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The Godfather

Oscar™ Best Picture - Winning Movies

9.0

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3 Related Movies

Sequel:

The Godfather: Part II

Related Documentary:

The Godfather Family: A Look Inside

Original title: The Godfather
Year: 1972
Running time: 175 min.
Country: United States
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Screenwriter: Francis Ford Coppola, Mario Puzo. Novel: Mario Puzo
Music: Nino Rota
Cinematography: Gordon Willis
Cast: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, John Cazale, Talia Shire, Richard S. Castellano, Sterling Hayden, Gianni Russo, Rudy Bond, John Marley, Richard Conte, Al Lettieri, Abe Vigoda, Franco Citti, Lenny Montana, Al Martino, Joe Spinell, Simonetta Stefanelli, Morgana King, Alex Rocco, John Martino, Salvatore Corsitto, Richard Bright, Tony Giorgio, Vito Scotti, Jeannie Linero, Julie Gregg, Angelo Infanti, Corrado Gaipa, Saro UrziSee 19 More
Producer: Paramount Pictures, Alfran Productions
Genre: Drama | Mafia. Crime. 1940s. 1950s. Family Relationships. Cult Movie
Movie Groups: The Godfather trilogy | Mario Puzo Adaptations
Synopsis / Plot: Epic tale of a 1940s New York Mafia family and their struggle to protect their empire from rival families as the leadership switches from the father (Marlon Brando) to his youngest son (Al Pacino). Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) is The Godfather, the Don (head) of a successful, tightly-knit family whose business is organized crime. Heir apparent is impulsive, hot-tempered Sonny (James Caan), whose brothers are brooding Michael (Al Pacino), who tries to seperate himself from his criminal family, and Fredo (John Cazale), who can't seem to do anything right. Vito has also adopted level-headed Tom Hagan (Robert Duvall), now the family lawyer. Vito's refusal to enter the lucrative drug rackets puts him in a war between the mafia families. Michael gets his hand dirty by taking revenge on the family's behalf, and then taking over as the new calculating, ruthless godfather. In his new role he plots to make the Corleones the leading players in Las Vegas casino industry while arranging for the war in New York City to be settled for once and for all.

Awards: 1972: 3 Academy Awards: Best Movie, Actor (Brando) & Ad. Screenplay. 11[10*] Nom.

1972: 5 Golden Globe: Including Best Movie Drama

1972: BAFTA Awards: Best Music. 5 nominations, including Best Actor (Brando)

1972: New York Film Critics Circle: Best Supporting Actor (Duvall). 4 Nominations

1972: National Board of Review: Best Supp. Actor (Pacino) & Top Ten Films

1972: Directors Guild of America (DGA): Best Director

Show 2 more awards

1972: Writers Guild of America (WGA): Best Adapted Drama Screenplay

1972: David di Donatello Awards: Best Foreign Film & Special David (Al Pacino)

Critics' reviews

"The wedding sequence... is a virtuoso stretch of filmmaking: Coppola brings his large cast onstage so artfully that we are drawn at once into the 'Godfather's' world (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 4)"

Roger Ebert: rogerebert.com
"Brando made Don Vito something we rarely see in movies: a tragicomic villain-hero"

Michael Wilmington: Chicago Tribune
"One of the most brutal and moving chronicles of American life ever designed within the limits of popular entertainment"

Vincent Canby: The New York Times
"Coppola crafted an enduring, undisputed masterpiece"

Edward Guthmann: SFGATE
"Sharp, entertaining, and convincing--discursive, but with a sense of structure and control that Coppola hasn't achieved since"

Dave Kehr: Chicago Reader
"A great American picture, full of incredible images and lasting moments"

Desson Thomson: The Washington Post
"[It] has excellent production values, flashes of excitement, and a well-picked cast. But it is also overlong (...) and occasionally confusing. While never so placid as to be boring, it is never so gripping as to be superior screen drama."

A.D. Murphy: Variety
Show 4 more reviews

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