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The Godfather Chronological Edit: FULL HD Rebuild - MAX LENGTH 10h 5min

Wraith

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My next project will be to rebuild the chronological edit of The Godfather previously available as The Godfather Trilogy on VHS only, The Godfather Saga, Godfather Epic and The Godfather: A Novel for Television. All have differing material. A complete rebuild exists from Modernknife Godfather Chronological Epic 1901-1980, The - Fanedit.org - IFDB but this is in SD. I also have a complete rebuild I did in SD based on a number of sources but never made available. The longest version available runs 9hrs 48 min but is in SD. This will run 3 mins longer due to the changes I made to part 3 and I think will be the first time the Chronological edit (with all known footage) is available in HD. I fully expect Netflix to restore this and screen at some point with maybe a few more scenes, but I'm not going to hang about and wait for that.

All known and available HD footage will be incorporated using the extended versions HD material from numerous sources including a couple of scenes from Halover9000 s Part 1 and 2 and my Part 3 La Fine edit soon to be out there. All subtitles will be consistent across all 3 movies, with additional subtitles (per my Part 3) where they ere left out (I speak Italian).

This will include for the first time additional dialogue from Michael and the Cardinal's Vatican discussion too from my version of the Part 3, La Fine.

All transitions from the so called Trilogy/Novel for Television/Saga edits will be re-built from clean shots in all cases (I have alread surveyed the material, and I have nothing missing). I will also use the Coppola Restoration. The Saga, Trilogy VHS and AMCs HD restorations will be used to guide choices ONLY. No material will be used from there to avoid removal of the AMC logo.

The few additional shots from CODA will also be used.

Estimated running time will be 9 hrs and 51 min.

This will be in two Parts:

The Godfather: Redux - Vito's Story
The Godfather: Redux - Michael's Story

Is this an offer you can't refuse
Any Takers ?

W
EDIT 2023:.
Run time now is 10h6min.
 
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Wraith

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PS

I f you believe you have additional material in HD that has not been included previously, please get in touch via PM.

Thanks
W
 

Wraith

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PPS

The closing shots of Kay lighting candles from the Novel for television has credits running over...if anyone has a clean source for this without the credits in HD, or can point to where it can be sourced, I'd be most grateful.
W
 

jswert123456

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will this be longer than the HBO version from a few years back?
 

asterixsmeagol

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I didn't know a previous chronological edit existed. I've only ever seen the first film, and it was on VHS back when I was in high school with a group of friends so I was pretty distracted. I just picked up the 3-film set on Blu-ray so maybe I'll hold off on watching them and wait for this project instead.
 

Wraith

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Thanks for your interest....

Definitely do not hold off watching the films as they were made. Especially Part II, which I won't spoil by explaining. Sometimes, a Fan Edit really is better than the original...way better (The Hobbit being a good example), but not here.

The Chronological versions, of which there 3 different official versions, all contain significant amounts of extra material. None contain ALL the material. They were made to boost VHS sales and then to get a TV audience *(hence one being called a Novel for Television). That TV version of course was heavily censored for violence BUT it was the longest of the 3. The edit I mention above DOES contain ALL the material uncensored, but in SD. The chronological edit is a different way to see the saga, and it is my preferred way, but it is not necessarily better. Especially Part II.

Watch your investment, enjoy, and when this is done (which may take me a few weeks), then by all means dive in and see what you think. There are about 75 mins of extra stuff which do add a fair bit development etc.

Thought I should let you know. I think most Godfather aficionados would agree with this.
All the best
W
*and for FFC to raise money to complete Apocalypse Now.
 
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Wraith

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...oh and for the previous post, YES, this will be longer than the HBO version. Just shy of 10 hours as two movies. The first will be about 4.5 hrs and the second, 5.5 hours. I REFUSE TO CHOP UP THE NARRATIVE, in case anyone bemoans this. Viewers can hit pause. The Blu Ray will be a 50gb affair x 2, so no quality drop. There will also be PLENTY of chapter points too.

COMING SOON!
 

Wraith

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Here is some data:

Theatrical Versions

GF1 178 min
GF 1 Extended (Halover9000) 202 min

GF2 202 min
GF2 Extended (Halover9000) 228 min

GF3 (Theatrical version) 162 min
GF3 Directors Cut 170 min
GF3 Coda 158 min
GF3 La Fine (my version coming soon) 172 min

Longest possible version from theatrical version (not accounting for credits) 542 min
Longest possible version from Longest versions (not accounting for credits) 602 min (600 if you don't use my version of Part 3, which of course, I will be using).

The Godfather 1902–1959: The Complete Epic is a reduced, 386-minute version of The Godfather Saga (434 minutes) that was released to video in 1981 on VHS

The Godfather Saga/Complete Epic 1902-1959: 434 min (Pt 1 &2 only). This is missing The scene after Vito gets fired, when Abbandando offers him groceries to take home, is omitted
[align=start] [/align]
[align=start]The Godfather Trilogy: 1901–1980. As had the earlier compilations, this film incorporated scenes that are not part of the theatrical releases. It was released on VHS and laserdisc ONLY in 1992; it has not been released on DVD, and is now rare ( and I'm glad I still have mine). The total run time for this version is 583 minutes. 
MISSING: The scene after Vito gets fired, when Abbandando offers him groceries to take home, is omitted[/align]

The Godfather: A novel for Television (AKA Trilogy 1902-1980): 583 min and has some differences in content to the Trilogy edit.

Modernkniefe's The Godfather Chronological Epic 588 min (SD ONLY)

My upcoming version will be at least 596 min without the additional opening and closing titles and will be HD throughout. NO UPSCALING. There will also be many issues corrected throughout including correctly translated and complete subtitles throughout in the same font and color. My initial assembly runs literally 602 mins. There will be some loss of running time due to transitions being re-built and there being only 2 sets of credits (since this will be a two mega film edit) rather 3 films. The break point will be the end of The Godfather ("Part 1"), hence Vito's story first 4.5 hrs, then Michael's 5.5hrs.

There will be no need for removal of the AMC logo, as per some edits, since I have clean HD for all the scenes I need, and will only be using that version for content checking and transition checking against the other two chronological versions to ensure I re-build them correctly (to the very last frame).

Audio source for music needs will be the extended limited edition CDs of all 3 movies.

The FULL LIST OF ADDITIONAL SCENES (and which version above had which scenes) in HD as follows:


WARNING SPOILERS FOLLOW:



page down to see

(SOURCE:THE GODFATHER TRILOGY: 1901-1980)
Awesmoe resource

 The Godfather additional scenes
  • After Vito agrees to help Bonaser avenge the beating of his daughter, Vito whistles to Sonny and asks if he was paying attention. Sonny confirms that he was. (Exclusive to the Saga only)
  • After Vito tells Hagen to go to California, Hagen tells him that the hospital called and the dying Genco Abbandando, Vito's previous consigliere, will not last the night. Vito tells Sonny to bring all his sons (including Michael and Johnny) to pay their respects to Genco and for Fredo to drive the big car. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • After Connie's wedding reception, Vito, his sons, and Johnny Fontane go to the hospital to visit Genco, where Vito calls Michael's military decorations "Christmas ribbons" and tells him that he has plans for him after he leaves the military and finishes school. Genco asks that Vito stay with him and scare away death to which Vito says that he has no such power. After a short conversation, Genco becomes weak, and Vito motions for his sons to leave the room, himself staying behind while Genco dies. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • Before Hagen and Jack Woltz start talking, Woltz holds a birthday party for a young actress named Janie, and presents her with a pony as a gift. Present at the gathering are the girl's mother and several others involved with her current film. After Woltz kicks Tom out after dinner, he walks to the exit, looks up, and sees Janie, crying at the top of the staircase, being retrieved by her mother; the implication is that Woltz raped her. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • There is additional footage of Tom, Sonny and Vito discussing the Woltz situation before the horse head scene. Vito asks if Woltz is "so tough", to which Tom responds, "You mean is he a Sicilian? Forget about it." Vito then asks if the story between Woltz and Janie is true, and calls Woltz's paedofilia an "infamia". Vito tells Tom to summon Luca Brasi to "see if we can find a way to reason with this Mr. Jack Woltz." (Saga only)
  • Michael and Kay are in a New York hotel bed, getting a wake-up call at 3 p.m. They are supposed to go to the Corleone residence, but Michael does not want to go yet. He calls the mansion, and Kay pretends to be the long-distance operator, calling collect for "Mr. Michael Corleone". Tom "accepts" the charges, and Michael tells Hagen that they're "stuck in New Hampshire", where Kay's family lives. After Tom hangs up, they giggle about their trick on Tom, and roll onto the floor between the beds they have pushed together. This scene occurs before Fredo gets the car for Vito.
  • There is some short extra footage of Luca Brasi walking through the hotel hallways before meeting with the Tattaglias. He sees a neon sign turn off, which signals him it is OK to enter the bar. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • After the Don is shot, Sonny gets a phone call from a detective informing him about his father's condition. Sonny then tries to call Tom, but his wife Theresa says he is not home. After he hangs up, some gunshots ring out. Sonny retrieves a gun from his dresser drawer and goes to check it out, at which point the scene ends and Clemenza knocks on the door, resuming the theatrical footage. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • After Sonny gets the call from Virgil Sollozzo informing him that Tom Hagen has been abducted, he goes to tell his mother that Vito has been shot. He then calls Sal and tells him to bring fifty of his men over. He tries to call Luca Brasi, but he does not answer, as Tattaglia has killed him. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • After Michael calls Sonny about Vito's shooting, there is additional footage near the phone booth of Michael telling Kay to go back the hotel. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • There is some short extra footage of Michael in the car arriving at the mall and being cleared to enter by the guards. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • After Michael meets Clemenza, he asks Hagen's wife Theresa how he is. The two of them go in to see Sonny (who's with Tessio). After discussing how Paulie Gatto, not Clemenza, was the traitor, Hagen enters the room. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • Before Clemenza leaves the house with Paulie, he and Rocco Lampone talk about Clemenza's car with the wooden bumpers. Clemenza gives Rocco the gun he is to use to "make his bones" by killing Gatto. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • After they leave Clemenza's driveway, they make a stop "to call Sonny". Clemenza eats a meal and buys cannoli while Lampone and Gatto wait in the car. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • When Michael is hiding in Sicily, there is a scene in which his bodyguard Fabrizio asks him about New York, and whether it is true that he is the son of a Mafia boss. Fabrizio then asks Michael if he could be his bodyguard in America. This scene happens just before they meet Apollonia.
  • In Sicily, after Michael tells Don Tommasino that they are going to Corleone, Michael and his bodyguards see a procession of Commies marching through the hills. When asked, Fabrizio tells they are going . (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • There is some short extra footage of Michael and bodyguards walking through Corleone, before he says "Where have all the men gone?"
  • Before they are on the road as the G.I.s pass by, Michael visits his father's birthplace and he asks a woman if there are any family/friends of the Andolini family around. She says they have all left and gone overseas. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • After Hagen makes the call to Bonasera following Sonny's murder, Bonasera dresses and contemplates what task Vito is going to ask him to do. (Exclusive to the Saga only)
  • After Apollonia is killed in the explosion, there is a short scene of Michael, in shock and in bed, muttering to Tommasino and Apollonia's mother: "Apollonia..?" / Tommasino: "Dead." / Michael: "Fabrizio..? Get me Fabrizio..."
  • After Connie hangs up the phone following a fight with her husband Carlo, she walks into the bathroom where Carlo is showering. She confronts him about the "whore"; he ignores the comment and tells her to make him dinner. The subsequent footage is slightly tailored to fit the standard scene, and a couple of extra lines are added where they were not before. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • Before Hagen asks Michael why he is being replaced as consigliere, there is some short extra footage. There is also some short extra footage after Michael says "You're out, Tom." These two short scenes talk about Al Neri. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • After Hagen leaves the room, Vito takes Michael out to the garden through the French doors in the study. (Exclusive to the Saga only)
  • The original ending of the film showed Kay praying at an altar while the credits were shown. The scene, though faithful to the original novel, was used only as a final of The Godfather Saga.
The Godfather Part II additional scenesThe following scenes are listed chronologically.
  • After Vito's brother Paolo is shot, two of Don Ciccio's thugs arrive at the Andolini home looking for Vito. His mother calls a Vito a "Little Baccala, not worth worrying about".
  • When Vito and Genco go backstage at the theater, there is additional footage before and after the scene where Don Fanucci grabs a young girl. Fanucci tells the theater owner that he should have more Sicilian songs and begins to sing. (Exclusive to the Saga only)
  • There is a scene before Vito gets fired from Abbandando's Grosseria: While Vito is delivering groceries, he sees three punks over on 9th Street assaulting Fanucci, and they cut his throat "from ear to ear...to scare him". Genco and Vito discuss how much power Fanucci actually has.
  • There is added footage at the beginning of the scene where young Vito and Clemenza are drinking coffee, talking about the carpet Vito is to steal. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • After the new carpet is installed, Vito, Clemenza, and Tessio meet up with a gunsmith, Augustino Coppola, and his young son, Carmine Coppola. This is where Clemenza sells his guns.
  • We then see young Clemenza hawking stolen dresses door-to-door for $5 a piece. He makes one married woman an offer (two for one), and presumably has sex with her. Clemenza tells Vito to bring the rest of the dresses to Dadine's Store, where Dadine will turn it over to the wholesaler. While they are driving, Fanucci hops aboard Vito's truck.
  • There is added footage at the end of Fanucci's talk with Vito in the truck. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • There is added footage at the beginning of the scene where Vito, Clemenza and Tessio are eating spaghetti at Vito's house discussing how to pay Fanucci. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • There is added footage at the beginning of Vito's meeting with Signora Colombo. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • There is added footage during Vito's talk with Signor Roberto on the street. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • There is added footage before we see Signor Roberto at Vito's office. He is seen entering through the garage area where he carefully asks for "Don Vito Corleone".
  • After Signor Roberto lowers Signora Colombo's rent, Vito sees Clemenza, who has found "a kid good with cars", to fix the truck. His name is Hyman Suchowsky, but Clemenza calls him "Johnny Lips". Vito suggests that Suchowsky change his name; Suchowsky then begins calling himself Hyman Roth.
  • In a trip back to Sicily, there is additional footage of Vito's family exiting the train and walking with a small band. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • While in Sicily, Vito finds and kills two of Don Ciccio's retainers (Mosca and Strollo) before he goes with Tommasino to kill Don Ciccio.
  • There is additional footage of Vito and his family at the train station leaving Sicily. (Exclusive to the Saga only)
  • There is footage of Michael walking on a pier in Lake Tahoe playing with a dog. (Exclusive to the Saga only)
  • There is footage of Anthony's First communion. (Saga and Epic only)
  • At the beginning of Anthony's party, there is added footage of singing on the grandstand, and in the parking lot. We also see Anthony walking up to the button men, and stopping as Kay calls after him. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • There is a scene of Fredo and his wife Deanna in the parking lot. Deanna is already drunk and Fredo does not want Michael to see her that way.
  • At the communion party, Sonny's daughter, Francesca, comes to see Michael for his blessing to marry Gardner Shaw, of whom Michael approves.
  • After Francesca and Gardner leave, he asks Francesca's brother, Santino Jr., how he is doing in football. (Exclusive to the Saga only)
  • There is a scene (after Michael's meeting with Sen. Pat Geary) in which Al Neri is talking to Michael (with Hagen and Lampone) and they are looking at pictures of Fabrizio. They explain that he was brought over illegally from Sicily by Don Barzini.
  • After Michael and Kay are dancing in the communion party, we see Fabrizio ("Fred Vincent"), leaving his pizzeria in NYC, and starting his car, at which point a previously planted car bomb explodes. He stumbles out of the car, then dies. This was Michael's vengeance upon Fabrizio for killing Apollonia.
  • There is added footage leading up to Pentangeli drinking from the garden hose in which he asks a waiter for a glass of wine or a beer.
  • After the family sits down to eat, we see Pentangeli sitting and drinking wine with Anthony. He gives Anthony a $100 bill. (Saga and Trilogy only)
  • There is footage of Al Neri visiting Meyer Klingman, the owner of the gambling license for Michael's new hotel, at the casino, and asking him to leave. Klingman resists, so Neri chases him through the casino into a closed auditorium, which is rehearsing for a cabaret, until Neri threatens him with a heavy chair, at which point Klingman finally capitulates and leaves the hotel. Neri then sits down in the seats and signals for the performers to go on with their rehearsal.
The Godfather Part III additional scenes/Shots
  • 6 shots newly added to the CODA version of Part 3
  • Additional dialogue between Michael and the Cardinal NOT SEEN IN ANY OTHER VERSION in HD!!
  • Corrected continuity establishing shots
  • More thorough translation of subtitles
  • Kay lighting a candles in remembrance (used under the credits for the Novel for television)
  • An in Memoriam sequence during the end credit from The Trilogy version (rebuilt from scratch in HD)
How's that for complete ! Nothing will be missing. If you think I have missed something, please let me know via PM.

Should be ready in a few weeks.

Trailer to come!

W
 

Wraith

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jswert123456 said:
will this be longer than the HBO version from a few years back?

YUP (see above)
 

Wraith

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I should also note that the AMC HD restoration has includes montages with the opening credits of each episode that acta as a "previously on...", and longer closing epilogues that act as " coming in the next episode. These add to the run time by 3 to 5 minutes per episode which is a significant amount of time. Once I complete the rebuild, I will analyze the run times WITHOUT credits and montages to give a true determination of the overall lengths and how much longer the rebuild actually is.
 
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Wraith

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Hey, Two additional scenes have known to have been added to the USA network version during its Godfather trilogy and Saga showings in the late 1990s:
  • Don Altobello hands Michael and Constance an expensive check for the Vito Corleone Foundation, and Altobello declares lifetime peace between the two familes. All three embrace each other.
  • A brief exchange between B.J and the Archbishop is seen during the party sequence. The Archbishop snaps softly at B.J "We had a deal!" B.J half-chuckles and says "Of course, how do you think I got all this grey hair." This scene hints early on the wrongdoings of the Archbishop, which isn't revealed until later in the theatrical version.
If anyone has an off air recoding in HD, Please let me know.
W
 

Wraith

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So, I'm now just 14 mins into a detailed on-screen 4 way comparison of the Theatrical, Extended, Saga/Trilogy (VHS) and AMC/Novel for TV comparison and I'm finding shots unique to the VHS not in HD anywhere. The first I've found is child Vito with his back to the camera and he begins singing before we get the caption and segue to Deniro Vito at the theatre. Then, in the AMC version, the take of Vito walking down the aisle at the theatre is completely different than the other 3 versions...lpus a few other things. 

Also, the AMC version will not be the longest by any stretch. Just the 3 min opening credit sequence and  crappy forward looking montage will see to that. Its obvious to me that this was in part done to boost the time to the "longest ever", but it will not be. I will, after the analysis, compile the longest version possible from HD materials. I will note which scenes are missing from the VHS Saga/trilogy, which are unique to any version and how I assembled mine. IN some cases, the theatrical version has a shot 4 frames longer than the extended edition. IN other shots, other versions have a longer shot. In all cases (as I did in my unreleased Blade Runner Edit) I will use the longest shot from the best source. So this edit will weave between, Theatricals 1,2 3, extended 1,2,3 plus Coda and AMC. 8 versions of 3 films to make a seamless max length version.

This is going to take longer than I though, but I've obsessed about when I would be able to do this, and I now finally feel that I have all the material required.

Again, if anyone has off-air broadcast versions in HD of any version, get in touch. There could be a few gems in there and I would like to include everything. There's no need to check yourself, I have a quick way to do that...

STAY TUNED

Since I will do this check for all 10 hours, it's gonna be a while. I plan to offer this 4-way comparison as a bonus feature together with a video of all scenes NOT in theatrical edits annotating their source plus any scenes in SD which were not included in the new HD MAX LENGTH edit.
 

TV's Frink

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Moved to In-The-Works.

When it's done, it probably belongs in Fix/Mix rather than Extended Editions, if I understand it correctly.  The SD version by Modernknife is in Fix/Mix btw.
 

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I guess so....Thanks
 

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HI all,

Todays report on the ongoing analysis of the Theatrical, Extended, Epic, Saga, AMC and VHS Trilogy 1901-1980 versions of the Godfather movies (Collectively from now on as THE FAMILY of Edits).

I'm now 30 minutes in and have found a cutaway shot when Vito and Clemenza are having coffee that is uniques to the theatrical version.

Also, I am repeatedly finding that the AMC version, long though it may be, repeatedly has scenes and shots that run shorter, from a few frames to a few seconds. Example, when Vito  watches his child with pneumonia (PART 2), the Theatrical version is 39 sec, the TRILOGY 1901-1980 40 sec and AMC 32secs. Another example is when Vito returns from the carpet theft, a shot of his wife handing him the baby is missing from AMC, and that shot is in ALL other versions. IN fact, the next shot is also missing the first 2 secs. 
Why go to all the effort of restoring the long version in HD, but use shorter shots here and there? Were they frame-fucking ( a la James Cameron for those that don't know what I mean) to hit a target a running time? Who knows. I WILL be using the longest version of EVERY single shot.

So, together with the earlier shot from the Epic (which WILL be in my HD restoration) that's another 34 sec of material, plus the 55 Secs from the extra material I have added to my version of Part 3 (coming soon), and nearly 30 secs of FRAMES LOSS on the AMC, that's a total 1 mi 59 secs so far identified of material NOT in the longest versions available. I still have 9.5 hours of this to go through, so please bear with me (laborious but fun and eye opening on editorial choices).

I promise NOT to go into every find ( and I have not), but this bodes well since I was not sure this exercise was worth doing ahead of the editing itself....I'm finding it certainly is. I will report on the significant finds and of course, have a full analysis CHANGES list when the edit is listed on IFDB.

W OUT
 

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UPDATE

75 min into the analysis of THE FAMILY of edits. That means I've completed the young Vito review.

Consistently, AMC, though second longest to the Trilogy/Saga edit, keeps having extended scenes that are a bit shorter all over the place. Really strange. Found another tiny piece that is longer in the theatrical and Ive noticed that the transitions in the Rebuild Extended are a tad shorter. These will be rebuilt from scratch to match the Trilogy Edit (one done already).

Things should speed up a tad I hope, but it is painstaking work but necessary in order to assemble the longest version possible.

That's it for today...
W
 

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UPDATE

130 mins in to the analysis. Good progress today, and some more finds.

AMC defo trimmed violence. The EXT versions by Hal900 have a few shots that are shorter in a few places, and these will be restored since they all have longer counterparts in the Theatrical edit. I also found about 20 secs of material UNIQUE to the Theatrical version of Part 1, and that too will be restored.

The longest piece found is at the studio where two differing takes of the studio head are used before he wals away to speak to the goons. This means a section of performance though is lost amounting to about 15 secs. This will be restored.

Cumulative additional materials across all 3 films so far is about 180 secs. I will not bother where the difference in a shot is 2 frames of less.

I continue to find trims in the AMC version in material that was added back in which must have been for running time.

That's it for this update.
W
 

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UPDATE

185 min into it, and no major new discoveries today.

The AMC version continues to remove small sections here and there. Sometimes from material that is common to all versions and sometimes trimming material from the new scenes. AMC also however adds in some new establishing shots which are not in any other version. Which brings me to an odd section in the Part 1 extended version. One of those new establishing shots is taken from the AMC version and has the AMC log quite well removed BUT there is a great big caption that pops up and states YOU ARE WATCHING THE GODFATHER PART II. Well it's not, It's part 1. It was nice for that this shot was included, but it was trimmed due to an even bigger logo at the beginning of the shot. This can be resolved with a 10% crop without majorly impacting the quality (with a little bit of enhancement) which I will do and include this shot.

The updates may thin out a tad as I plan to get the Part 3 La FINE edit out there soon and I need to spend some time on the artwork.

Ciao!

W
 

Wraith

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UPDATE

225 mins into it and almost half done.

SO....an interesting one popped up today. IN the argument Connie has while Sonny is dressing, the theatrical version has an amazing travelling matte wipe in order to be able to remove a large part of the argument that is in the Extended and AMC versions. Even more interesting is that the take of Connie screaming at the door and storming off to the kitchen is completely different. Her arms are down in one take, and not in the other versions. The theatrical take runs a few seconds less and works better from a travelling wipe perspective. 

What has become abundantly clear to me in this mammoth shot for shot comparison of the 5 major versions is that Coppola effectively had a cut he preferred. This is probably very close to the extended version of Parts 1 and 2. Why do I thing that? Because it feels like an editor just tightening up with no major loss of actual supporting narrative content. There would have been many ways to remove even up to 60 mins from the theatrical versions....minimize a whole character, remove a subplot and so on but he did not.

This contrasts to the trims made by AMC, which (excluding those for violence, and I'll come back to those) feel like random excisions for running time leading to some compressed scenes which if you were the director, you would not have chose to do. For instance, when Vito returns home and is given the bad news, he is seen walking towards camera, then down the corridor, slumped, a broken man. AMC fades out as he walks towards the camera and the poignant shot that follows is removed....WTF!!!! A similar excision occurs in Sicily when Michael and Apolonia walk away from camera on the hillside. AMC fade out on the pair and the the remaining shot of the family coming into frame removes a moment that is both amusing AND tells us that this relationship is REALLY serious. again, WTF?

So yes, AMC, remove nudity, ruin the toll-booth shoot out too, but it is still the longest official version in HD out there.

A few more new establishing shots are in there and another snip which is unique to the Theatrical version.

I mean the sanitizing of the toll booth sequence is criminal in that the run time drops from 27 secs (start to end of shooting) to 14 secs. Now, a lot of us would have trimmed for them, but retained some length to impart the enormity of the horror without showing so much blood, sure...Hatchett job if you ask me!!! You need the extended horror in some form , even if its repeating a flipped shot of the machine guns so that the viewer is almost as shaken as the family is in the scenes that follow.

So far, the Young Vito material is the most altered in the sense of many additional shots, scenes and interwoven material that was laborious to compare. Old Vito was much easier a nd cleaner since whole scenes are removed though AMC created more abridgements than they need have.

At then end, I'll give a full analysis of the run time impacts of the trims to AMC, and the overall additions which are not completely documented anywhere, though there are some very close to complete lists for sure.

Well, back to the OCD work....

Ciao bella
W
 

Wraith

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UPDATE

280 min in.

All Godfather Part 1 done, so all that is left is Michaels material from Part 2, since my Part 3 already has had the same analysis completed for my La Fine edit.

Nothing major found on this last stretch. In fact the last 32 min of all versions are near identical (PHEW!) bar a couple of inevitable AMC trims, again observing the typical HACK choices where Michael and Vito are chatting in the garden towards the end, there is a 15 sec lingering shot on Micahael...no dialogue...that is what is called "an emotional beat". It is followed by a similar shot of Vito.....so AMC hackers see that  and VOILA, emotional beat removed. Certainly not a choice the director would have made or it would have been removed for the Theatrical version....see what I mean folks? Similarly, the funeral arrival and static shots of monuments and graves at the end of Part 1 are all trimmed. Why? Coz it's easy; no music, simple audio so "lets trim these boring arrival shots and statues"....It's called ATMOSPHERE and the removal of those little pieces diminish the importance of setting up a sober tone. 

Which brings me to the one edit issue found. THE LAS VEGAS STRIP MONTAGE. This has a variety of transitions into it. The Theatrical version cross fades from Michael, the others crossfade thru black and so a small portion of the entry and exit shots are lost. Given the audio the choices are, go with the theatrical crossfade or go with the extended AMC crossfade via black.

I have a third way. Go with the longer audio of the via black version and replace the black porition with an aditional shot of the Las vegas strip....this allows me to keep the theatrical version of the transition (rebuilding with a clean shot of Michael) but where would I get an HD vintage piece of footage to bridge the audio gap?  Well here is a nice home movie in HD on YOUTUBE....There is a shot towards the end with Sinatra on the marquee which when cropped and color/gamma fixed crossfades in beautifully....I'll also be going through my HD versions of Oceans 11 and Robin and the 7 Hoods to see if there is a better shot. The issue there will be the shot may be too clean and colorful to blend in. I have done a test where I remove a portion of the crossfade in the movie taking out PATTI PAGE (no-one today will really know her) and replace with the SINATRA piece...which has that nice mafia irony about it. It looks real cool and blends well in color and the panning speed and angle. Here is the source video. Go to 2:25 to see the portion I propose to use.

1970s Las Vegas, Daytime Drive, HD from 35mm - YouTube

Any views?

That's it for today. Onward to the home stretch...and the I can move on to actually building the edit.

Be seeing you!
W
 
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