Five Stars Plus
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parcoleo814 –
2017-01-27
The first two Godfathers feature what is probably the best overall cast of actors in US movie making history. From the giants at the top, Pacino, Brando, DeNiro, Duvall, all the way to the smallest cameo roles, everyone here is real and committed to the power of the project. But of course, that's not all. Francis Coppola is a genius director on the basis of these first 2 Godfathers and he added to that with Apocalypse Now and Conversation. So if you like cinematic storytelling at its best, you can start and end with Coppola's direction here. Along with the riveting saga of the Corleones, you get some of the most devastating social criticism of the so-called American ways of business, competition, and family values. With the addition of Godfather II to The Godfather, Coppola underscored what was great about the first film and went beyond it. Each of the 2 parts works wonderfully on its own, but together, unbeatable. Al Pacino's best performance, and the same goes for several other.actors here, but Pacino is the revelation, just astonishing in complexity and range, with his moment at the very end of Part II unsurpassed in the darkest power, beauty, and pain.