The Godfather

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening. Of the many themes which The Godfather touches upon, it is that of “family” which resonates the most. The film is based upon the novel by Mario Puzo (who co-wrote the screenplay) and many sub-plots were minimized or thrown away by director/co-writer Francis Ford Coppola, himself an Italian American and family man. He knew that the only way to make Puzo’s sprawling novel work on screen was to focus on the familial relationships within this crime story, whether it be father to son, brother to brother, or husband to wife. In this world blood is not only thicker than water, it is holy. Plot wise, The Godfather begins with the attempted assassination of Don Vito from a rival crime family unhappy with his refusal to enter the narcotics trade. With the Don temporarily out of the picture, it is up to his sons to run the Corleone clan. There is hot tempered Sonny (James Caan), meek mild Fredo (John Cazale), adopted son of Irish ancestry Tom Hagen (Robert Duvall), and the fiercely independent Michael (Al Pacino). 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. 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.? The remarkable thing about Mario Puzo’s novel was the way it seemed to be told from the inside out; he didn’t give us a world of international intrigue, but a private club as constricted as the seventh grade. Everybody knew everybody else and had a pretty shrewd hunch what they were up to. The movie (based on a script labored over for some time by Puzo and then finally given form, I suspect, by director Francis Ford Coppola) gets the same feel. We tend to identify with Don Corleone’s family not because we dig gang wars, but because we have been with them from the beginning, watching them wait for battle while sitting at the kitchen table and eating out of paper cartons. 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. “The Godfather” himself is not even the central character in the drama. That position goes to the youngest, brightest son, Michael, who understands the nature of his father’s position while revising his old-fashioned ways. The Godfather’s role in the family enterprise is described by his name; he stands outside the next generation which will carry on and, hopefully, angle the family into legitimate enterprises. The success of “The Godfather” as a novel was largely due to a series of unforgettable scenes. Puzo is a good storyteller, but no great shakes as a writer. The movie gives almost everything in the novel except the gynecological repair job. It doesn't miss a single killing; it opens with the wedding of Don Corleone’s daughter. Coppola has found a style and a visual look for all this material so “The Godfather” becomes something of a rarity: a really good movie squeezed from a bestseller. The decision to shoot everything in period decor (the middle and late 1940s) was crucial; if they’d tried to save money as they originally planned, by bringing everything up-to-date, the movie simply wouldn't have worked. But it’s uncannily successful as a period piece, filled with sleek, bulging limousines and postwar fedoras. Coppola and his cinematographer, Gordon Willis, also do some interesting things with the color photography. Grades: Journal assignments are given individual points. Each journal assignment is worth 10 points. 9-10 points reflect excellent content, excellent article source, excellent thorough summary, excellent thoughtful analysis and creative, interesting content. 7-8 Points reflect good work in all areas above 5-6 Points reflect that you adequately met all the requirements 1-4 Missing or poorly presented content 0 No journal posted or posted beyond due date Pages: You can create separate pages on your blog or simply do them as continuous posting. Note: You do not have to resubmit your blog after you initially create one. If you post your journal content, I will see it. Just make sure it is posted on time. Plagiarism Statement: Attach this to the end of every journal assignment. CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM 1) ( X ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class. 2) ( X ) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper. 3) ( X ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text. 4) ( X ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper. 5) ( X ) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read. 6) ( X ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography. 7) ( X ) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality. 8) ( X ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper. Name: _______Carla Baylor___________ Date: _____5/7/13_______