With all the new members that have joined this board recently, there has been much debate as to which of the GF movies is the best one. So I thought that we should settle this debate with a vote.

Don Cardi

Your Favorite GF Movie single choice
	The Godfather
	The Godfather II
	The Godfather III
Votes accepted starting: 12/31/69 08:00 PM You must vote before you can view the results of this poll.

GFI: Best movie ever
GFII: Best sequal ever.
GFIII: Not nearly as bad as some say, but not close to the first two in terms of performance or story.

I could never separate the first two. They are one film to me.

I couldn't agree more!


Don Cardi

I consider them all to be one story, thus one movie and uniform throughout, but if Luca Brasi was about to chop my feet off, I'd say Part I is my favorite.

Sincerely, I easily can separate the second movie within itself... 1 and 2 are not irreproachable where FFC added or changed much of Puzo's storylines. The modern part of GF2 strikes me with numerous inconsistencies of its plot and characters' development. GF3 is beneath criticism.

C'mon, where are all the new membrs who've been debating this issue over the last several days? Place your votes!


Don Cardi

GF2 is mine

The Godfather is, IMO, the greatest film ever made, and is also my favorite film of all time, and my favorite of The Godfather trilogy (my favortism towards GFI does not make me biased or inpartial, BTW). But I agree with Don Cardi's statement, both The Godfather and The Godfather: Part II are essentially one long, epic film, two films that, if you have the time (and bladder control), should be watched back-to-back. And The Godfather: Part III, taken as a completely seperate film from the its predecessors, is still an entertaining, albeit flawed, film.

GF I : ***** Better than the second, Marlon Brando, James Caan? No question, the best.

GF II is my favorite!


Don Smitty

I voted for GF but, I like GFII just as much. GFIII just bores me to tears except for Mikes scream at the end.

The happiest contest in the world would be to determine which is better: GF or II? III isn't in the same league.

I really hated GF3.

While I agree that GF III is no where near being in the same league as GFI & GFII, it is still part of the GF Trilogy. So therefore IMHO it gets put into the vote.

"After all we are not communists"


Don Cardi

I am beginning to feel that I am very alone in my opinion. Yes, I am one of them-I do like The Godfather III the best.

Dun Dun Duuuuuuun!

And here are my reasons:

1. It is a brilliant cap to a wonderful storytelling experience. The scream at the end is one of the, if not the, most moving scene that I have ever watched on film. The entire movie is filled with emotion of a sinful man trying to break free from his angst all while being held back by the world of crime he happened to stumble into.

2. The plot is complex, mysterious, and very interesting, at least in my opinion. Most consider the role of a Pope to be such a holy and graceful one, but the portrayal of the vatican makes you look at it in a very different sense. And the fact that such similar deals have happened in the past keeps the movie realistic, yet still unique compared to the others. It portrays the Mafia much bigger then many can expect and is larger then many movies I have seen.

3. This is the perfect death of Michael Corleone. This movie was all about Michael's fall. The way he moves, the way he acts, you can feel his sorrow, his depression, and you can relate to it like you can no other. Coppola was a genius in making Michael feel the torture he felt as payback for years and years of sin and he knew that taking away his family would be the ultimate death for Michael. To die an old, lonely man is Hell in Michael's eyes. Everything about it was perfect.

Now, please don't get me wrong, this is not the best movie in the world, there are flaws. Sophia and Garcia's acting is a little off and the story was confusing the first few times around but the more I watch it, the more I like it.

The one big problem is, its not good alone. Both The Godfather and The Godfather Part II are great movies when left alone, without having to know anything else about the characters. but the third installment is very dependent on the previous movies, which is a flaw that many sequels go through.

But, come one, "we are all reasonable people here", we have all seen the other two movies, and if all three installments were released as one big movie, you would all love it, I'm sure. Its just the fact that the third movie doesn't conform to the organization or similar plot as the previous two that sets it as an outcast as part I and II.

But, I don't see this as The Godfather III, this is not just another installment, its the death of Michael Corleone, and it plays out to be one hell of a death. You can't deny that...

I dont quite agree with you on this point. GF2 is not a complete stand alone movie. Infact I saw GF2 first and didn't understand a thing. One aspect of this problem is trivial, in the sense that a sequel cannot repeat the story of the first part. that is understandable. But looking at GF2, you get no clue what kind of a person michael was at the beginning of GF. Without understanding that, michael's character becomes almost single dimensional. Kay's character can be understood quite a bit just from GF2. So is Fredo's character.

So I'm not aloud? Well then I post just to irritate Don Cardi a bit...

Mine is GF 3...I really like the intriques and the stuff with the Vatican..and also...the best GF scene (Off whole trilogy IMO) is the Cry of Michael on the stairs of the Opera.

Well, you don't need to know all of Michael's character to like the movie. I actually saw the second movie first too and, though I didn't find it all that great, I did agree that it was a well made movie and enjoyable, though a little confusing at times. Of course, every sequel must depend somewhat on the original, but The Godfather III is way out there. It is much differnet form the previous two.

In The Godfather, there is an assasination attempt, and then the movie is basically spent trying to figure out who did it and then enacting on their revenge.

In The Godfather II, there is an assasination attempt and then the movie is basically spent trying to figure out who did it and then enacting on their revenge (of course I am discluding the flashbacks)

In The Godfather III, though, after the assasination attempt, a lot more goes wrong, and though they do end up enacting revenge, Michael Corleone still loses in all aspects. He loses his family, both criminal and otherwise. It's not like the previous two, it was more glitzy, it was big, it was everything the Corleones weren't suppose to be. But it was suppose to be like that.

After GF1 and GF2, Gf3 just didnt fit into the story line that well for me. I think if the Godfather part 3 were a totally different movie and had nothing to do with the Godfather stories, I would have liked it better. It was a decent mob movie but not Godfather quality.

The Godfather was a ground-breaking film for its day, and it doesn't seem a bit dated even now. Although I love the first film, I find the second one to be more intellectually challenging. I believe it is a darker, more complex film. I agree that the second cannot stand on its own, you MUST see the first,but if we're voting on merit alone, then GF2 is a better film. The flashbacks may make it a bit confusing, but they add to the story, IMHO.

Although there are certain scenes from GF3 that are great, that in and of itself does not make a great film. I love the "I dread you" scene, Michael's confession, and, despite what many have said, I like the opera. Cavalleria Rusticana is my favorite opera, so I enjoy the whole thing, even if it is a bit long. I am always moved by Michael kneeling at Tommasino's casket, and I like the interaction between him and Kay in Sicily.

GFI, but I probably would put Part I and II together. GFIII doesn't even rank for me.

I found it strange that people would start with Part II or Part III of the Godfather trilogy. But then I remember that I was spending the night at a friends house when I was like 13, and he put Part III on and I was like, OK I'll watch it. 10 mins in I was baffled and didn't watch the rest.

Second, I don't understand how people can say the flashbacks are confusing. As long as you've seen the first, you understand that they're showing Vito when he was younger, set against Michael's fall as head of the family. It's standard 7th grade irony or juxstaposition.

IMO, the only thing confusing about the flashbacks are who is who. The first time I watched it, I could never remember if someone is supposed to be Clemenza, Tessio or Genco. That threw me off a bit. But the flashbacks as a whole never confused me. They were my favorite parts of the movie from the first time I saw Part II.

I've said it a million times and I'll probably say it a million more. Although Part III is a bit flawed, I can't help but love it to death. Maybe sometimes more than the other movies even though I know the first two are much better.

It's like when you buy a new pair of shoes and they're all nice and shiny and all, but you can't help but still love that ratty pair of shoes with the soles worn down and the laces about to break.

That pretty much sums up my opinion of Part III.

Gee, that didn't sound TOO condescending

I remember that the first time I saw GF2, I was a bit confused. That's not to say that I don't like the flashbacks. I love them, and I agree that they make the film unique, richer and better. However, since they are in Sicilian dialect for the most part, it is confusing for people to watch, with the switching back and forth, and keeping track of the subtitles. I believe that after watching it so many times, we've become so familiar with the film that it the switching is transparent to us. I'm not sure if they would be for the first-time viewer.

Well, I also had a small problem with the flashbacks when I first saw the film. You see, I would get so involved with one storyline that when it came to a tranistion, I had forgotten a lot of what happened last time when they were in that time era. However, by the third or forth time of viewing it, the confusion stopped.

Well I didn't mean for it to sound that way.

Anyone who tackles The Godfather trilogy is a different kind of movie goer, they're usually NOT the kind of movie goer who thinks that XXX and The Fast and the Furious are the best movies ever. And those movie goers usually pick on themes such as irony and juxtaposition (which I spelled wrong in my previous thread, hehe).

The first time I watched Part II, I understood what was happening in the flashbacks, but like I said, wasn't sure who was who. That was the only confusion I experienced. I know everyone is different, but IMO, the flashbacks were the easiest part of Part II to follow. I mean after Carmine utters "Michael Corleone says hello," I thought the modern part of Part II was almost impossible to understand until I started watching the movies more and hanging out here on the boards.

Sorry for the confusion.

i think coppola should have adopted goodfellas as gf3! it is the perfect continuation of the mafia story into the 60's and 70's.

ps-gf1 had brando, gf2 had de niro.....both fantastic

The Godfather.

I thought GF2 would have more votes than it does