The Last Don (1997– )

Sprawling Mario Puzo novel about an Italian family of gangsters draws the inevitable comparison to "The Godfather", but does find its own direction. Headed by Don Domenico Clericuzio, the ... See full summary »

Stars:

Danny Aiello, Joe Mantegna, Daryl Hannah

Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 3 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Danny Aiello	...	Don Domenico Clericuzio

Storyline

Sprawling Mario Puzo novel about an Italian family of gangsters draws the inevitable comparison to "The Godfather", but does find its own direction. Headed by Don Domenico Clericuzio, the family executes a rival gang on the night of the Don's daughter's wedding, including her new husband, the son of his rival. Unfortunately the daughter gets pregnant and the repercussions of the night drift into the future. Spanning 1964-1985, the film jumps forward with the growing up of the grandson who has grown ruthless and scheming. A co-rival in the family is a nephew who has been raise to take his father's place in the family as a hitman and has established his place by assassinating a man who killed a Senator's daughter. However, he is proven to not be ruthless enough and moves into the family's casino business in Vegas. When the nephew falls in love with a beautiful actress, everything is set in place for the grandson to set up a coupe to take over the family.

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Plot Keywords:

daughter | grandson | rival | gangster | family relationships | 

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Taglines:

Power Isn't Everything... It's The Only Thing.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

11 May 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mario Puzo's The Last Don

Filming Locations:

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Konigsberg/Sanitsky Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

258 min 138 min (compact video)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The score was recorded at Paramount Studios with a 75-piece orchestra. A smaller orchestra of about 40 recorded additional music at Capitol Studios, Hollywood. The score was orchestrated conducted by Roger Bellon.

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Goofs

There is a scene which has Dante relaxing in a bathtub with his head propped against a pillow. However, Dante's head only rests against the pillow during the close ups, anytime the camera pulls away for a wide shot the pillow is resting behind Dante's head on the edge of the bathtub.

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Connections

References Braveheart (1995)

User Reviews

though not spectacular, "The Last Don" scores big

I am reviewing this movie without seeing previously "The Godfather" trilogy. I heard that they were all very good but for a made-for-TV drama, "The Last Don" is wonderful.

Don Clericuzio (Danny Aiello) is the central character of the movie. Everyone around him gravitates around him somehow. He has several sons, and when the youngest of them is killed by a rival family, he vows revenge. He sees the opportunity of getting even when his only daughter, Rose Marie, falls in love with the youngest son of the rival don. He has Rose Marie's brand new husband taken from the marital bed (with Rose Marie helplessly watching) and killed. That was enough to make her lose her mind. Aided by her craziness, she will hate her father and her brothers all her life. And I will stop here because the plot is getting too complicated and it would take me a huge amount of time to write it down.

The performances are as important as the stars. Danny Aiello is very effective in his portrayal of the Don. Jason Gedrick shows some genuine talent under that handsome face of his. But sincerely, Kirstie Alley, as the adult Rose Marie, steals the show. Though at times underused, when she is on the screen she overshadows all her co-stars. A lot of other famous people star in fantastic piece of work: Joe Mantegna (as the Don's executioner), Penelope Ann Miller (as Mantegna's wife), Daryl Hannah (as major movie star Athena Aquitane and Jason Gedrick's girlfriend), etc.

"The Last Don" is not a masterpiece, but it certainly comes very close. 8/10.

P.S.: The movie version I've seen was the complete mini-series. Four and a half hours uncut. You need a lot of patience with this film but it is worth every minute of it.