Godfather 3
Godfather 1 and 2 remain to this day the perfect recipe for cinematic success: Box office smashes that were neither popcorn films nor action flicks but rather instead serious, sobering dramas with big name casts that were showered with Oscars and critical plaudits while usually being immediately thought of by people when naming the greatest movies of all time. Charting the rise and (spiritual) fall of Al Pacinoâs Michael Corleone as he inherits the reins of his crime family and quickly establishes a penchant for proving that he is the most ruthless son of a bitch in the game, killing all of his enemies wholesale usually in one giant fell swoop before Part 2 ended with him committing his most heinous act of all by ordering the cold blooded murder of his own jealous yet dimwitted brother Fredo (admittedly a deserved fate since Fredo WAS a backstabbing weasel but yet the cold, calculated nature of Michaelâs actions was enough to give many pause). Fast forward over fifteen years later and Francis Ford Coppola decided that it was time once again for him and Mario Puzo to team up in 1990 to do Part 3 in the series, albeit with a touch of cynical necessity since Coppola (as he was known to do) had again racked up huge debts and needed something like this to right his financial ship (leading to a rushed process in both the screenwriting and pre production phases). Even more suspect was when Robert Duvall was invited to come back in the role of family lawyer and adopted brother Tom Hagen and whom upon reading the script realized that he was once again the second most prominent character in the story behind Michael, demanded more money only to be denied and then turned down the film completely, with Hagen being written out of what was said to once again be a voice of reason role to Michael in the story and having it explained in the dialogue that the character had indeed died between Parts 2 and 3, notwithstanding Duvallâs public declaration that the only reason to do a Godfather now after all these years was simply due to money. Then Winona Ryder was cast as Michaelâs daughter Mary, only to drop out because of âexhaustionâ (said by some to be drug related) and replaced by Coppolaâs own daughter Sophia, a non actress (and future writer and director) whom Coppola managed to bring into the production on a momentâs notice, causing much friction amongst the cast and crew as well as the entertainment media who viewed it as blatant nepotism (although her heavily Italian looks are offset nicely by her âvalley girlâ American demeanor and she didnât really do that bad a job). As for the film itself, itâs debatable as to whether or not it lives up to being the third chapter in such a revered franchise, uneven at times as it brings back Pacino and several other characters from the first two films mixed in with small and sometimes even fleeting roles for several big name actors such as Bridget Fonda, John Savage and George Hamilton (unsteadily taking over for Duvall as the new family lawyer). The film begins in the traditional way with a âbig ceremonyâ taking place, this being Michael receiving an award from The Vatican for supposed charitable services (apparently he has bought his way into being thought of as clean and respectable) and most if not all of the big players are on hand here, including Talia Shire as sister Connie (who has remolded her old whiny, helpless persona into more that of a cold blooded, reptilian viper) who helps serve as Michaelâs caregiver with his diabetes, Richard Bright still watching all of the entrances as bodyguard Al Neri, Al Martino showing up as crooner Johnny Fontaine and barfing out one last tune and most interestingly Michaelâs much lamented ex wife Kay (Diane Keaton) who after the ceremony tells Michael point blank that all this Catholic love that heâs receiving is just a joke to her and that she knows that heâll never be a good man. Then thereâs the new characters in the mix, including Eli Wallachâs Don Altobello (said to be a major player in the Mafia scene and the oldest still living friend of Brandoâs Don Vito even as he was never shown nor even referenced in the first two films), Joe Mantegnaâs Joey Zaza (an articulate and well spoken mafia hood who has taken over all illegal operations once controlled by The Corleones in a role that practically turned Mantegna into a go to spoof mob guy for years to come in Hollywood including playing Fat Tony on The Simpsons), and of course the Oscar nominated for Best Supporting Actor Andy Garcia as Vincent Mancini, illegitimate son of James Caanâs long dead Santino Corleone who is on the verge of all out war with Mantegna if Michael canât act as peacemaker between the two factions. More or less, Michael finds himself here unwillingly being drawn into needless mob drama while wrapping up his biggest business deal yet which is investing hundreds of millions into taking over a global real estate company that in turn would make him literal business partners with The Vatican and the worldwide Catholic Church and thus even possibly move himself up and amongst the (unspoken) ranks of The Illuminati, an idea so audacious that apparently the other European power players seem to think so too, leading to them teaming up with Wallachâs Altobello and Mantegnaâs Zaza to try and have Michael taken out. Meanwhile, Michael is now also dealing with the shame and humiliation of seeing his daughter take up in a sexual relationship with her first cousin Vincent, desperately trying to find a way to still woo his bitter ex wife when she comes to Sicily to attend their sonâs debut as an opera singer and his continuously declining health including a diabetic stroke that puts him in the hospital while his nephew, sister and trusted bodyguard plan a hit on one of his enemies that plays out in truly spectacular fashion. But still the overriding theme is that of Michael seeking that ever so elusive redemption in the eyes of God through which he believes can be found in The Catholic Church and that throwing them however large an amount of money as possible will buy him a ticket to Heaven, even going so far as submitting to a round of confession with a highly respected Cardinal where he openly admits to having his own brother killed (which is obviously the driving force behind much of Michaelâs pain and agony even as Pacino himself admitted that he personally thought that Michael would still show no remorse for that act of vengeance). Unfortunately though, the sins that Michael has committed may be too great to just be able to pay any monetary price for forgiveness and that might be why (despite a similar climatic structure which shows multiple enemies being brought down as was done in the previous entries) Coppola would earmark this film as being not so much a fully realized final third chapter in a landmark trilogy but rather as a mere âepilogueâ to Parts 1 and 2, where Michaelâs determination to almost act as being like a Wrath Of God figure to his enemies who had never quite accepted him in the Mafia underworld was without equal, having had scores of people killed once he had personally made final determinations of their guilt and doing so in such a way that he perhaps had justified on the notion that they were far more evil human beings than he the loving and caring family man could ever be, although he had overlooked his fatherâs beliefs that violence is something that should only be done in moderation while others should be brought to the negotiating table and dealt with in a civil manner (however after the horribly brutal death of Santino maybe itâs possible that the old man didnât care anymore either even as Michaelâs eleventh hour ascension because of that event might have amounted to him being an unnatural choice for the role instead of the son who was groomed his whole life for that spot). That all ended of course with Fredo. Michael had cut all ties with human decency forever and despite his neverending quest for respect, redemption and legitimacy, it turned out that Fate had a different price for him to pay here that can best be charitably described as being beyond horrible, bringing a sad yet fitting end to this story that while it doesnât match the films that came before, still brings the singular impact of this particular moment home with a heartbreaking ferocityâŚ
8/10