THE GODFATHER CODA: THE DEATH OF MICHAEL CORLEONE

[weegee2392]

Not sure I like the clean look of the trailer. Looks pretty scrubbed clean, hope it's just the Youtube bitrate and not excessive DNR. Definitely far removed from the look of the old theatrical trailer. Has a good feel though, editing wise. Doesn't tell us much about the changes, but how could it. Looking forward to seeing the new cut.

Paramount always pull stunts like that when it comes to 4K restorations they always like to get away with minor DNR whenever something doesn’t go right the OCN or if there’s bad opticals. (I kind of hate sneaky DNR implementation on HD Masters.) Also glad you like the movie, something tells me that we’re getting UHD BluRay discs for All three films plus the Coda cut of part 3 sometime around the 50th anniversary. (P.S. And with YouTube they always compress it that it destroys the quality of the image. Even the movie itself looks better than YouTube trailers.)

[weegee2392]

I noticed a few changes between the Final Directors Cut version restoration from 2008 and Coda. (I don’t think the original theatrical version was released on Home video.)
1. A new color grading but I don’t mind this one (with The exception of one flashback in the middle of the film to The Godfather Part 1), FFC must’ve thought the golden tint from the original Blu-ray did not work for this film.
2. The opening is altered a bit it starts in Rome with Michael and a cardinal in a meeting.
3. The death of Lucchesi is more Violent in nature with new foley work to accompany that.
4. Everybody knows this by now but the ending has been altered to remove flashbacks to the first two parts and Michael doesn’t physically die unlike the original 1990 theatrical version and 1991 Final Directors Cut where cuts from a flashback of Mary to other flashback then fades to elderly Michael. After Michael puts on his shades, it fades to a proverb instead.
5. Line alterations in a few scenes.
6. The 2003 Paramount logo (which plasters is the 1990 logo) opens and closes the 2008 restoration and The 2020 Paramount logo (also plasters the 1990 logo) opens and closes Coda. (The 1990 and 1997 VHS along with the 2001 DVD retained the 1990 logo)
7. Restoration credits are added and the MPPA logo is changed to the MPA logo.

[Valeyard]

I haven't watched the Godfather Part 3 for a while, so I'll to go back and watch it again.

That said, the Godfather Coda is the exact same movie. Nothing has really changed significantly at all. Moving the cardinal meeting to the start doesn't really achieve anything, and the one half-significant change is that at the end Michael doesn't literally slump over and die in the same was as his father Vito.

All the problems with the original still persist, most notably the complete absence of Tom Hagen, and Michael's quest for redemption which I do not believe the audience feels. He gets what he deserves. I've never agreed with the criticisms against Sofia Coppola - she showed a raw emotional performance that felt more real at times.

Aside from the ending being genuinely improved, I'm not sure what else was accomplished in this new edit? It just seems like Coppola is obsessed with editing his movies over, and over again probably to the inspiration of Lucas...

[Turisu]

I also felt that it was exactly the same movie. Nothing of any substance has changed.

Godfather III has been all but completely dismissed in the years since its release. I think this new version is just Coppola's way of getting everybody to re-watch (and hopefully re-appraise) the movie.

[weegee2392]

I haven't watched the Godfather Part 3 for a while, so I'll to go back and watch it again.

That said, the Godfather Coda is the exact same movie. Nothing has really changed significantly at all. Moving the cardinal meeting to the start doesn't really achieve anything, and the one half-significant change is that at the end Michael doesn't literally slump over and die in the same was as his father Vito.

All the problems with the original still persist, most notably the complete absence of Tom Hagen, and Michael's quest for redemption which I do not believe the audience feels. He gets what he deserves. I've never agreed with the criticisms against Sofia Coppola - she showed a raw emotional performance that felt more real at times.

Aside from the ending being genuinely improved, I'm not sure what else was accomplished in this new edit? It just seems like Coppola is obsessed with editing his movies over, and over again probably to the inspiration of Lucas...

At least he doesn’t try to bury his original cuts well not anymore as the original theatrical cut of GF III has never seen a Home video release just TV play. (AN anyone?)
Edit: Blame Paramount for not giving Robert Duvall enough money to come back, all the films in the series had a string of bad luck when it coming to making them.

[deleted user]

That's strange. You're saying the slumping over is edited out in the new cut? Then maybe I accidentally watched the old cut. Hmmm

[Valeyard]

At least he doesn’t try to bury his original cuts well not anymore as the original theatrical cut of GF III has never seen a Home video release just TV play. (AN anyone?)
Edit: Blame Paramount for not giving Robert Duvall enough money to come back, all the films in the series had a string of bad luck when it coming to making them.

Why blame Paramount?

It would have been much better to just re-cast the role if the producers didn't want to give Duvall the fee he wanted. Instead Coppola wrote the character out of the story, and that was a big mistake in my opinion. However the role that he had for Tom Hagen probably wasn't quite right anyway, just as Michael Corleone isn't either (I'm not sure he even has a character arc).

Really the biggest problem with the film is that it tells the story of the Corleone crime family's ultimate defeat to other Italian-America Mafia families but it does a poor job of telling this story well. It's just a background plot thread, whereas if it had been told more thoroughly with Vincent's clear failures to prevent the other crime families taking over the Corleone turf in a bitter crime war. Instead what's presented is a simply conspiracy between Don Altobello and Joey Zasa against the Corleone family all because they've been excluded from Immobiliare. The scene where Mary is shot doesn't make sense, we have Mosca who is Altobello's assassin try to assassinate Michael but instead kills Mary in the cross-fire. That much itself is OK, but just because they killed Don Altobello would hardly mean the end of the Altobello crime family, and more than likely their Sicilian contacts would come over to retaliate against the Corleone's - so it's a dreadfully incomplete Mafia war. It looks like a poor imitation of the original film where Michael proceeds to kill the heads of the other four NY Mafia families.

[weegee2392]

At least he doesn’t try to bury his original cuts well not anymore as the original theatrical cut of GF III has never seen a Home video release just TV play. (AN anyone?)
Edit: Blame Paramount for not giving Robert Duvall enough money to come back, all the films in the series had a string of bad luck when it coming to making them.

Why blame Paramount?

It would have been much better to just re-cast the role if the producers didn't want to give Duvall the fee he wanted. Instead Coppola wrote the character out of the story, and that was a big mistake in my opinion. However the role that he had for Tom Hagen probably wasn't quite right anyway, just as Michael Corleone isn't either (I'm not sure he even has a character arc).

Really the biggest problem with the film is that it tells the story of the Corleone crime family's ultimate defeat to other Italian-America Mafia families but it does a poor job of telling this story well. It's just a background plot thread, whereas if it had been told more thoroughly with Vincent's clear failures to prevent the other crime families taking over the Corleone turf in a bitter crime war. Instead what's presented is a simply conspiracy between Don Altobello and Joey Zasa against the Corleone family all because they've been excluded from Immobiliare. The scene where Mary is shot doesn't make sense, we have Mosca who is Altobello's assassin try to assassinate Michael but instead kills Mary in the cross-fire. That much itself is OK, but just because they killed Don Altobello would hardly mean the end of the Altobello crime family, and more than likely their Sicilian contacts would come over to retaliate against the Corleone's - so it's a dreadfully incomplete Mafia war. It looks like a poor imitation of the original film where Michael proceeds to kill the heads of the other four NY Mafia families.

I get it, it would be much easier to re-cast the roll or write him out but Duvall is too associated with that role for it to be recast IMO. I’m just saying that the series is Cursed production wise.The story is rushed well because it WAS rushed, FFC was only give it a year to make the film so that might be a factor. And I do agree with the karmic punishment Michael does receive at the end of the film. I think him slumping over at the end was kinda out of place but I do prefer the original versions final flashback