The revered place that The Godfather occupies in the American psyche is a testament not only to the box-office revenues1 it has earned or the numerous awards2 it has won; rather, what distinguishes The Godfather from other popular movies is the extent to which its dialogue is quoted chapter and verse. Its wit and wisdom have become, for lack of a better term, a guidepost in our daily lives: “I’m going to make him an offer he can’t refuse” became the de facto mantra for advertisers, late-night comedians, and wise guy wannabes; “Leave the gun...take the cannoli” epitomized the moral ambiguities and necessities of everyday life; and Luca Brasi (Don Vito Corleone’s chief enforcer) is often invoked on MSNBC’s Hardball when host Chris Matthews takes issue with some heavy-handed tactics in the political arena.

Background and Theme of The Godfather

The screenplays for each of The Godfather films were co-written by Francis Coppola, the film’s director, and Mario Puzo, the author of the best-selling novel. In their unique collaboration, they refashioned a story about gangsters and elevated it to the level of myth – a cinematic tour de force which has long been praised for its poignant and tragic portrait of the Corleone “crime” family and its insight into a brutally corrupt economic system that sows the seeds of the family’s inevitable downfall.

As Coppola himself has remarked, the parallel lives of Vito and Michael are a thinly disguised metaphor for America and American capitalism. Underlying this metaphor, however, is a contradiction, namely, that the ideals of opportunity and social mobility are undermined by the destructive realities of the capitalist system, i.e., the unbridled desire for profit and power. The family empire that Vito builds is one that Michael cannot preserve. It is fragile and impermanent -- its loyalties based on the vagaries of business, not on the close-knit bonds of family and community. Michael’s yearning for acceptance and legitimacy, although sympathetically portrayed, remains largely unattainable.

1The Godfather was the top-grossing film of 1972 and has generated about $135 million in total domestic (U.S. and Canada) box-office revenues, or $502.4 million converted into today’s dollars; The Godfather: Part II ($57.3 million or $195.2 million in 2005 dollars); and The Godfather: Part III ($66.7 million or $101.7 million in 2005 dollars).

2The Godfather received ten Academy Award nominations and won three Oscars: Best Picture, Best Actor (Marlon Brando) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Coppola and Puzo). The film earned five Golden Globe Awards, and Coppola won the coveted Directors Guild of America Award for best direction. It also received five New York Film Critics Circle nominations, with the win going to Robert Duvall for Best Supporting Actor. The Godfather: Part II received eleven Academy Award nominations and won six Oscars: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (Robert DeNiro), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Art Direction (Dean Tavoularis and Angelo Graham; plus George Nelson for Set Decoration), and Best Original Score (Nino Rota and Carmine Coppola). It was also nominated for six Golden Globe Awards and two New York Film Critics Circle Awards, but did not win any. Al Pacino, however, won a British Academy award for Best Actor, and Coppola picked up another Directors Guild of America Award. The Godfather: Part III received seven Academy Award nominations but failed to win any Oscars. It also received seven Golden Globe Award nominations, with the only win going to Coppola for Best Director.