, respectively.

(Giuseppe Sillato as Don Francesco in the Francis Ford Coppola movie The Godfather Part II).

The story of Don Vito Corleone starts within The Godfather Part II as nine-year-old Vito Andolini in the Corleone neighborhood of Sicily in 1901. An insult to Mafia chieftain Don Francesco by Vito’s father led to the murder of Vito’s family, with Vito fleeing to New York City with the name Vito Corleone. It was 1917 that Vito loses his job due to interference by Don Fanucci before Vito’s neighbor, Peter Clemenza, asks Vito to hold some guns to avoid criminal consequences. The pair later strike up the beginnings of the Corleone crime empire while we get to meet Vito’s wife, Carmela, and the couple’s four kids. Oreste Baldini, Giuseppe Sillato, Robert De Niro, Gastone Moschin, Bruno Kirby, Francesca De Sapio, Roman Coppola and Louis Marino portrayed Vito Andolini – as a Boy, Don Francesco, Vito Corleone, Don Fanucci, young Peter Clemenza, young Carmela Corleone, Sonny Corleone – as a Boy and young Michael Corleone.

(From left, Al Pacino as Michael Corleone and John Cazale as Fredo Corleone in the Francis Ford Coppola movie The Godfather Part II).

The stories escalate from there, with Michael moving against Geary for political support while aiming for business plans in Cuba. Intrigue with Pentangeli and Roth bring Johnny Ola and Fredo Corleone into clearer focus, while Geary goes to bat for Michael Corleone and the Corleone criminal enterprise against a Senate Committee in Washington DC. When Mama (Carmela) Corleone as portrayed by Morgana King, drama for Michael comes full force with revelations for Connie, Fredo, Kay and the ongoing legacy of the family. Meanwhile with the prequel, a partnership with Salvatore Tessio brings additional friction with Don Fanucci that leads to the initial expansion of the Corleone crime family that many years later becomes the storyline explored with Michael. Dominic Chianese, John Cazale, Talia Shire, Diane Keaton and John Aprea portrayed Johnny Ola, Fredo Corleone, Connie Corleone, Kay Adams Corleone, and Young (Salvatore) Tessio, respectively.

(Diane Keaton as Kay Adams Corleone in the Francis Ford Coppola movie The Godfather Part II).

The Godfather Part II movie raises so many questions and suspense that are resolved with clarity, directness and brutality. Loyalty and betrayal are strong themes running throughout; that the story of Vito Corleone and Michael Corleone have moved from an initial innocence to an assertive, yet seemingly principled criminal philosophy is remarkable and substantial when looked at in parallel. I grant The Godfather Part II as directed by Francis Ford Coppola 4.75-stars on a scale of 1-to-5.

Matt – Saturday, April 6, 2024

Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci and the Martin Scorsese movie ‘Goodfellas’

Mob movies rank highly with Matt Lynn Digital friends Airport Friend and Cobra. In their respective rankings of top movies, the latter lists three mobster movies among the top nine movies he has ever seen. The former, Airport Friend, includes Goodfellas (1990) as the eighth movie overall on his listing of top films. We turn our attention to the film based on the Nicholas Pileggi book Wiseguy.

(From left, Ray Liotta as Henry Hill and Lorraine Bracco as Karen Hill in the movie Goodfellas).

Wise guy Henry Hill, portrayed in Goodfellas as an adult by Ray Liotta, is a central character in a tight knit group of mobsters based in New York City. Karen Hill, as portrayed by Lorraine Bracco, becomes what begins as an understanding wife. The course of the life the Hills leads to something exceedingly different from what Henry or Karen’s parents experienced, which leads to friction in the marriage as the years explored in Goodfellas are explored.

(From left, Ray Liotta as Henry Hill and Paul Sorvino as Paul Cicero in the movie Goodfellas).

Paul Cicero as portrayed by Paul Sorvino becomes an important mob leader for the career that Henry Hill is staking with his little piece of the mob action. From the point where Cicero agrees to bring the young Henry Hill, as portrayed by Christopher Serrone, into the racket to the point where Hill starts a hustle with young Tommy DeVito, as portrayed by Joseph D’Onofrio, the beginning of mob careers for Tommy and Henry are just getting established as teenagers.

(From left, Ray Liotta as Henry Hill, Joe Pesci as Tommy DeVito, Catherine Scorsese as Tommy DeVito’s Mother and Robert De Niro as James Conway in the movie Goodfellas).

Tommy DeVito is portrayed as an adult by Joe Pesci in Goodfellas. Catherine Scorsese plays his mother, Mrs. DeVito. Tommy DeVito never gets married in the film. Henry Hill and DeVito both get into the types of work you’d expect with insight into the personalities and varying degrees of commitment to sticking with the racket.

(From left, Michael Imperioli as Spider and Dennis Farina in the movie Goodfellas).

Of significant influence and authority over the full scheme of Hill, DeVito and Cicero is the role of James Conway. Robert De Niro portrays James Conway. Roles portrayed by Michael Imperioli (as Spider) and by Dennis Farina in part demonstrated how running afoul of Tommy DeVito become things to clean-up either individually or collectively for the crew run by Conway. The outcomes of these two are warnings about loyalty to Hill and DeVito especially. It is in the narrative cycle and personal outcomes for many in this tale that the appeal of mobster movies come for friends like Airport Friend and Cobra, should I understand their feelings properly.

(From left, actor Robert De Niro with film director Martin Scorsese on set of Goodfellas).

Martin Scorsese directed Goodfellas, along with taking screenplay writing credits alongside Nicholas Pileggi. The movie itself offers emotionally compelling cinema with a story of the conflicting needs and turns of an admittedly self-absorbed, sociopathic set of morally-bankrupt characters. The themes of loyalty, respect, getting made or rebuffed, and the finality of the tale is clear, strong, and compellingly told. The story was told with some sense of justice meted out. I’ll leave it to those familiar with the movie, and the state of the larger United States civil and political culture today, to decide if this remains the best Scorsese gangster movie made. I rate Goodfellas at 4.50-stars on a scale of one-to-five.

Matt – Saturday, August 22, 2020