Why it’s famous: Witty and ironic screenplay, an award-winning soundtrack, timeless themes, sharp cinematography, and Marlon Brando with cotton shoved in his jaw, talking with a raspy yet undeniably badass voice.
Famous lines: Don Corleone: “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse.”Peter Clemenza: “Leave the gun. Take the cannoli.”
Michael Corleone: “Only don’t tell me you’re innocent. Because it insults my intelligence and makes me very angry.”
Why you haven’t seen it: You’ve heard so many badly placed references and seen so many cliché black and white puppeteer T-shirts on high school A.V. guys, you feel like you’ve pretty much seen it.
Why it might be tough to get through: Beautifully shot, brilliantly written, and for mafia-movie fanatics, unavoidably epic, the action is delivered in short bursts between somewhat complex dialogue. It remains relatively long and dialogue-heavy. If the inner workings of mob politics don’t fascinate you, it might be a long 175 minutes.
Why you should see it anyway: While this movie doesn’t have brilliant CGI effects it’s still brilliantly shot, the acting is great, and the screenplay gets better every time you watch it. This one is a classic and the references will still be unavoidable 30 years from now. The themes of conflict between ethics and family and the downfall of power remain incredibly relevant today, and some analysts even see a reflection of modern-day conflicts in the mafia-war. Plus, seeing this movie makes watching the whole Montreal Mafia news story unfold all the more entertaining, as many amusing parallels may be drawn between the Corleone and Rizutto families.
Fun facts:
• The early buzz on the film was so positive that a sequel was planned before production finished.
• There are approximately 61 scenes in the film that feature food, or people eating and drinking.
