The fact that director Francis Ford Coppola reimagined his initial adaptation of Mario Puzo's blazing bestseller when he was asked to make a sequel is testament to Coppola's singular genius: while most people assumed at the time that the first Godfather was the story of Brando's character, Coppola revisioned it as a sort of prelude to Vito's son Michael's story. While Al Pacino's Michael was certainly a major player in the first film, and became the focus of it as the film moved inexorably to its conclusion, the depth to which Coppola explores Michael's tragic fate in The Godfather Part II and, to a lesser extent, Part III, is an amazing repurposing of what most people probably thought was a one-off film at the time. If the first and third installments don't quite measure up to Part II's masterpiece status, the first at least remains iconic for reasons perhaps not solely linked to its worth as a film (even though that worth is inestimable), and the third has weathered the storm since its initial release quite well, and seems a better film, if still seriously flawed, than it might have decades ago.

There's no denying that, despite the monolithic presence of Brando in the first Godfather, it's the second film which completely fulfills its promise and will probably always stand at the apex of the trilogy. Coppola (as he discusses in his commentary) had one tribulation after another making the first installment, whether it be actorly "temperament" or studio interference. While the film made an incredible impact, looking back on it now it's a little slipshod in places, obviously the work of a young director still finding his way in the big leagues. Don't get me wrong--The Godfather is no doubt a classic, it just pales slightly in comparison to its own "son," The Godfather Part II. If The Godfather is notable not only for Brando's commanding performance as the founder of a gangster dynasty, but also for its equally commanding knitting together of an intimate family saga within the gangster film genre, it has a fairly straightforward narrative that marches along to its seemingly foregone conclusions. It's a brilliant and involving slice of life (literally, considering some of the weapons used) setting up the various interrelationships of the Corleone family beautifully, and drawing unmatched performances from Brando, Pacino, James Caan and Robert Duvall.

On the other hand, Coppola's brilliant decision to contrast Vito's timeline with Michael's makes the second film not only a history lesson, in terms of the backstory it provides for the pater familias, but also an almost Santayana-esque examination of the famous phrase "those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." As we see Michael literally following in his father's footsteps, sucked inexorably into a lifestyle he at least initially fled from, the viewer is made part and parcel of Michael's point of view, sometimes extremely uneasily so. In fact, it's that strange dichotomous anti-hero ethos that makes The Godfather Part II the exhilarating experience it is. Coppola gets us so far inside Michael's head that we end up seeing the tragedies he visits on family and friends alike from his viewpoint, making us accomplices during the fact. It's a remarkable high wire act that Coppola manages in this film, and he pulls it off, sans net, more or less flawlessly. We're also shown, without a hint of irony, that both Vito and Michael are victims, albeit both of them after a while willingly so, and even perhaps gratefully so in Vito's case at least. As the vagaries of fate play both the Corleones as pawns, father and son prove in their own ways that they are out for survival at any cost, and the costs can be horrific. Again, it is Coppola's singular genius that we feel any sympathy at all for either of these characters, and the fact is, we feel immense amounts of it for both of them by the time Part II winds to its inexorable conclusion.

Part III probably could have never risen to the heights of the second film, but it at least had a chance to come close to the first. As Coppola describes in various dribs and drabs in all three commentaries, Part III became a victim not only of his personal hubris, but also various actors' egos, some of whom (like Robert Duvall) refused to be part of the final episode. The film was no doubt hampered, at least at the time of its release, by both its distance from the second film (over a decade and a half), and the slew of bad publicity Coppola engendered during filming when he cast his daughter Sofia in a key role when Winona Ryder dropped out. Seen in retrospect now, from perhaps a clearer vantage point, Part III, while labyrinthine, is not the mess a lot of people thought it was at the time, and it actually reinvigorates the franchise in some unexpected ways. Though the plotline involving the Vatican may strike some as distasteful, it actually is a perfect metaphor for Michael's twin desires for absolution and assimilation as a "normal" American. While the tragedy of Michael Corleone could have probably been left more or less concluded with Part II, Part III shows the inescapable forces pushing the Corleone's toward a fate they can't evade or avoid. Pacino is once again towering in this film, bringing a sadness and resignation to the role which is incredible to contrast with his youthful exuberance in the first film.

The trilogy stands as one of the enduring trifectas in film history, and this new excitingly restored Blu-Ray version is certain to top cinemaphiles' wish lists for the upcoming holiday season.

The Blu-Ray

Video:
All three of these films, presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC 1.85:1 transfers, have undergone painstaking frame by frame restorations. Not that surprising, it's the first Godfather that benefits most from this approach. As is discussed in one of the excellent new extras in the set, Gordon Willis photographed all of these films on the dark side, and made the negatives "tamper proof" so that his vision would never be compromised. Famed restorer Robert Harris consulted with Willis and restored the film to match the original dye transfer print held by The Academy (though one of the extras makes an oblique comment or two about "manipulation," especially where the original negative was damaged). While the second and third films don't present such an obvious difference, they too look sharp and debris free. All three films boast the sort of golden, yellow-orange palette that Coppola said always reminded him of home movies of the 1940s. This is especially true of the first and second films, which are almost dripping in a honey color at times. All three films sport brilliant detail and no noticable DNR--grain is apparent in all three, very natural looking and never a distraction.

Sound:
The TrueHD Dolby 5.1 soundtracks on all three films are splendid, if mostly weighted toward the front channels. Dialogue and underscore are balanced extremely well, and all channels come into play during the explosive gun battles that erupt from time to time throughout the films. The Godfather especially seems to relish in the unexpected directionality of some of the gunfire; I'm not sure if this was intentional, or a subliminal choice, but as the films go on, there's more of a balanced nature to the battles, almost as if they're becoming a part of everyday life. There are also Spanish and French 5.1 mixes on all three films, and, strangely, a Dolby mono mix on the first two. Subtitles are available in all of the soundtrack languages as well as Portuguese.

Extras:
This new set doesn't skimp on extras. All of the extras from the previous SD release have been ported over, and there are several new ones to boot. Repeated extras include Coppola's quite excellent commentaries on all three films, where he isn't shy about discussing both his own and his actors' foibles. "Behind the Scenes" is an hour-plus documentary that is exactly what it advertises itself to be, with lots of great first hand stories about the making of the films. "The Filmmakers" focuses on the creative crew behind the film, from Mario Puzo himself to production staff on the films. "Additional Scenes and Chronology" present a lot of material that was deleted from the theatrical release, some of which made it into the chronological version shown on television. It would have been nice to have had these as seamless branching options. "Acclaim and Response" features several trips to the Oscars as well as Coppola's introduction for the chronological television version. "Family Tree" allows you to see various family members in cut scenes from the film. Finally, you also get Storyboards, Trailers, Photo Galleries and a Rogues Gallery featuring all three films.

New to this release are a plethora of additional extras, all in HD. "The Masterpiece That Almost Wasn't" goes into the chaos surrounding Paramount just when the film was being developed. A really fun extra is "Godfather World," featuring such experts as Homer Simpson pontificating on the Corleones and what they've meant to all of us. An absolute must for all cinephiles is "Emulsional Rescue," wherein Robert Harris discusses the restoration of the films. "When the Shooting Stopped" focuses on such post-production efforts as underscoring. "The Godfather on the Red Carpet" is a pretty pointless piece where Cloverfield stars are asked to comment on the film. Don't ask me. Another fun item is "Four Short Films on The Godfather," little riffs on various elements found in the various films. Bringing up the rear are a Crime Organizational Chart, showing the rap sheets of various characters, and Connie and Carlo's Wedding Album.

Finally there's a 12 page color booklet glued to the back cover of the outer box filled with credits for each film and some Oscar information. I personally would have preferred the booklet to be inside the box--it's slightly too big to fit in, and there's no way it's going to remain undamaged on the outside where it is.

Final Thoughts:
The Godfather films are so iconic, so deeply ingrained in the American consciousness, that it's hard to remember a time when they weren't with us. Finally we have them in a relatively pristine form which will preserve them for coming generations. This is a class release of classic products, and rates a DVD Talk Collectors Series recommendation.

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"G-d made stars galore" & "Hey, what kind of a crappy fortune is this?" ZMK, modern prophet