The Godfather Collection: Coppola Restoration DVD

Rating:

Saying the Godfather Trilogy of films are classics is like saying the sky is blue. Anyone that loves a good movie cannot deny their appeal nor their cinematic excellence. Even the much hated Godfather III has its moments, but more on that in a moment.

I remember getting the first collected DVD set when it was released in 2001. The wife and I spent a long weekend and watched all 3 films, enjoying every minute.

The Godfather is a masterpiece of traditional film storytelling. Not wanting to follow in his father’s footsteps, young Michael Corleone wants to make his own life. He’s content with letting his older brother Sonny take over the family business. Events force him to rethink his decision and therein lies the success of the first movie. The audience gets to follow Michael’s descent into mob life first-hand. The one thing he wanted no part of slowly begins to take over his life. Each action requires deeper submission into the mafia lifestyle, forcing Michael to become what he swore he wouldn’t.

With the resounding success of The Godfather, a sequel was quickly conceived and amazingly it is considered—by most—to be superior to the already great first film.

The Godfather II goes back in time and focuses on the beginnings of young Vito Corleone. Early in the film, young Vito makes his way to America and viewers once again connect with Michael Corleone. Coppola smartly mirrors the father’s actions with the son’s actions in the future. It’s a highlight of a traditional “Mafia” film standby. Instead of talking about the “old ways” Coppola shows us the old, strikingly juxtaposed with the new. It’s an effective way of driving home the transformation that Michael has undergone since the beginning of the first film.

The Godfather III picks up on the life of Michael Corleone many years after the first two films. His career choice still haunts him and he’s spent years attempting to legitimize himself. It’s a less interesting film, with the focus on the internal politics and family relations. Despite being disliked by most, there are still good elements in the film. It nicely finishes up Michael Corleone’s story and it did us the popular quote “just when I thought I was out… they pulled me back in.”

So, we know the films are the same. They’re still great and no DVD release will ever change that fact. So, what’s improved in this newest version?

This 2008 release improves upon the original 2001 release in almost every way. The video is the easiest enhancement to spot. When compared to the original release, these DVDs look spotless. Any film grain or imperfection has been cleaned up. The Godfather II is also now on one disc (as opposed to the original two). In regards to that fact, I could see no compression noise or artifacts on that film in particular. It’s perfect, like the rest.

The 5.1 soundtrack has also been re-mastered on this release. It’s clean and clear and vocals are perfectly audible. I did not notice a big difference between this and the original release.

The Extras

The full length audio commentaries from Coppola are in place on all three films. Some may argue that new commentaries should have been recorded, but I’m glad the original ones were used. A second pass at the films would likely be less interesting.

All of the original extra content from the 2001 DVD release is present and that’s a good thing. The original set had an amazing set of extras. They are:

1. Making of The Godfather: A decent documentary looking at the making of the first film.
2. Additional Scenes/The Godfather Historical Timeline: The 30+ deleted scenes present here from all 3 films are presented in chronological order. They provide a few extra pieces of info, but they could easily be passed over.
3. Filming Locations: Short look at the locations used in filming the movies.
4. The Corleone Family Tree: Text biographies of the main characters - text on TV = no thanks.
5. Puzo and Coppola On Screenwriting: Interviews and audio about writing the screenplay.
6. Gordon Willis On Cinematography:Very short piece discussing the visual look of the films.
7. Original 1971 Behind-the-Scenes Feature: Just like it says.
8. The Music of The Godfather: Very short audio interview. Would like to have seen more about the music, as it’s a powerful companion to the films.
9. Acclaim and Response: Text and video relating to awards won by the film.
10. Trailers for all three films.
11. Profiles on the Filmmakers: More text - no thanks.
12. Photo Galleries & Storyboards: Not terribly interesting. How I wish these features could be exported to a computer for browsing.

2008 Features

1. Godfather World: This is an interesting short look at the impact the films have had on popular culture. Aside from the mauy quotes spawned by the films, they have inspired both directors and stories in the decades since they were created. This could have easily been expanded upon.
2. The Masterpiece that Almost Wasn’t: This should have been combined with the first feature above. It’s features many industry people discussing the voyage of the book to the screen Interviews and sound bytes from actors and other Hollywood types should have been included in the Godfather World feature instead of here.
3. .. when the Shooting Stopped: Similar to the other 2, this is a short look at what happens when filming is done (editing, scoring, post production).
4. Emulsional Rescue Revaling the Godfather: This is the one short that deserved a separate title. It’s an extensive look at the restoration process and will appeal to any technical film geek. Exposes the sad state of early film preservation.
5. The Godfather on the Red Carpet: Skip it. This (thankfully) short features odd comments from stars on the films.

Lastly, there are four short films based on the Godfather included. They are:

1. GF vs. GF Part II : People talking about why II is better than I.
2. Cannoli: Coppola discusses the origins of the famous "Take the Cannoli" line.
3. Riffing on the Riffing: Richard Belzer quotes lines from the film and sees if another actor can respond correctly.
4. Clemenza: Coppola explains why Clemenza was not included in The Godfather II.

Overall

If you’re a fan of the films (and who isn’t), this is a set worth picking up. The video is as perfect as you can get and the rest of the content is definitely worthwhile. If you don’t have these films, this is the set to get.

Is it worth the upgrade if you own the original set? That’s a tough call. I don’t think the 2008 extra content is anything you need to see. Still, the video is great and having The Godfather II on one DVD is nice. If you can find them at a nice price – upgrade and pass your old set on to a friend.