In The Godfather, we see Vito training Michael to take over as The Don. Then Vito suddenly dies. Michael is now on his own, without his father's guidance. I've always felt that in the funeral scene, Mike looks a bit uneasy, unsure. While doing a search I found this conversation between Tom and Mike at the Don's funeral, which kind of confirms my suspicions about Michael's uneasyness. It is from the first draft of the script :

____________________________________________________________

MICHAEL : Christ, Tom; I needed more time with him. I really needed him.

HAGEN : Did he give you his politicians?

MICHAEL : Not all... I needed another four months and I would have had them all.

(he looks at TOM)
I guess you've figured it all out?

HAGEN: How will they come at you?

MICHAEL :I know now.(a passion wells up
inside of MICHAEL)
I'll make them call me Don.

____________________________________________________________

Any thoughts?


Don Cardi

That's pretty interesting DC. That does show some kind of doubt in Michals mind if he was fully prepared for this.


DS

Interesting point DC.


I have always wondered about that scene because Hagen who was supposedly "out" seemed to know exactly what wasy happening. This leads me to believe that after the Don died Michael told Tom about his plans. Obviously there is some dramatic effect with them talking about it at the funeral, but by asking "do you know how they're gonna come at you?" he is aware that someone inside will betray Michael and assassinate him, just as Don Vito had predicted.
Michael tells Tom that he's going to wait, until after the Baptism before he "meets" the heads of the five families. Maybe this is a hesitation on Michael's part which he doesnt wish to reveal to Tom.

In the bigger picture, I think what was lacking in Michael as a Don was Vito's ability to seperate his emotions from business. Michael was certainly more cool headed than Sonny, but he did have flashes of temper and poor judgment. Sometimes he overreached, and he never fully trusted anyone, and thus, without a real consigliere, he had no one with whom he could bounce ideas around.

We get a glimmer of this flaw in GFIII during the famous speech he makes beside Don Tomassino's casket. Michael cannot understand how Tomassino, who himself was a mafia don was so beloved while he was so feared even though he was no less honorable than Tomassino. He asks "what betrayed me? was it my mind? my heart?" Perhaps this is a character flaw, but perhaps it is because he was never fully trained by his father.

DT

Yes, the way that Tom asks Michael that question is as if Tom was trying to counsel Michael in making sure that Mike was aware of what would go down. He asks the question NOT for his own knowledge, but more of a nature to see if Mike was up to speed on these matters. I do think that Tom was worried about Mike. It was as if Tom himself sensed the "uneasyness" in Michael.


Don Cardi

Michael was trained for years, some extra months could've never changed the way he was. Otherwise the training would have lasted for years.

Michael was trained for years, some extra months could've never changed the way he was. Otherwise the training would have lasted for years. [/QUOTE]

Actually he says in this version of the script that he needed 4 more months to aquire ALL of Vito's political connections. I think, that no matter how long his training would have lasted, once his father died he knew that the moment that he prepared for was now here and that all that he and his father had planned over the years would finally take shape. No matter how much you prepare yourself for something, when the actual time comes, it is a normal reaction to get nervous and question if you've covered everything that needed to be done in preparation for your arrival to that moment.


Don Cardi

Everyone of us would like to have our parents forever. There's no end to the good advice they could continue to give us. But, what Mike was also talking about was the need to get all the political, etc. relationships on solid ground. That's why he needed more time. There is also another exchange in the novel in which Mike tells Tom that he can no longer afford the luxury of excluding Tom from family doings.

As far as Mike being uneasy at the funeral, any impressions about that should have been dispelled by his adroit handling of Tessio in his conversation with that traitor. If Mike was uneasy, we should all hope for that kind of unease.

If I remember correctly from the novel, Vito and Micheal were also planning the "baptism" hit on the Five Families during the time fo Micheal's "training" for the Donship. Maybe there were some details of this plan that hadn't been covered, and Micheal was worried?

This topic raises another question: how exactley did Vito "transfer" his political contacts (his "nickels and dimes) to Micheal? It's not like transferring property, or even regimes. Did they just invite all the senators, judges and politicians round for dinner and casually announce that, in the future, Micheal would be the one to go to for "favours"?

He had to have some kind of uneasyness within himself. He was smart enough to realize that if he did not play this out to the tee, he not only would lose his life, but his family would lose whatever power it had left and the Corleone's would be no more. Let's remember, this was not a plan that called for getting up close and blowing his enemies away. This was a plan that had to be carefully calculated, one that had to have the proper people in the right place at the right time, people whom he could trust, a plan that involved traitors and mistrust, and the future of The Corleone family was riding on this plan. Basically it was winner take all.


Don Cardi

It' called "schmoozing." That is why it took so many years to have Michael earn the respect and trust of Vito's political contacts. Michael needed Vito to act has his liason with the politicians. These people had dealt with and trusted Vito for many years, so therefore it was crucial that Vito be around to bring Mike into the inner cirlce of his political contacts. Michael could not just walk in and say " ok, I've taken over my father's business, so now you guys are in my pocket and will have to deal with me." Michael had to slowly show these people that he was as capable as his father and could be as trustworthy as his father. It was a long and slow process.


Don Cardi

You raise an interesting point, DC. I can see why they didn't allow the passage you quoted into the final cut of the film--it would have interfered with the masterful portrayal of Michael's evolution.
But, since I hadn't read that early draft until you posted it, I always attributed Michael's uneasy look at the funeral to two factors: not knowing who the traitor would be (note how he he keeps glancing around him, trying to see if he can spot the guilty party, until Tessio reveals himself); and, perhaps his realization that, with Vito dead, he's totally committed to the Mafia life, with no turning back. Yes, he really was committed before Vito died, but his father's demise cemented his fate.

I think Micheal was a good Don but he was no Don Vito but he is probly better then the other like BArsini and tattaglia

That brings us to another interesting question: was Michael a better Don than, lets say, Barzini. I'm sure that, when it comes to wealth, Michael is better than practically everyone (with the exception of Vito maybe), he donated 100 000 000 to Sicilia, so financially he was a master. But Michael wasn't loved, like Vito and Tomassino, and I had the impression that Emilio Barzini was truly respected by the other dons and by his own family, and not only out or fear like in Michael's case.

I don't know if Barzini was "loved" but he was certainly respected. In the movie, you see Tattaglia looking to Barzini to direct his actions during the commission summit conference from which Vito concludes "it was Barzini all along."

As for other discussions in this thread about the comparison of Michael to Vito, I think a part of the difference is cultural. Vito understood from his heritage that being a "Godfather" really did mean acting like the patriarch of a very extended family. You can see it in the way Vito Corleone is so solicitous of even the most humble of people -- like the baker who is worried about Enzo.It would seem Don Tomassino was cut from the same cloth. It was not only about making money and killing people, it was about making sure "his people" were cared for and got chances in life. He built his whole empire by doing favors for people and then making them promise to return the favor another day. Michael, on the other hand, is more in the American tradition. Not as religious as his father, he saw the position of "Godfather" as something that simply came with the territory. He ran things more like a CEO than a patriarch.

IMO, the most masterful development of Michael's character is that in the book.
The most important point about Michael's readiness in the book is this scene:
Tom: You are nearly as good as your father, but there's one thing you still have to learn.
Mike: What's that?
Tom: How to say no.
....
Mike to Vito: So, you've taught me everything else.

All later discussion of their plans shows that Michael's role in planning is bigger than the Don's.Don, in fact, completely retired already.
The scene DC quoted is roughly taken from book, but the intonation is changed. Mike didn't doubt his ability to be the don, his tutelage was obviously finished. He just said that he needed 4 more months to prepare and get those political connections. The suddenness of the Don's death caused him to make some changes in the original plan, as we may understand from Tom's words.

JM, this is a fascinating quote, but I am not sure what is means. Is Tom saying Michael is too giving, or that he cannot say "no" to himself?

I took it as meaning that Micheal hadn't got Vito's talent for saying "no" and leaving the other person feeling as if they hadn't said it. I.e., Micheal's "no"s are too direct and not diplomatic enough. (Micheal had just told Tom that he was out)

I think the main reason Micheal wasnt a good of a Don as many say he shoulda been was that he was undereducated and lack of experience. He wasn't taught skills or anything and he didnt know much about the family business. As for vito he developed the skills out of necessity. He needed to do the things in order to survive. And im sure he had mentor's and ppl to learn from.. All micheal had was Vito and Tommasino which he was limited in both. Everyone else in the family didnt have much experience. Sonny dead, tessio dead, Clemenza started own family then died. Basically he only had Tom who was only Consiglieri for a breif amount of time

Michael lacked his father's warmth. He lacked the ability to inspire love as his father did. I believe the loyalty he got, at least as portrayed in the movie, was inspired more by fear and/or admiration for his cunning, than by love.

As for his uneasiness, he operated under his father's wing for many years. No matter how good his training, he would be a bit insecure to be on his own for the first time. Especially if he had counted on the friendship, and perhaps mentorship, of Clemenza and Tessio, and now Tessio was gone.

In the book Vito tells Mike that when he says no, he needs to make it sound like a yes and not to say no too often.

As I've said before: Vito was a big fish in a relatively small Mafia pond. He knew how to be satisfied with what he had. Michael wanted to be the emperor of worldwide organized crime. He was never satisfied because he never really put a limit to his power-mongering. As a result, he constantly overreached. His life was characterized by winning battles--while losing the war.

TB, You're absolutely right. I always thought that the boys were acted a little bit like spoiled brats, except for Tom. Sonny and Fredo were always looking for sexual conquests. Michael wanted absolute power. Sonny and his tantrums. Michael walking out on his father and joining the Marines. Perhaps, in their quest to provide a better life for their sons, like many immigrants do, Vito and Mama spoiled their children.

In reflection I think Michael WAS ready to be the Don. He was skitty and uneasy at the funeral, but thats to be understood. He'd just taken on the mantel of one of the most powerful jobs he'd ever have to take and he was looking for the 'traitor' which his father had told him would come, after his own demise. His thoughts and eyes were all over the place whilst all the while trying to grieve his dead father.
I've read some parts of these 'early scripts and first drafts ' and changed scenes and all, and good they are too, but wouldnt that alter everything, another world a different scenario...maybe...if it hadnt been altered? so are they still valid to be compared along with the famous story we now know and love? Just a thought

Turnbull, I think you're competely off on this. The Mafia was in its heyday in the 40s and 50s. What is this small pond you refer to? The NY families have always dominated the American Mafia and they maintained close ties with Sicily and other ethnic crime organizations. It was no small feat that Vito was able to summon organized crime figures from across the country to the "Cosa Nostra" meeting.

In addition, I didn't infer that Michael wanted to be organized crime's emperor. He conducted his affairs in shark infested waters and took appropriate actions to protect those affairs. When business opportunities opened up, he attempted to take advantage of them. Pensate!

Don T makes a very good point. To add to what Don T said above in regards to the cultural differences between father and son, Vito came from a world where his people were abused, taken advantage of and even killed. So it was only natural that when Vito rose to the status that he did that he had the instinct to "protect" his people and those close to him by doing the exact things that Don T points out. But eventually Michael saw his own status as having "power" to do whatever he wanted and take whatever he wanted no matter what the cost. Vito saw his own status as having the power to do what was "needed" and take what was "needed" to protect and provide for those within his cirlce. The cultural difference come down to the "needs" of the old world mentality versus the "wants" of the americanized mentality.


Don Cardi

But the difference is that Vito had a way of achieving the same things, under the same conditions, but without really making enemies or being hated. Even when Vito says NO to Sollozo's offer. he does so without ever really offending Sollozo. The reason that Sollozo became Vito's enemy was that Sonny's outburst showed a ch*nk in the Corleone Armor. So Sollozo's reason for attempting to take out the Don was stricktly business and not because the Don offended him by saying no.

Michael on the other hand never had that talent of being able to achieve certain goals without making enemies.
Michael made enemies when he said no to people. He alienated them and offended them. The proof of this comes right from Michael's own mouth in GFIII when he is sitting next to Tommasino's coffin and wondering out loud why he was never loved, " like my father."


There is no question that Michael was the son MOST like his father. The son who had most of the same talents and traits like his father. The only one of the son's who could successfully carry on the Corleone name with might and power. But the one trait that he lacked was the talent of saying NO to people without offending them or making enemies.

Don Cardi

Michael had the coolness and the business instinct of his father, but Tom and Sonny also ressembled Don Vito in a godfather-way.
I think Sonny would've been more like Vito and Tomassino, not wanting to be the most powerful and rich man like Michael, but more protecting the people around him, being the patriarch of an extended family. Maybe a little bit too protecting, which Carlo knew best.
Tom was also in some way more like Vito than Michael. Tom was more diplomatic, could say no without offending, could make threats without really acting threatening. But he was consigliere, he observed the Don for quite a few years while people came for favors, he learned how to be tactical and diplomatic.
Question: What was Tom's role in the family while Genco was still consigliere? Just lawyer?

There is no question that all of the son's, even Fredo, had traits inherited from their father. And even Tom, as you say, picked up many of Vito's talents because he was personally taught by Vito how to handle problems and situations. But Michael was definately the son who inherited most of his fahter's traits and talents.

If you take the three biological sons, each had a part of their personality that mirrored their father. Fredo had the caring, meek and humble trait. The trait of showing compassion for those he cared for. Sonny had the ability to strike, he possessed an unfearing courage. He was protective of his family and those that he loved. Michael had the ability to be cool under pressure, be cunning, calculative and strong willed. He had the ability to wield his authority. The head for doing business. Basically if you take each of these traits from each son and put them together, they spell Vito Corleone.

I do believe that Tom's position, while Genco was still consigliere, was in the role of a lawyer, but at the same time a consigliere in training.


Don Cardi

I think that Sonny was more old-fashioned, more traditional. He would've been more like Vito in the ways described here. But, remember, Sonny did not have his father's intelligence. He allowed his hot head to rule his actions, something that would prove fatal.

Please remember that Fredo, Sonny and Connie never ventured outside their little world. We would have to assume that the Corleones did not have much contact outside of that close-knit Italian community. The three siblings never went to college. They never experienced the world outside of their own; it was very insular. The boys went to work for their father and Connie was home with her mother. the only exceptions were Tom, who obviously went to law school, and Michael, who was in the service and then college.

Because of their exposure to other cultures and lifestyles, Michael and Tom were the only ones capable of bringing the family in a different direction.

That is an excellent point SB!


Don Cardi