After the death of his father, Michael Corleone (Pacino) has taken
over his father's affairs. He finds himself exactly where he'd never
thought he'd be: at the head of a crime organization. In the original
film, Michael had pledged to make the family's business dealings completely
legitimate within five years, however, now it's seven years later, and
they are as deeply involved in shady dealings as ever.
Not only that, he soon learns that being in such a position means making
tough decisions no one would want to make, especially when it comes
to loyalty and family.
This movie also takes us back to Michael's father, Vito Corleone, as
a young man. We meet him as a young boy who must flee Italy because
of a threat on his life, and then as a young married man with an infant
son, he is introduced — reluctantly at first — into a life
of crime. This is one of the most fascinating aspects of the film, showing
the parallels and differences between these two men and the choices
they made that led them deeper into a life of crime. While the decisions
these two men make are different, their overall purposes (to protect
and provide for their families) are similar. It leads both of them to
places that neither initially wanted to go.
De Niro plays the young Vito and does such a good job with the mannerisms
and voice of the character, as established by Marlon Brando, that it
took me a long time to figure out who was playing that role. To prepare
for the role, he lived in Sicily for a while. He's one of only a handful
of actors to win an Academy Award for role which is primarily in a language
other than English (Italian).
Pacino reprises his role as Michael, a character who has, by this point
in the story, lost every semblance of the earnest idealist he once was.
Like the previous movie, this film pays strict attention to detail,
with period sets and costumes that establish not only Michael's world
of the 1940s and '50s, but his father's turn-of-the-century days.
Perhaps one of the reasons I enjoyed this movie so much was that I
haven't seen scenes from it played over and over. This allowed me to
rediscover the movie. However, looking back on the two films, I think
the original movie edges it out, simply because it has so many big moments.
The Godfather II is a quieter, more reflective movie. Yes, there's
still violence; there's still betrayal, but the focus of the movie is
more on an analysis of Michael and Vito, an exploration of how ordinary
men can become criminal leaders.
While the films have their differences, you could watch The Godfather
II by itself and still appreciate it. And that is the mark of a
truly great sequel.
