The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone
Edwin Arnaudin: As he is wont to do, Francis Ford Coppola has again recut one of his films, this time transforming The Godfather: Part III into The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone. Before we get into whether or not the edits improve on the theatrical version, what’s your experience with The Godfather: Part III?
Josh McCormack: As someone who was born after the initial release of Part III, the film was just as important a piece of my introduction to The Godfather as the first two films. Even though I was immediately aware that the film was much weaker than its predecessors, I still think it’s a visually stunning and beautifully acted gangster epic in its own right.
Edwin: Sounds like we’re in accord. The Transylvania County Library added the trilogy on VHS (I’ll explain what those are another time) in fall 2000, my junior year of high school, and my dad and I watched all three over the course of a couple of weeks. Thanks to my Entertainment Weekly reading, I knew that Part III was thought of as “lesser,” and, in some circles, a disaster, but that’s not the film I saw. It has its share of flaws and can’t help but look a little puny next to two of the greatest films of all time, but it’s still a very good film. The prospect of Coppola fixing those shortcomings, however, is tantalizing — do you feel he’s indeed made a better film with Coda?
Josh McCormack: It’s a difficult question to answer after having just seen it. I certainly think it’s a tighter film with a much more concise way of explaining its narrative. This is mostly due to the “new” opening of the film in which Michael’s relationship with the catholic church is more clearly established. However, the core mistakes that Coppola made with this final chapter still remain. So, do I believe Coda will be able to change the mind of those who have vehemently hated Part III for three decades now? Probably not. But that doesn’t make this venture any less engaging.
Edwin: Coda's opening certainly cuts to the chase, but at the expense of the church-set scene that’s a nice nod to the baptism sequence from The Godfather. The original version also establishes the guilt Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) feels over his part in Fredo’s death in Part II, and — since we know something fishy is going on for him to receive such a high honor — sufficiently suggests his deep ties to The Vatican.
Furthermore, the already skimpy role of journalist Grace Hamilton (Bridget Fonda) is reduced to the point that she comes off as a pure gold-digger rather than merely a, er, motivated reporter. And a cut scene between Michael and his daughter Mary (Sofia Coppola) in which she doubts the legitimacy of the Vito Corleone Foundation and expresses a desire to grow closer to her father minimizes their special bond, in turn lessening the emotional impact of her storyline. I wasn’t expecting any of those parts to disappear. Are they among what you consider Part III's core mistakes?
Josh: Not really, but — perhaps with the exception of the beautifully shot opening church scene — I didn’t really miss any of those moments. I especially don’t agree that the shortening of that particular scene with Michael and Mary somehow lessens the impact of Mary’s eventual fate, given the fact that Coppola still keeps so many of her sequences intact (sadly, even the endless dough rolling scene). I will say that some of the editing is extremely awkward, namely a couple of stretches that are split up and rearranged in an order that really baffled me, especially as someone who’s watched the original cut of this movie so many times.
However, what really worked for me here, and what might possibly make Coda the definitive version of this film, is how Coppola omits one of the unintentionally laughable final shots in film history and gives the ending a much more understated poignancy. How’d you feel about the new ending?
Edwin: If you’re going to call a film The Death of Michael Corleone, you damn well better show Michael Corleone die. Instead, Coppola fades to black, omitting Michael slumping and falling from his chair to the ground, startling a pair of puppies. The guy loves to tinker with his films, but with Coda’s ending, it’s as if Coppola is suggesting Michael is still alive. Maybe we’ll see him link up with Michael Douglas, Morgan Freeman, and Alan Arkin for some geriatric shenanigans!
Josh: Seeing the withered, old version of this once powerful character (still wearing those unfortunate elderly prosthetics) sitting alone while Carmine Coppola’s beautiful and heartbreaking score plays in the background should be enough for viewers to put two and two together that Michael is on his last legs. And we do see the death of Michael Corleone — it’s the death of Mary on the opera house steps.
In my opinion — and what I genuinely believe Coppola was trying to get across in this new finale — the death of Michael is the loss of his children. Michael continually commits and rationalizes his violent actions throughout the three films because he will do anything to protect his family. It’s his driving force for practically every action throughout this whole saga, and the moment it catches up to him, killing his daughter, that’s the end. He now sits alone, withering away, with no one there for him. And to end the film with a callback to a great line that his sister Connie (Talia Shire) said in The Godfather: Part II is a much more powerful way to bring this epic to a close than seeing Pacino comically collapse in a wide shot — but I will admit I would be first in line for that geriatric team-up movie you teased.
Edwin: Maybe Godfather 4: What Stays in Vegas is the spark Coppola needs to return to filmmaking! But seriously, it’s a weird new ending — especially paired with Connie's quote, all of which makes it more awkward than the clear-cut original, which has never made me roll my eyes. Reframing Michael’s death as a metaphorical/spiritual one is noble, but I think Coppola is so far removed from the director he once was that he struggles in conveying that new “definitive" interpretation.
Regardless, we’re dancing around the true weakness of Godfather III: Sofia Coppola. With all the fiddling her father is willing to undertake for the sake of improving his films, it’s a wonder that he didn’t bring her in to re-record her horrendous line readings. Even 30 years later with a slightly different intonation, there’s no way that what she’d add today could be worse than her notorious whining.
Josh: I don’t necessarily think the true weakness of Part III is Sofia as much as it is the very concept of Michael suddenly seeking redemption at the start, but nevertheless she is woefully miscast and her lack of skill is probably one of the most common criticisms among the film’s detractors. However, I think she has a presence in certain sequences, and she’s skilled at showing emotion without words. A lot of the longing glances she shares with Andy Garcia’s Vincent (who I think is absolutely fantastic) in the film’s final moments are especially striking. But once they start giving her dialogue, it’s a completely different story. Also, as I alluded to earlier, the romance between her and Vincent is completely awkward and chemistry-free for most of the film.
It’s a shame, though, because whenever I see her performance, I don’t necessarily see an awful actress as much as I see a young woman who feels uncomfortable to be playing in her father’s project alongside some of the greatest actors of a generation. I do kind of respect the conviction of Coppola to keep most of her sequences in this cut, seeing how much critics and fans were downright cruel to his daughter upon the film’s release. Either way, I’m happy she was able to become a good filmmaker in her own right, despite all the backlash.
Edwin: I agree that she’s a gifted physical actor, but every time she speaks, I want to cover my ears. It's only appropriate that she’s gone on to make films that are visually impressive, yet frequently problematic in the writing/dialogue/acting departments. We’re also in accord on Garcia, and it was wonderful seeing another great performance by Pacino from the years before he stopped reading scripts and leaned into hamminess, especially after his strong 2019 with The Irishman and Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood. But my favorite aspect of Coda is American Zoetrope's beautiful restoration. After revisiting my original Godfather DVD Collection copy of Godfather III, I was entranced by how lovely this new version looks.
Josh: I agree. The transfer is so gorgeous, and I was lucky enough to watch this with a surround sound system and it was really immersive. While we both slightly disagree on the merits of Coda, I think we can both agree that it’s exciting to see audiences and critics giving this finale a well-deserved second look.
Rated R. Available on Blu-ray and to rent via Amazon Video, iTunes, and other streaming services
(Photos: Paramount Pictures)
