Godfather: Michael's Opus, The:

[MCP]

After watching Don Vito's Opus, I watched the second part with delight. While the Godfather II still works very well showing the parallel between Vito's rise and Michael's moral downfall, it also makes for a slightly frustrating viewing as the alternate editing hurt the pacing of each story.. The additional footage in Godfather II is nice even if not significant as in Don Vito's Opus. The Godfather III footage is finally complete in this version. I understand what Coppola tried to do with "Coda", but in the end , I would think the majority of the people who like the movie in spite of its flaws would spend as much time wiith the characters as possible and this edition permits it. One exclusive addtion to this edit is the extended early dialogue between the archbishop and Michael with a Dante quote which introduces nicely the fact that by the end of the movie, Michael will be condemned to live forever in the hell that are the making of his sins. Talia Shire and Andy Garcia are fantastic as supporting roles. Connie's overall character arc, starting as a victim of her husband, and then her brother before becoming the true backbone of the family is awesome. Andy Garcia masterfully transits from being a blunt replica of his father to true commanding and respected Don. Seing Michael's complete journey uninterrupted makes for a great cinematic journey. The choice of the ending, with Michael dying or simply being left in tragic solitude is a personal preference. I have warmed up to the Coda ending, less definitive than the original one but also truer to the character. There is no escape for Michael, condemned to live a long life comtemplating that no matter how hard he tried, his attempt to lead the family to save it only ever led to him destroying it. Very happy I could see this edit.

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