The Godfather Part II
Short description
The Godfather Part II continues the story of the Corleone family across two timelines. In one, Michael Corleone has taken control of the family's criminal operations and looks to move into new territories, including Las Vegas, Hollywood and Cuba, while defending his position against rivals and betrayal from within. In the other, the film follows his father, Vito, from his childhood in Sicily through his arrival in New York in the early twentieth century, tracing how he built his own power base in the city.
Francis Ford Coppola directed, produced and co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, following The Godfather in his filmography. Al Pacino leads the cast as Michael, alongside Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, John Cazale and Talia Shire. Robert De Niro plays the young Vito. The production involved 112 credited cast members and 140 credited crew.
Released in December 1974, the film runs 202 minutes. Against a budget of about 13 million dollars, it took roughly 48 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds 9 out of 10 from 1.5 million votes, and on TMDB 8.6 out of 10 from more than 14,000 votes. A film critics' rating stands at 9.8 out of 10 from 129 reviews, well above the audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- The film is based on Mario Puzo's novel "The Godfather" (1969).
- Richard S. Castellano, who played Pete Clemenza in the first film, refused to appear in the second part due to disagreements with the producers. The role of the young Clemenza was played by Bruno Kirby.
- In one of the deleted scenes, included in the DVD version of the film, Vito, Jenko, and Clemenza meet in a store owned by a certain Signor Coppola. Clemenza asks Coppola to have his son Carmine play the clarinet. It is believed that the director dedicated this scene to his father, Carmine Coppola, who composed additional music for the first two "Godfather" films.
- Marlon Brando initially agreed to appear in the birthday celebration episode, but then, due to disagreements with Paramount, refused the single day of shooting that had been planned, and Coppola rewrote the script for that episode.
- Even before the first "Godfather," Coppola wanted to make a film in which he would show a father and son at the same age. He wanted to see the traits of his future son in the father, and the traits of the father in the son.
- According to Coppola's vision, Michael was supposed to kill Fredo. The novel's author and co-screenwriter, Mario Puzo, initially opposed this, but then agreed – on one condition: the murder could only happen after the death of the heroes' mother.
- 'The Godfather Part II' was the first sequel to win an Oscar for 'Best Picture'.
- According to Coppola, the second film was not conceived as a sequel in the Hollywood sense of the word. The script was presented as a second part of the novel. This influenced the production methods of the film. The same equipment used on the first "Godfather" was used during filming, although more modern technologies were available in 1974.
- James Caan agreed to play the episodic role of Sonny Corleone in the scene celebrating Vito Corleone's 50th birthday, demanding a fee equal to what he received for the entire film "The Godfather".
- At the beginning of the film, when Don Corleone's mother runs to the body of her murdered son lying on the stones, it is visible that "killed" Paolo (Don Corleone's older brother) moves his arm into a more comfortable position at the moment when Vito's mother leans over him and embraces his head.
- Producer and director Roger Corman, and writer and screenwriter Richard Matheson, can be seen in cameo roles as senators at the committee hearing.
- An early version of the script featured a storyline in which Tom Hagen developed a romance with Sunny Corleone's widow. These scenes were later cut, but Michael Corleone's line mentioning Hagen's mistress remained.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
