Rating: 9/10 - Alternative rating: A –
After sixteen years Francis Ford Copolla has again returned to his favorite project, making the third installment in the Godfather-trilogy. This new film has been underrated for no reason. It is as intellectual and majestically made as Copolla's pervious films. It is also more psychological, pessimistic and more tragic than the first two. The only regret is the unconvincing performance by the newcomer Sofia Copolla and some "unfinished" developments of some characters.
The film elegantly begins with Nino Rota's recognizable musical score, the beautiful skyscrapers of New York and Michael's voice as he is writing a letter to his children: "The only wealth in this world is children. More than all money and power on earth, you are my treasure" . The year is 1979 and Michael Corleone has used the time since the ending of "Part II" to make his father's dream come true - making the Corleone family legitimate. Michael sold all his casinos and invests only in gambling. Constantly haunted by the past, his only reason to live is his children.
The family has amassed unimaginable wealth, and as the film opens Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) is being invested with a great honor by the church. Later that day, at a reception, his daughter announces a Corleone family gift to the church and the charities of Sicily, "a check in the amount of $100 million." But the Corleones are about to find, as others have throughout history, that you cannot buy forgiveness. Sure, you can do business with evil men inside the church, for all men are fallible and capable of sin. But God does not take payoffs.
The plot of the movie, concocted by Coppola and Mario Puzo in a screenplay inspired by headlines, brings the Corleone family into the inner circles of corruption in the Vatican. There is a moment in "Godfather III" where Michael says: "All my life I have been trying to go up in society, where everything was legal. But the higher I go, the crookier it becomes.." .
Visually this film is as spectacular as the first two. Gordon Willis' rich cinematography, Carmine Copolla's beautiful composition and Alex Tavoularis' wonderful art direction could not be better. But Copolla's first two Godfather-films were more famous for their deep, intellectual plots, tree dimensional characters and incredible acting, than for their visual perfection. The third installment has only the plot and visuals. Some characters could be much more developed and the acting, although good, never accomplishes to reach the same height of the first two films. The biggest miscasting is Sofia Copolla , who is so unconvincing and unemotional that she manages to ruin several scenes throughout the movie, that could have been grander and more emotional. The best performance comes unsurprisingly from Al Pacino, who should have got a nomination for best actor at the Oscars. Andy Garcia is powerful as Sonny's son, strong, focused and loyal. Violence is natural to him. He suffers no pangs of conscience when he takes revenge on his family's behalf, and in this he is supposed to be strong in the uncomplicated way Don Vito Corleone was. However both Kay (Diane Keaton) and Connie (Talia Shire) are useless. And characters like Vito Corleone and Tom Hagen are really missed. The good part is that Michael is again reunited with old friends, that you remember from the first and second films.
In the third film Michael has become almost like his father, Vito in the first film and Vincenzo resembles Michael when he was much younger. This parallel could be more interesting if Vincenzo's character was more developed.
Many have pointed out that making the third film, was unnecessary. I disagree. It is a beautiful film of great importance, completing the tragic saga of the Corleone family.
The first film showed some horrible results of Corleone's life. It showed Michael making a choice; the second showed a man damning himself for his choices and feeling the impact of changing times. A man desperately trying to keep his balance, focus, family and sanity, while everything is crashing all around him. The third film is a terrifying conclusion - a result of Michael's life. The life he chose for himself is like quicksand - one wrong step and you are doomed. There is no turning back. And no matter how hard you try to get out of it, to free yourself, no matter how powerful and wealthy you are, you are helpless - sinking deeper and deeper till it swallows you completely. The beautifully directed last sequence is also the powerful climax of the film, when Michael is sitting alone in his chair, left by everyone, surrounded by emptiness and memories of his friends and family members long dead. Here he dies - alone, miserable and unforgiven
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