1) Relate what was discussed in
class or the text to the screening.
As the final
film we watched, we watched another one of the greatest movies ever made, The Godfather. This film, directed by the great Francis Ford
Coppola, both birthed and flourished all careers of the talent involved, but
some in particular stood out. Marlon
Brando, said to be THE best actor that has ever lived played the famous Don
Vito Corleone and Al Pacino as Michael Corleone who after left no other
options, comes into the family business.
It is quite interesting to watch Pacino and Brando, who were both in two
separate stages in their career, but still gave some of the best
performances. I had seen this film prior
to the screening, but even before watching it again, I knew it would still have
me on the edge of my seat.
2) Find a related article and
summarize the content. (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress,
artistic content, etc.) You can use the library or the internet. Cite the
article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the
related article but do not plagiarize any content.
http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/140791%7C0/The-Godfather.html
In
this article by Paul Tartara that TCM (Turner Classic Movies) published,
Tartara gives us more of an essay on The
Godfather than a typical article. He
goes in-depth writing about the production obstacles and difficulties that
everyone faced. He wrote about specific
confrontations between the directors and his staff. He also commented a bit on the overall film
and its legacy and impact on the film industry.
3) Apply the article to the film
screened in class. How did the article support or change the way you thought
about the film, director, content, etc.?
I
found this article to be quite a read.
Usually when I read articles, I read them only to find things out about
a movie that I have watched or planned to watch. However, with Tartara’s article, I found
myself thoroughly enjoying the read as I went along. There were many things and bits of
information about The Godfather that
I picked up from just this article alone.
It spoke about how hard of a time Coppola had while shooting this due to
his staff and producers, but also, Tartara even mentioned that Al Pacino messed
up his dialogue in his audition. I think
I found that tidbit to be the most interesting and comical, being that Pacino is
now one of the top actors alive today.
4) Write a critical analysis of
the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of the
screening, class discussions, text material and the article. I am less
interested in whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part
of this) than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the
contributions of the director.
In
the article listed above, Paul Tartara says, “Francis Ford Coppola's The
Godfather (1972) has moved beyond the realm of mere cinema to become a slice of
American mythology.” I don’t think
anyone could agree more with this statement.
The Godfather is a legend in
film history and for me, personally, it sets the bar of what every cinematic experience
should be like. From the cinematography,
to the intelligent camera angles, to the legendary performances, this movie,
from ground up, is flawless. I am
baffled as to how it did not win every Oscar nomination it was up for that
year, but I guess it would look flaky if it swept the ceremony…
This
film targets a great variety of themes in the few hours it runs, but one of the
most powerful and evident themes it centers on is family. Throughout the movie, we are constantly
reminded of how much and how far one would go for their family. Michael Corleone, who initially had sworn off
the “family business”, ends up becoming the head of the family and running the “family
business”. This was due to his personal
obligations and loyalty to his family that he took up the mantle.
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