| Revision as of 21:16, 16 August 2005 editMadMax (talk | contribs)19,008 editsm added cast← Previous edit | Revision as of 13:44, 17 August 2005 edit undoRobchurch (talk | contribs)6,201 edits The Godfather moved to The Godfather (novel): Disambiguating in light of the changes to (film) and the forthcoming video gameNext edit → | ||
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| {{Infobox Movie | | |||
| movie_name = The Godfather | | |||
| image = ]| | |||
| imdb_id = 0068646 | | |||
| writer = ] | | |||
| starring = ],<br>],<br>] | | |||
| director = ] | | |||
| producer = ] | | |||
| distributor = ] | | |||
| release_date = ], ] | | |||
| runtime = 175 min. | | |||
| movie_language = English | Italian | Latin | |||
| music = | | |||
| awards = | | |||
| budget = $6,000,000 | | |||
| }} | |||
| '''The Godfather''' was a film adaptation of the novel of the same name (see ]) written by ], directed by ] and starring ] and ]. The film spans ten years from late ] to ] (after Don Vito Corleone's death in ]). | |||
| ==Production== | |||
| The film was released in ] and was directed by ], who had directed several films prior to this; none of which had a significant impact upon the public. Shooting spanned from ], ], to ] of that year. Due to scepticism about the film's expected success, a low budget was set for the film, forcing the crew to use regular lighting as opposed to production lighting. This lent a more realistic appearance to the film. | |||
| ==Casting== | |||
| Puzo helped in the making of the movie and its sequels and co-wrote the ]. The producers originally wanted ] to play ], but Coppola demanded ]. Pacino was not well known at the time, and was not considered right for the part. Pacino was only granted the role after Coppola threatened to quit the production. | |||
| The role of Don Vito Corleone was memorably acted by ], who won an ] (which he did not accept) for his portrayal of the aging Don. Many of the actors playing the supporting roles were largely unknown or minor actors; however, they rocketed into the limelight with the success of ''The Godfather''. ] and ], in particular, went on to enjoy long, successful, highly acclaimed careers. | |||
| ==Critical Acclaim== | |||
| ] (left) and ] in The Godfather Part I]] | |||
| Since its release on ], ], ''The Godfather'' has been accused of glorifying the image of the ]. ] was portrayed by Brando as a Mafia ] whom people could actually respect (although the actions of Don Michael Corleone in ''The Godfather Part II'' worked to tear down this image). | |||
| The film is greatly respected among international critics and the public. It was voted greatest film of all time by '']'', and #3 of all time by the ]. It is consistently, and currently, ranked #1 on ]'s Top 250. | |||
| ===Awards=== | |||
| ''The Godfather'' won three ]s: | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] (Marlon Brando refused the award) | |||
| * ] (Francis Coppola, Mario Puzo) | |||
| The film was also nominated for eight additional Academy Awards. In addition, it won five ]s, one ], and numerous other awards. | |||
| The sequel ''The Godfather Part II'' also won an ], making the ''Godfather'' trilogy the only series of films to date to win multiple Oscars in this field. | |||
| ===Revenues=== | |||
| The film was an enormous box-office hit, smashing previous records to become the highest-grossing film of all time (until that record was surpassed by '']'' in ], and a number of other movies afterwards). | |||
| ''The Godfather'' was also a great success with audiences. The film made US$5,264,402 in its opening weekend, which was a record at the time. The film's $134 million total North American gross briefly made it the highest-grossing film of its time. | |||
| ==Sequels== | |||
| ===The Godfather, Pt. II=== | |||
| A sequel, '']'', was released in ]. It consists of two parallel storylines, with the focus switching between these. The first storyline follows Michael Corleone in the 1950s; the other is a flashback sequence following his father, Vito, from his youth in Sicily up through the founding of the Corleone crime family in New York and the births of Michael and his siblings. This version of Vito is played by different actors at different ages, but the adult Vito is played by ], who won a ] Academy Award for a role in which, interestingly, he speaks almost no English-language dialogue. Many critics consider the sequel to be superior to the original film in quality. | |||
| ===The Godfather Saga=== | |||
| Coppola re-edited the two movies together, in chronological order (adding some previously unseen footage but also toning down the ]), into one long saga for TV broadcast, entitled '']''. While easier to understand, many consider this version to be less interesting than the original from a structural or artistic standpoint. | |||
| Both ''The Godfather'' and ''The Godfather Part II'' have been selected for preservation in the United States ]. This is not the case for the third installment. | |||
| ===The Godfather, Pt. III=== | |||
| In 1990, Coppola released a belated third film, '']''. This film was successful financially, but critical and fan response was mixed. However, the movie still received seven Academy Award nominations, among them ] and ]. The film is also notable for the key role played by Coppola's daughter, the future Academy Award-winning filmmaker ], who was forced to play Mary Corleone on short notice after ] became ill. | |||
| The movie was set in 1979, and focused on an aging Michael Corleone. Parts of the film were loosely based on real historical events, including the death of ] ], the election of ], and his subsequent death. | |||
| ==Trivia== | |||
| One of the movie's most shocking moments comes early in the film, involving the decapitated head of a horse. ] groups protested the inclusion of the scene, but Coppola stated that the horse's head was delivered to him from a ] company; a horse had not been killed especially for the movie. | |||
| Film scholars and fans of the ''Godfather'' movies note what they believe is the significance of ]s in the first two films. The fruit plays a symbolic role, fans suggest, as the appearance of an orange in the film indicates an important "death scene" will take place. In the first film, Don Vito Corleone is buying oranges from a fruit seller when he is attacked; oranges are placed on the table at the meeting of the Mafia bosses (and specifically in front of the ones who will be assassinated at the film's climax); and Don Corleone dies while eating an orange, as he plays with his young grandson. In ''The Godfather Part II,'' Michael Corleone is eating an orange as he orders the "hit" against his enemies, in preparation for the climax of the film. | |||
| ==Impact== | |||
| The trilogy had a powerful impact upon the public. Don Vito's line "I'm going to make him an offer he can't refuse" was voted as the second most memorable line in cinema history in a 2005 by the ], and it is often parodied. | |||
| Reports from Mafia trials and confessions have suggested that Mafia families began a "real life" tradition of paying respect to the family ''don'' by kissing his ring, in imitation of the opening scene of ''The Godfather''. | |||
| The image of the Mafia as being a medieval-style organisation with a "royal family" doing favours for underlings is very popular. For example, in ]'s novel '']'', the Mafia is depicted as having an organisation wherein the top mobsters marry into the "royal family". However, this image bears little resemblance to the more sordid reality of a Mafia "family", which is depicted in the film '']''. | |||
| ==Video Game== | |||
| The video game company ] is currently working on a video game version of ''The Godfather''. Prior to his death, Marlon Brando provided some voice work for Vito, which was eventually deemed unusable. ] said in ] that he was not informed of Paramount's decision to allow the game to be made and he did not approve of it. | |||
| ==See Also== | |||
| ===Similar Works=== | |||
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| * ] (Director) | |||
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| ==External Links== | |||
| * {{imdb title|id=0068646|title=The Godfather}} | |||
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Revision as of 13:44, 17 August 2005
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