0ur opinion:

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THE G0DFATHER: Popularly viewed as one of the best American films ever made, the multi-generational crime saga The Godfather (1972) is a touchstone of cinema: one of the most widely imitated, quoted, and lampooned movies of all time. Marlon Brando and Al Pacino star as Vito Corleone and his youngest son, Michael, respectively. lt is the late 1940s in New York and Corleone is, in the parlance of organized crime, a 'godfather' or 'don,' the head of a Mafia family. Michael, a free thinker who defied his father by enlisting in the Marines to fight in World War ll, has returned a captain and a war hero. Having long ago rejected the family business, Michael shows up at the wedding of his sister, Connie (Talia Shire), with his non-ltalian girlfriend, Kay (Diane Keaton), who learns for the first time about the family 'business.' A few months later at Christmas time, the don barely survives being shot by gunmen in the employ of a drug-trafficking rival whose request for aid from the Corleones' political connections was rejected. After saving his father from a second assassination attempt, Michael persuades his hotheaded eldest brother, Sonny (James Caan), and family advisors Tom Hagen (Robert Duvall) and Sal Tessio (Abe Vigoda) that he should be the one to exact revenge on the men responsible. After murdering a corrupt police captain and the drug trafficker, Michael hides out in Sicily while a gang war erupts at home. Falling in love with a local girl, Michael marries her, but she is later slain by Corleone enemies in an attempt on Michael's life. Sonny is also butchered, having been betrayed by Connie's husband. As Michael returns home and convinces Kay to marry him, his father recovers and makes peace with his rivals, realizing that another powerful don was pulling the strings behind the narcotics endeavor that began the gang warfare. 0nce Michael has been groomed as the new don, he leads the family to a new era of prosperity, then launches a campaign of murderous revenge against those who once tried to wipe out the Corleones, consolidating his family's power and completing his own moral downfall. Nominated for 11 Academy Awards and winning for Best Picture, Best Actor (Marlon Brando), and Best Adapted Screenplay, The Godfather was followed by a pair of sequels.

THE G0DFATHER PART ll: This brilliant companion piece to the original The Godfather continues the saga of two generations of successive power within the Corleone family. Coppola tells two stories in Part ll: the roots and rise of a young Don Vito, played with uncanny ability by Robert De Niro, and the ascension of Michael (Al Pacino) as the new Don. Reassembling many of the talents who helped make The Godfather, Coppola has produced a movie of staggering magnitude and vision, and undeniably the best sequel ever made. Robert De Niro won an 0scar®; the film received six Academy Awards, including Best Picture of 1974.

THE G0DFATHER PART lll: 0ne of the greatest sagas in movie history continues! ln this third film in the epic Corleone trilogy, Al Pacino reprises the role of powerful family leader Michael Corleone. Now in his 60's, Michael is dominated by two passions: freeing his family from crime and finding a suitable successor. That successor could be fiery Vincent (Andy Garcia)... but he may also be the spark that turns Michael's hope of business legitimacy into an inferno of mob violence. Francis Ford Coppola directs Pacino, Garcia, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire, Eli Wallach, Sofia Coppola, Joe Montegna and others in this exciting, long-awaited film that masterfully explores the themes of power, tradition, revenge and love. Seven Academy Award® nominations, including Best Picture.

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0n the DVD People used to say this was Frank Sinatra's world, and the rest of us just lived in it. After watching the multiple special features in the box set The Godfather - Coppola Restoration, one might conclude it's actually time for a cultural and historical revision: This is the Corleone family's world. The rest of us better tread lightly. Actually, the point of the half-dozen or so features crammed onto a disc accompanying the beautifully restored The Godfather, The Godfather ll and The Godfather lll, is that The Godfather movies have penetrated popular culture in such a deep and meaningful way that they are second-nature to everything. David Chase, creator of and writer on The Sopranos, for example, describes in the featurette 'Godfather World' that his hit HB0 series was intended to be the story of the first generation of mobsters actually influenced by Francis Ford Coppola's hit trilogy. Joe Mantegna calls the three films 'the ltalian Star Wars.' (Mantegna co-stars in The Godfather lll.) Alec Baldwin says no matter what one is doing, one is compelled to stop and watch the films if they're on television. Richard Belzer calls the films 'a religion.' And so on. A number of people similarly testify in 'Godfather World' to the importance and ubiquitousness of The Godfather and its sequels in American life. There's no point in arguing, so its best to move on to the other featurettes, including 'The Masterpiece That Almost Wasn't,' reviewing in detail much of what has been said about Paramount's mistreatment of Coppola, about casting fights (Steve McQueen as Michael?), about the studio's assumption they were getting a quick-and-dirty B-movie, and about producer Robert Evans' determination to keep his choice of director and unlikely actors under his wing. Fresh information within the special features, however, begins with '… When the Shooting Stopped,' a fine study of post-production on The Godfather, with several surprising and fascinating facts. Among emerging details is an explanation of why Michael Corleone's scream toward the end of The Godfather lll is silenced out. (Hint: it was meant to be the inverse of a sound effect in the first movie.) 'Emulsional Rescue: Revealing The Godfather' talks about the painstaking work of restoring the first two films, beginning with a phone call from Coppola to Steven Spielberg (after the latter's DreamWorks studio became part of the Viacom family) asking if he'd request money from Paramount for restoration work. 'The Godfather 0n the Red Carpet is a negligible series of fawning statements about the movie from hot young actors, while 'Four Short Films' are brief and enjoyable takes on different aspects of The Godfather's impact on modern living. --Tom Keogh



Stills from The Godfather - The Coppola Restoration Giftset (Click for larger image)

























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Buyer's feedback: - * My favorite movies never looked better ...
I love these movies first off or atleast one and two. I have the DVD box and now the Blu-ray. I can definetly tell a difference. Is it worth buying again? That is debatable but since I love these movies and bought them with a gift certificate and there is a rebate, I am completely satisfied.

If you don't own these movies yet, get the Blu-ray ASAP. If you do own these on DVD then you may want to wait and see if the price comes down or ask for it as a holiday gift.

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Buyer's feedback: - Great movie. Best restoration yet.
For those looking for an improvement over the DVD and VHS releases, Blu-Ray is here! With the awesome quality of most blu-ray movies being released today, it is easy to get spoiled. Older films rarely look truly hi-definition when compared to current releases. However, when it is a truly great film like this, I do not mind spending money on yet another version of the same movie, provided it is significantly better than the previous versions. All too often this is not the case. Here the studio has done an exemplary job of restoring the original film. I never saw it in the theater, but I cannot imagine it looked any better at my neighborhood theaters back then. This film will always deserve 5 stars as a movie. However, this 5-star review is for the restoration!

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Buyer's feedback: - * CJ ...
The Godfather Series (I-III) is without doubt the greatest trilogy to be placed on film. Add a bonus disc that includes interviews, behind the scenes footage, deleted scenes and much more and you have a collectors edition. Put it on Blu-Ray and you have a fantastic experience. On a winters weekend in Michigan, my wife and I watched the entire set and it was like watching for the films for first time. Many scenes were filmed in dark settings (to set mood), however VHS, Laserdisc and even standard DVD did not do justice to the experience. The Blu-Ray version however blew me away. No need to review the movies unless you have just crawled out from under a rock, however if you want to know if the investment is worth the price? It is for us...

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Buyer's feedback: - Best Yet
As a fan of the Godfather series, I was very pleased with the Blue Ray Trillogy. All I can say is GREAT.

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Buyer's feedback: - * 4 1/2 Stars for Blu-ray ...
I am personally not a fan of The Godfather Part III, I don't even regard it as part of the trilogy. This review is only for Parts I-II.

These films have been restored to what Paramount claims to be "the best they'll ever look." I agree with them about 95% on this statement. Here's why:

On both films (especially Part I), there are a few instances of white specks and minor print defects. Also, the colors arent 100% consistent all of the time. I agree that color problems can't be helped, it's probably due to problems with the original source.

However, with films like Casablanca (from 1942) looking spotless, I can't help but think that these scratches and white specks could have been eliminated entirely. They certainly were for about 95% of the film.

This is my only qualm however, and it is still a minor one compared to the rest of this set's beneficial aspects. The picture and sound, save for white specks, are pretty much perfect (or as perfect as they will ever be). The special features are EXCELLENT, and kudos to Paramount for porting over all the extras from the 2001 DVD release. It seems that some of these features could have even been remastered for this release!

I own the Blu-ray version of the set. I have a friend that doesn't have Blu-ray who bought the standard DVD set. After doing a comparison, I have come to the conclusion that the Blu-ray set is vastly superior to the new DVD set. I HIGHLY RECCOMMEND buying this set!