SirReel
11-11-2000, 10:46 AM
Ahead of its time cinematic genious.
9 years or so ago, I bought my dad the anniversary box set of Godfather I & II - a beautiful black box with gold embossed lettering inside of which contained a historical booklet, interview transcripts, character back-stories and three pristine VHS cassettes. My dad refused to tarnish the cassettes with our 1982 crap-ass RCA VCR vowing we would watch the epic saga the day he got a new VCR. By the time that day came around, I was not...
The other day I visited the folks, it was an ugly day outside - perfect for sitting through a good movie. We carved ourselves to comfortable spots in the TV room and plugged in tape 1 of the Godfather.
Now, unbeknownst to me, this anniversary box-set actually takes Godfather 1 & 2 and splits it up so you're actually watching the film in true chronological order. So the DeNiro scenes from Godfather 2 are actually the first parts of the movie. Truly cool as it alows the viewer to really grasp what Vito was going through in the early years without jumping to and from scenes of Michael present day. For instance: I did not realize Clemenza & Tisio were the first two hoods Vito hung out with: Tisio being Abe Vigoda's character in Godfather I.
What can I say that hasn't already been said - each and every scene, nuance, suggestiong and supposition are pure perfection. Every movie & TV show since, that even remotely touches on the Italian-American mafia mentions or at least eludes to The Godfather. Anybody scene an episode of The Sopranos - it's all they ever talk about when killing idle time.
For those of you looking to burn off 6 hours one day - look into tracking down this box-set. I mean really, DeNiro, Pacino, Brando, Caan, Duval, so on and so on - this epic leaves nothing left to be desired.
Godfather III may be worth seeing at some point in time, but DO NOT expect even half the quality as I & II.
I give this box-set Godfather 9.5/10. Two reasons I don't give it a 10 out of 10: Diane Keaton & Talia Shire. Although Diane's not all that bad through the duration (her scenes are minimal), Talia Shire's a pure irritant.
I wonder if Coppola really knew the brilliance and future longevity of what he was creating at the time?
One of my favorite scenes: Michael kissing brother Fredo on the ballroom floor in Cuba on New Years Eve, and the few scene leading up to it - Michael's realization of his brother's betrayal. Who'm I kiddin' - every scene's a great one!!
SirReel.
9 years or so ago, I bought my dad the anniversary box set of Godfather I & II - a beautiful black box with gold embossed lettering inside of which contained a historical booklet, interview transcripts, character back-stories and three pristine VHS cassettes. My dad refused to tarnish the cassettes with our 1982 crap-ass RCA VCR vowing we would watch the epic saga the day he got a new VCR. By the time that day came around, I was not...
The other day I visited the folks, it was an ugly day outside - perfect for sitting through a good movie. We carved ourselves to comfortable spots in the TV room and plugged in tape 1 of the Godfather.
Now, unbeknownst to me, this anniversary box-set actually takes Godfather 1 & 2 and splits it up so you're actually watching the film in true chronological order. So the DeNiro scenes from Godfather 2 are actually the first parts of the movie. Truly cool as it alows the viewer to really grasp what Vito was going through in the early years without jumping to and from scenes of Michael present day. For instance: I did not realize Clemenza & Tisio were the first two hoods Vito hung out with: Tisio being Abe Vigoda's character in Godfather I.
What can I say that hasn't already been said - each and every scene, nuance, suggestiong and supposition are pure perfection. Every movie & TV show since, that even remotely touches on the Italian-American mafia mentions or at least eludes to The Godfather. Anybody scene an episode of The Sopranos - it's all they ever talk about when killing idle time.
For those of you looking to burn off 6 hours one day - look into tracking down this box-set. I mean really, DeNiro, Pacino, Brando, Caan, Duval, so on and so on - this epic leaves nothing left to be desired.
Godfather III may be worth seeing at some point in time, but DO NOT expect even half the quality as I & II.
I give this box-set Godfather 9.5/10. Two reasons I don't give it a 10 out of 10: Diane Keaton & Talia Shire. Although Diane's not all that bad through the duration (her scenes are minimal), Talia Shire's a pure irritant.
I wonder if Coppola really knew the brilliance and future longevity of what he was creating at the time?
One of my favorite scenes: Michael kissing brother Fredo on the ballroom floor in Cuba on New Years Eve, and the few scene leading up to it - Michael's realization of his brother's betrayal. Who'm I kiddin' - every scene's a great one!!
SirReel.