The Godfather: Part II (1974)

Director:

Francis Ford Coppola

Writers:

Francis Ford Coppola (screenplay) &
Mario Puzo (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

20 December 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Plot:

The early life and career of Vito Corleone in 1920s New York is portrayed while his son, Michael, expands and tightens his grip on his crime syndicate stretching from Lake Tahoe, Nevada to pre-revolution 1958 Cuba.

Plot Keywords:

New York | Cuba | 1950s | Lake Tahoe Nevada | Business

Awards:

Won 6 Oscars. Another 11 wins & 16 nominations

Cast

Al Pacino	...	Michael
Robert Duvall	...	Tom Hagen
Diane Keaton	...	Kay
Robert De Niro	...	Vito Corleone (as Robert DeNiro)
John Cazale	...	Fredo Corleone
Talia Shire	...	Connie Corleone
Lee Strasberg	...	Hyman Roth
Michael V. Gazzo	...	Frankie Pentangeli
G.D. Spradlin	...	Senator Pat Geary
Richard Bright	...	Al Neri
Gastone Moschin	...	Fanucci (as Gaston Moschin)
Tom Rosqui	...	Rocco Lampone
Bruno Kirby	...	Young Clemenza (as B. Kirby Jr.)
Frank Sivero	...	Genco
Francesca De Sapio	...	Young Mama Corleone (as Francesca de Sapio)
Morgana King	...	Mama Corleone
Marianna Hill	...	Deanna Corleone (as Mariana Hill)
Leopoldo Trieste	...	Signor Roberto
Dominic Chianese	...	Johnny Ola
Amerigo Tot	...	Michael's Bodyguard
Troy Donahue	...	Merle Johnson
John Aprea	...	Young Tessio
Joe Spinell	...	Willi Cicci
James Caan	...	Sonny Corleone
Abe Vigoda	...	Tessio
Tere Livrano	...	Theresa Hagen
Gianni Russo	...	Carlo
Maria Carta	...	Vito's Mother
Oreste Baldini	...	Vito Andolini as a Boy
Giuseppe Sillato	...	Don Francesco
Mario Cotone	...	Don Tommasino
James Gounaris	...	Anthony Corleone
Fay Spain	...	Mrs. Marcia Roth
Harry Dean Stanton	...	F.B.I. Man #1
James Murdock	...	F.B.I. Man #2 (as David Baker)
Carmine Caridi	...	Carmine Rosato
Danny Aiello	...	Tony Rosato
Carmine Foresta	...	Policeman
Nick Discenza	...	Bartender
Joseph Medeglia	...	Father Carmelo (as Father Joseph Medeglia)
William Bowers	...	Senate Committee Chairman
Joseph Della Sorte	...	Michael's Buttonman #1 (as Joe Della Sorte)
Carmen Argenziano	...	Michael's Buttonman #2
Joe Lo Grippo	...	Michael's Buttonman #3
Ezio Flagello	...	Impressario
Livio Giorgi	...	Tenor in 'Senza Mamma'
Kathleen Beller	...	Girl in 'Senza Mamma' (as Kathy Beller)
Saveria Mazzola	...	Signora Colombo
Tito Alba	...	Cuban President
Johnny Naranjo	...	Cuban Translator
Elda Maida	...	Pentangeli's Wife
Salvatore Po	...	Pentangeli's Brother
Ignazio Pappalardo	...	Mosca
Andrea Maugeri	...	Strollo
Peter LaCorte	...	Signor Abbandando
Vincent Coppola	...	Street Vendor
Peter Donat	...	Questadt
Tom Dahlgren	...	Fred Corngold
Paul B. Brown	...	Senator Ream
Phil Feldman	...	Senator #1
Roger Corman	...	Senator #2
Ivonne Coll	...	Yolanda (as Yvonne Coll)
Joe De Nicola	...	Attendant at Brothel (as J.D. Nicols)
Edward Van Sickle	...	Ellis Island Doctor
Gabriella Belloni	...	Ellis Island Nurse (as Gabria Belloni)
Richard Watson	...	Custom Official
Venancia Grangerard	...	Cuban Nurse
Erica Yohn	...	Governess
Teresa Tirelli	...	Midwife (as Theresa Tirelli)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Italia Coppola	...	Mama Corleone's Body (uncredited)
Roman Coppola	...	Sonny Corleone as a Boy (uncredited)
Sofia Coppola	...	Child on Ship (uncredited)
Julie Gregg	...	Sandra Corleone (uncredited)
Larry Guardino	...	Vito's Uncle (uncredited)
Ken Koc	...	Waiter #1 (uncredited)
Shô Kosugi	...	Passerby in Coat with Cap Pulled Down (uncredited)
Gary Kurtz	...	Photographer in Court (uncredited)
Alan Lee	...	Klingman - Casino Owner (uncredited)
Laura Lyons	...	(uncredited)
Connie Mason	...	Extra (uncredited)
Richard Matheson	...	Senator #3 (uncredited)
John Megna	...	Young Hyman Roth (uncredited)
Frank Pesce	...	Extra (uncredited)
Victor Pujols	...	Cuban Guerilla with Grenade (uncredited)
Jay Rasumny	...	Street Vendor (uncredited)
Hank Robinson	...	Man Guarding Hyman Roth (uncredited)
Carmelo Russo	...	Man Who Greets Vito (uncredited)
Tony Sirico	...	Extra (uncredited) (unconfirmed)
Filomena Spagnuolo	...	Extra in Little Italy (uncredited)
Julian Voloshin	...	Sam Roth (uncredited)

Directed by
Francis Ford Coppola

Writing credits
Francis Ford Coppola		(screenplay) &
Mario Puzo		(screenplay)
Mario Puzo		(novel "The Godfather")

Produced by
Francis Ford Coppola	....	producer
Gray Frederickson	....	co-producer
Fred Roos	....	co-producer
Mona Skager	....	associate producer
Robert Evans	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Nino Rota

Cinematography by
Gordon Willis		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Barry Malkin
Richard Marks
Peter Zinner

Casting by
Jane Feinberg
Mike Fenton		(as Michael Fenton)
Vic Ramos

Production Design by
Dean Tavoularis

Art Direction by
Angelo P. Graham		(as Angelo Graham)
John Dapper		(uncredited)

Set Decoration by
George R. Nelson

Costume Design by
Theadora Van Runkle

Makeup Department
Naomi Cavin	....	hair stylist
Charles H. Schram	....	makeup artist (as Charles Schram)
Dick Smith	....	makeup artist
Edie Lindon	....	hair stylist (uncredited)
Dedee Petty	....	hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
Mario Cotone	....	unit manager: sicilian unit
Valerio De Paolis	....	production supervisor: sicilian unit (as Valerio DePaolis)
Michael S. Glick	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Newt Arnold	....	assistant director (as Newton Arnold)
Burt Bluestein	....	second assistant director
Tony Brandt	....	assistant director: sicilian unit
Alan Hopkins	....	second assistant director
Michael Kusley	....	second assistant director (as Mike Kusley)
Henry J. Lange Jr.	....	second assistant director
Charles Myers	....	second assistant director (as Chuck Myers)

Art Department
Joe Chevalier	....	assistant set decorator: sicilian unit
Douglas E. Madison	....	properties (as Doug Madison)
V.R. Bud Shelton	....	properties (as V. Bud Shelton)
Eugene Acker	....	painter (uncredited)
Matty Azzarone	....	leadman (uncredited)
Nick Caparelli	....	props (uncredited)
Gerard Dery	....	greensman gang boss (uncredited)
Gary Fettis	....	carpenter (uncredited)
Jerry Graham	....	property master (uncredited)
Robert Hart	....	carpenter (uncredited)
Bob Jepsen	....	drapery foreman (uncredited)
Gary F. Kieldrup	....	assistant property master (uncredited)
John LaSandra	....	construction coordinator (uncredited)
Claude F. Powell	....	construction gang boss (uncredited)

Sound Department
Howard Beals	....	sound effects editor
Mark Berger	....	sound montage associate
Nathan Boxer	....	production recordist
James Fritch	....	sound effects editor (as Jim Fritch)
Pat Jackson	....	sound montage associate
James J. Klinger	....	sound effects editor (as Jim Klinger)
Walter Murch	....	sound montage
Walter Murch	....	sound re-recordist
Charles M. Wilborn	....	production recordist (as Chuck Wilborn)
Pat Mitchell	....	boom operator (uncredited)
James Perdue	....	playback sound (uncredited)
Maurice Schell	....	adr voice casting (uncredited)
Ben Sobin	....	playback sound (uncredited)
Mel Zelniker	....	adr recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
A.D. Flowers	....	special effects
Joe Lombardi	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Kevin Chaja	....	data management (2007 restoration)
Chris Clausing	....	MTI operator: digital image clean up (2007 restoration)
Padraic Culham	....	compositor (2007 restoration)
Daphne Dentz	....	senior digital intermediate producer (2007 restoration)
Karina Desin	....	data management (2007 restoration)
Joe Dubs	....	MTI operator: digital image clean up (2007 restoration)
Lloyd Kaplowitz	....	MTI operator: digital image clean up (2007 restoration)
Valerie McMahon	....	MTI operator: digital image clean up (2007 restoration)
Mike Moreno	....	MTI operator: digital image clean up (2007 restoration)
Edgar Orlino	....	MTI operator: digital image clean up (2007 restoration)
Cathy Quiroz	....	MTI operator: digital image clean up (2007 restoration)
Bill Roper	....	film recordist (2007 restoration)

Stunts
Steven Burnett	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
William Gereghty	....	camera assistant (as Bill Gereghty)
Ralph Gerling	....	camera operator
George Holmes	....	gaffer
Bob Rose	....	key grip
Pat Campea Sr.	....	dolly grip (uncredited)
Johnie Carroll	....	grip (uncredited)
Bob Edessa	....	camera assistant (uncredited)
Carl R. Gibson Jr.	....	best boy (uncredited)
James Glennon	....	first camera assistant (uncredited)
Lloyd Gowdy	....	electrician (uncredited)
Larry D. Howard	....	best boy (uncredited)
Larry Keys	....	electrician (uncredited)
Robert D. McBride	....	first assistant camera (uncredited)
Bruce McBroom	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Steve Pellant	....	electrician (uncredited)
Arley Waters	....	generator operator (uncredited)

Casting Department
Emy DeSica	....	casting: Sicilian unit
Maurizio Lucci	....	casting: Sicilian unit
Maurice Schell	....	adr voice casting (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Sandy Berke Jordan	....	wardrobe (as Sandra Burke)
Nancy McArdle	....	wardrobe
George Newman	....	wardrobe
Marie Osborne	....	wardrobe
Marilyn Putnam	....	wardrobe
Eric Seelig	....	wardrobe
Thomas Welsh	....	wardrobe (as Tommy Welsh)
Frances Kandelin Harrison	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
Kent James	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
Cliff Langer	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
Ray Summers	....	key wardrobe (uncredited)

Editorial Department
George Berndt	....	assistant editor
Lisa Fruchtman	....	assistant editor
Christopher Gillaspie	....	scan manager (2007 restoration) (as Chris Gillaspie)
Bobbe Kurtz	....	assistant editor
Kathleen Largay	....	digital conform (2007 restoration)
Jan Yarbrough	....	senior digital intermediate colorist (2007 restoration)
Peter Zinner	....	foreign post-production
Michael Kirchberger	....	apprentice editor (uncredited)

Music Department
George Brand	....	music editor
Carmine Coppola	....	composer: additional music
Carmine Coppola	....	conductor

Transportation Department
James D. Brubaker	....	transportation captain (uncredited)
Chris Haynes	....	driver (uncredited)
Hugh Kelly	....	driver (uncredited)

Other crew
B.J. Bjorkman	....	script supervisor (as B.J. Bachman)
Serena Canevari	....	script supervisor: sicilian unit
Randy Carter	....	location assistant
Ronald Colby	....	location supervisor: New York (as Ron Colby)
Jack English	....	location coordinator
Deborah Fine	....	researcher
Wayne Fitzgerald	....	title
John Franco	....	script supervisor
Sonya Friedman	....	subtitler
Edward Guthmann	....	advisor: senate hearings (as Ed Guthman)
Mona Houghton	....	location assistant
Melissa Mathison	....	location assistant
Tammy Newell	....	coordinator: Miami
Bruno Perria	....	production assistant: sicilian unit
Eileen Peterson	....	unit publicist
Romano Pianti	....	sicilian translator
Nanette Siegert	....	production secretary
Carl Skelton	....	location auditor
Joe Catalfo	....	first aid (uncredited)
Shirley Deckert	....	welfare worker (uncredited)
Stephen A. Glanzrock	....	production assistant: New York (uncredited)
Eileen Peterson	....	publicist (uncredited)
Jesse Wayne	....	location assistant (uncredited)

Thanks
James Caan	....	the producers would like to thank: for his special participation in this film
Joe Caracappa	....	thanks: Pro-Tek Media Preservation Services, a Kodak company, negative preparation (2007 restoration)
Jeff Cava	....	thanks: for Paramount Pictures (2007 restoration)
Martin Cohen	....	thanks: for Paramount Pictures (2007 restoration)
Francis Ford Coppola	....	special thanks (2007 restoration)
Allen Daviau	....	thanks (2007 restoration)
Brian Drischell	....	thanks: The Academy Film Archive (2007 restoration)
Jessi Jones	....	thanks: The Academy Film Archive (2007 restoration)
Liana Kroll	....	thanks: Pro-Tek Media Preservation Services, a Kodak company, negative preparation (2007 restoration)
Joanne Lawson	....	thanks: for the Film Preserve (2007 restoration)
Scott MacQueen	....	thanks: Pro-Tek Media Preservation Services, a Kodak company, negative preparation (2007 restoration)
James T. Mockoski	....	thanks: for American Zoetrope (2007 restoration) (as James Mockoski archivist)
Heather Olson	....	thanks: The Academy Film Archive (2007 restoration)
Michael Pogorzelski	....	thanks: The Academy Film Archive (2007 restoration)
Robert Raring	....	thanks: Technicolor liaison (2007 restoration) (as Bob Raring)
Ben Rosenblatt	....	thanks: for Paramount Pictures (2007 restoration)
Gordon Willis	....	special thanks (2007 restoration)

Production Companies

• Paramount Pictures (as A Paramount Picture)
• The Coppola Company (as A Coppola Company Production)

Distributors

• Paramount Pictures (1974) (USA) (theatrical) (as Paramount) (A Gulf+Western Company)
• Cinéma International Corporation (CIC) (1974) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Cinema International Corporation (CIC) (1974) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1977) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Paramount Home Entertainment (1992) (Netherlands) (VHS) (rental)
• Pioneer (1993) (Germany) (video) (laserdisc)
• Paramount Home Video (1997) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Paramount Home Video (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Paramount Home Entertainment (1999) (Netherlands) (VHS) (retail)
• Paramount Home Entertainment (2001) (Netherlands) (DVD) (rental)
• Paramount Home Video (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Paramount Home Entertainment (2002) (Germany) (DVD)
• Paramount Home Entertainment (2004) (Japan) (DVD)
• Paramount Home Entertainment (2004) (Netherlands) (DVD) (retail)
• Paramount Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Paramount Home Entertainment (2006) (Japan) (DVD)
• Paramount Home Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Award Winning Collection)
• Cinema International Corporation (CIC) (1975) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Eye Film Instituut (2012) (Netherlands) (theatrical) (digitally restored version)
• Argentina Video Home (Argentina) (DVD)
• Argentina Video Home (Argentina) (VHS)
• CIC Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• CIC-Taft Home Video (Australia) (VHS)
• Esselte Video (1980s) (Finland) (VHS)
• Home Video Hellas (HVH) (1989) (Greece) (VHS)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1987) (Finland) (TV)
• Nelonen (1998) (2003) (2004) (2008) (2009) (Finland) (TV)
• Paramount Filmes do Brasil (Brazil) (DVD)
• Paramount Home Entertainment Finland (2001) (2004) (2006) (2008) (Finland) (DVD)
• Prem'er Video Fil'm (Russia) (VHS)

Other Companies

• ARRI  recorded on: Arri Film Recorders (2007 restoration)
• American Zoetrope  production facilities furnished through (as American Zoetrope San Francisco)
• Dominican Republic, The  Paramount Pictures gratefully acknowledges the cooperation of, for their help in filming portions of this motion picture (as the people of the Dominican Republic)
• Motion Picture Imaging  digital restoration services by (2007 restoration)
• Pro-Tek Media Preservation Services  thanks: negative preparation (as Pro-Tek Preservation Services, a Kodak company) (2007 restoration)

Also Known As:

"Mario Puzo's The Godfather: Part II" - UK (complete title), USA (complete title)
"Godfather Part II" - Japan (English title)

Runtime:

200 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian | Spanish | Latin | Sicilian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:18 | Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-18 (uncut) (1975) | Finland:K-18 (heavily cut) (1982) | France:-12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:18 | Israel:PG | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:18 | Peru:18 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 (video rating) (1987) (1996) (1997) (2001) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:R (PCA #24038) | West Germany:16 | Poland:15 | Portugal:M/16 | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Iceland:16 | Canada:14A | Brazil:14 | Philippines:R-18 | New Zealand:PG | UK:15 (video re-rating: restored version 2007) (2008) | Japan:PG12 (2011) | Finland:K-16 (uncut) (1988) | Italy:VM14 | UK:18 (re-release: re-rating) (1996) | UK:18 (tv rating)

Filming Locations:

6th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

A test screening of the film garnered negative reactions from the audience. They found cutting back and forth between Michael and young Vito confusing and bothersome. Francis Ford Coppola and his editors decided to decrease the frequency of the transitions in order to make the parallel stories easier to follow.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In the scene where young Vito arrives in New York and the Statue of Liberty is shown, the patina on the statue is clearly bright green. The patina on Lady Liberty would not have been completely developed in 1901. In 1900, the patina was covering most of the statue, starting with the torch, arm, head and torso, but not the entire length of the statue's dress as shown in the film. It should have been covered in a patchy patina from the waste down, with a primarily brown color.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Title Card:The godfather was born Vito Andolini, in the town of Corleone in Sicily. In 1901 his father was murdered for an insult to the local Mafia chieftain. His older brother Paolo swore revenge and disappeared into the hills, leaving Vito, the only male heir, to stand with his mother at the funeral. He was nine years old.
[gunshots and screams]
Woman:[subtitled from Italian] They've killed the boy! They've killed young Paolo! They've killed your son Paolo!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Men Behaving Badly: It's Good to Be Dead (#1.21)" (1997)

Soundtrack:

Napule Ve Salute

Excellent, but could be in the dictionary under "sprawl"

Series note: It is almost unthinkable to watch this film without having seen The Godfather (1972) first. This is a direct continuation of that story.

The good news is that The Godfather Part II has many amazing qualities, including fantastic performances from a superb cast, sublime, unprecedented visuals that no one else has been able to capture since, and very engaging stories. The bad news is that this should have easily been a 10, but overall, it is so sprawling and unfocused that I can't possibly give it more than a 9, which it only earns because the assets transcend what's basically a mess overall. Because it should have been a 10, and most other reviews will tell you about the positive points at length, I may pick on more things in my review than you would think I would for a 9, but rest assured that even with the flaws, The Godfather Part II is still essential viewing.

Director/co-writer Francis Ford Coppola cleverly begins the film with parallels to The Godfather. We see Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) "in the role" of his father, Vito (Marlon Brando), from the first film, accepting prostrating guests while a party is going on outside. Like the first film, the party consumes a lot of time while we get to know some of the principal characters. Perhaps during this segment, perhaps a bit after, we realize that maybe the beginning wasn't so clever after all, because the structure of The Godfather Part II parallels The Godfather from a broad perspective, as if Coppola and co-writer Mario Puzo used the first film as something of a template to create this one.

After the party is over, there is an attempted hit on Michael, and we quickly learn that not everything is rosy in the Corleone's mafia world. Michael believes that someone on the "inside" was involved with the hit. This launches a complicated sequence of events that has Michael, who is now living in Nevada, traveling to Miami, Cuba, New York, and so on. He accuses different people of involvement in the attempted hit depending on whom he is talking to. This may have all been part of a grand scheme to set up the responsible parties, but one of the flaws of the film is that Coppola doesn't convey Michael's underlying thoughts about this very well, not even later, and not through his actions. Rather than feeling like a clever set-up, it starts to feel like slightly muddled writing.

During the middle section of the film, which goes on for hours, we also have a hint of a problem that plagued The Godfather--a bloated cast. There are bit too many characters who aren't well enough presented or explained. You may need to keep a scorecard.

Coppola and Puzo also treat us to many extended "flashback" segments, and I mean way back, to Vito as a boy and young man, played by Robert De Niro. For my money, these were the best scenes of the film, although maybe that's a bit of my bias creeping in, as I'm a huge De Niro fan.

But let's talk about the main plague of the film--sprawl. This is maybe first evident in the flashbacks. As good as they are, they go on far too long, and happen far too frequently, to sustain the momentum of either the Michael story or the Vito-as-a-youngster story. It begins to feel like we're toggling back and forth between two films, which is the track that should have been taken. The prequel, at least, would have been a solid 10.

There's also a lot of sprawl in the Michael Corleone segments. Coppola appears to have been suffering from what I'd now call "J.K. Rowling Syndrome". That happens when an artist becomes successful enough that they can fire or ignore their editor(s). Instead of taking good advice about where to trim fat, the artist decides to just leave much of it in, and they now have the clout to override any dissenting and more sensible opinions. The Michael Corleone story has a lot of fat, including much of the Cuba material (for example, sitting around the table with the President, laboriously passing around a solid gold telephone), the Senate hearings (which go on far too long to make and provide the dramatic points), and so on.

The film begins to feel more like a couple seasons of a television show that Coppola tried to cram into a 3 and a half hour film, or worse, a collection of deleted scenes. The scenes, except for the fat that needed to be trimmed, are excellent in isolation. But by the time the climax rolls around, the whole has more of an arbitrary feeling--this is especially clear in the dénouement, which seems to just end.

I've barely left myself room to talk about the good points. The first one, which most people mention, is the acting. There isn't a bad performance in the film, but Pacino, De Niro, and some relatively minor characters, like those played by Diane Keaton, Talia Shire and John Cazale, really stand out.

The second outstanding point, similar to the first film, is the beautiful visuals. Although all of the cinematography and production design is great, what really impressed me were some of the darkly lit scenes. Characters and features of sets emerge from pitch-blackness, and everything is rich, deep shades of burgundy, brown, and orange. Amazingly, nothing gets lost in these scenes. It must be incredibly difficult to achieve without making the shots too dark, because I can't remember another film since that has been able to capture the same look. The flashback scenes are also in similar, but lighter, colors, creating an appropriate sepia-tone feel.

Although the broad perspective problems are unfortunate, a closer focus on most segments of the film provides exemplary artistry. Given that, and the film's importance culturally, The Godfather Part II is a must-see.