the rest of us (Johnson, 111).Due to the immense success of the original Godfather movie, the studio began pressuring Coppola into doing a sequel. He eventually agreed and took about writing the sequel that would not necessarily pick up where the last one left off, but would explore the untouched elements of its predecessor. Unfortunately, right before filming started, Marlon Brando had a falling out with the studio, and would not be reprising his role as Don Vito Corleone.There are two main plotlines in The Godfather, Part II (1974). The first is the life of young Vito Corleone, played by Robert DeNiro. The Mafia in Sicily killed Vito’s family, and he was smuggled out of the country to Ellis Island. The film abruptly switches to a party celebrating the first communion of Michael’s son. Throughout the movie, Coppola juxtaposes images of Michael with those of his father. Ultimately though, Coppola wanted the film to draw to a logical conclusion, without making it formulaic (Johnson, 151). Instead of Michael getting killed, or falling from power, he manages to attain power relatively unscathed and ends up jaded and alone as a result.The desire for revenge explains most of the Mafia murders in the both Godfather films. It explains Michael’s entrance into the business and why in Part II he feels he must shed so much blood, including the blood of his only living brother. Michael “chose to become a killer out of family loyalty. He can never go back to the time before that moment in the restaurant when he shot his father’s enemies (Johnson, 155).” Coppola tried to steer the audience to this theme. Just before the release of Part II he stated that the major plot of the story was “how two men, father and son, were…corrupted by this Sicilian waltz of vengeance (Johnson, 155).”On the other side of Coppola and Kubrick, were the comedic stylings of Woody Allen. In many ways, Allen ...
