My take, for what it is worth!
Turnbull, I think you are being too harsh! on Michael
Whilst “There’s a ton of tragedy in Michael's life” in my view, it is not “all self-inflicted” and I see it differently that neither “He had free choice at every turn, and he freely chose the Mob life” nor "Michael succeeded--in turning everything he touched into death, including his own" though “disastrous results” is not disputed
First: Sollozzo and McCluskey killing
Nobody came up with “some other [viable] scenario” because there wasn't any that “might have been possible”
Corleones destinyBut Sollozzo was the problem, not McCluskey, McCluskey was just collateral damage.
Michael's whole point was that they can't wait, because Sollozzo was going to kill Vito ("That's the key for him.")
How long would it take to get McCluskey fired, transferred or suspended? Days? Weeks? Months? Even once he was dead, it seemed to take a while for the newspapers to get enough out on McCluskey to allow things to loosen up. It surely would take longer if McCluskey was still alive.
And getting McCluskey out of the picture doesn't mean that Sollozzo is no longer a threat to Vito. It just makes Sollozzo a bit easier to kill
It was Barzini all along – as such the “contest” was never “between the Corleones and Tattaglias” who was just the front
It was Barzini who “outfought Santino” not the pimp Tattaglia
“Carlo’s betrayal, Sonny’s murder” were Vito's doing not Michael's
Vito treating Carlo like an outcast and Vito's inaction to Carlo's domestic violence abuse of Connie, his daughter which resulted in Connie's brother, Sonny's public beating of Carlo because of which Carlo lured Sonny, to Sonny's murder
Second: Donship
Sure thing Michael could have refused the Donship Then again, Michael's loving father and family man Vito never should have put - never wanted this for you son - who “saved [Vito's] life. And paid a heavy price:” in
that position
Vito “chooses [Michael] to become the Don, setting in motion Tessio’s betrayal, the Great Massacre of 1955”
The real tragedy in his life was however we summarize, when he survived the car bomb and came back, he could have tried to live a "legitimate" life but Vito dragged him into their crime business
He could have cut their losses and retired, handing over the family business to Clemenza and Tessio but he didn't because he wanted needed Michael to restore the Corleone family reputation, standing etc. dragging his never wanted this for you son, into their criminal world and leaving a murderous legacy
1. Baptism massacre
2. making his daughter a widow
3. jealousy, resentment and betrayal of his stepped over son
I reckon, Michael's wrong thing was his bad choice of wife who became his horror,"
hypocrite Kay could have refused to marry Michael but Kay did
knowing Michael was Mafia
Kay's gripe seems to have been that Michael had not delivered on his promise of making the Corleone family completely legitimate
Both Michael and Kay were delusional about “legitimacy” but Michael was at least trying!
If organized crime could wash their blood money clean, become “legitimate” let alone in five years RICO would be out of business!
Ref:
Third: Extract: “the machinegun attack that nearly killed Kay in her bed and scared the bejesus out of his kids; Kay’s estrangement, abortion and divorce; Anthony’s estrangement;”
Kay enjoyed the spoils of the blood money for more than 7 odd years
knowing her rich, privileged life was funded by tainted money from other people's murder, misery and blood
until her bedroom was machine gun sprayed when it suddenly dawned! on her, this unholy and evil Sicilian thing that's been going on for 2,000 years must all end
Bet Kay never told Anthony about
his unborn brother
she murdered Yet.... Nice!
Kay to Michael: Tony knows that you killed Fredo
"legitimate" businessman
“he chose to hide his ownership or controlling interest” because Michael's unsavoury reputation would have hindered, Michael “investing his [ill-gotten] wealth legitimately—even putting money up-front in the legal casinos of Nevada”
Once a common Mafia hood -- Michael needed Pentangeli as his muscle
Otherwise Michael becomes just another casino operator, easy pickings for anyone
It was indeed unbecoming of a Don
1. Michael “undercut Pentangeli through his support of the Rosato Brothers” against his own man
2. Michael gave his loyalty to a Jew [Roth] before his own blood
3. Michael asked Pentangeli to lay down - settle these troubles - to the Rosato Brothers who spit right in Pentangeli's face
4. Michael threw Pentangeli [good old man -- who was loyal to Vito, Michael's father
and to Michael, for years] under the bus
5. then abandonment of his 'dead'
capo's family
Sure thing among others -
1. Michael's greed for Roth's local and international gambling empire
2. and
believing Roth that Michael was Roth's successor Roth's heir apparent
got Michael and Kay's bedroom, machine gun sprayed
“Fredo’s betrayal;”
“stake Fredo to ownership of a brothel” What else could Fredo do? other than Fredo's specialty! Good times all around
irrespective no excuse whatsoever for “Fredo’s betrayal;” for something in it for me -- on my own, the Donship
“Fredo’s murder”
Nevertheless Michael could have spared Fredo
Did they have to die?Still Michael could have easily continued the same arrangements of keeping Fredo under watch or similar until Mama Corleone's natural death. He had the money and the resources Besides if Mama had lived longer....
GFIII
“He laundered his Mob cronies’ money through his “legitimate” businesses (maybe through his foundations) and cut Zasa out of his share” What share?
If my memory serves me right, Zasa didn't entrust Michael to launder Zasa's money in Michael's casinos as Michael's other "Mob cronies" did, so how can Zasa expect a share when Michael's casinos were sold
- International Immobiliare
Archbishop Gilday: Don Corleone This deal with Immobiliare can make you one of the richest men in the world
Your whole past history and the history of your family, will be washed away. Six hundred million
So who wouldn't?! especially the former head of the most powerful Mafia family, wash away his nefarious history
Michael's choicesExtract: Michael surrounded by his family, was parading himself and his family in public, so out in the open even at the steps of the Opera house in Sicily, in the night, in full view of anyone lurking knowing Mosca, the assassin who had never failed thus far, was contracted to murder him and that Mosca had already murdered Don Tommasino Go figure!
