In the famous tollbooth scene,I've often wondered why the killers used multiple machine guns and a small army of men to do a routine hit. Couldn't one or two guys have lain down on the floor of the booth,and at a signal from the collector,jumped up with 45 automatics?

By the time Sonny would have even registered that it was a hit,he would have been perforated and quite dead.
The gunmen could have still killed the Toll worker like they did originally.

My only take on this is that even though it was supposedly revenge on Sonny for Bruno Tattaglia (hence the brutality and final kick in the face),we later find out that Barzini set it up. Given the prevailing dynamic,I don't think that Tattaglia could wipe his butt without clearing it with Baarzini.So was it Tatt's guys or Barzini's who actually did the work?

If it was Tattaglia's guys,I can't imagine Barzini giving his approval for the tremendous amount of overkill,knowing the extremely negative attention that the massacre would have gotten from the public.

Of course it is also possible that Barzini wanted to strike terror into the Corleone's,and thus decided to make a big splash.

What do you guys think? Any insight or ideas?

It was just FFC's need for drama and gratuitous effect.

olivant,
I've also read that FCC wanted to do the scene as a tribute to Arthur Penn's killing of Bonnie and Clyde. I think you're right,in that there was no reason,plotwise,for the sheer brutality of the scene. Sometimes it just comes down to the director's wishes whether it makes sense or not.

They did it to majorly insult the Corleone family that's why the mutailated the body of Santino

I always took it as revenge for the way Sonny acted as boss when filling in for Vito. Sonny took a short-term, quick gratification approach by killing members of the other Families. That, coupled with the death of Bruno T, made Sonny a justified target for such a gruesome execution.

It was a combination of dramatic effect and homage to "Bonnie and Clyde." The novel notes that the kick in the face was to put something "personal" in the killing.

BTW: The Thompson submachine guns used in that scene fired .45 ACP, a round designed for maximum knockdown power at close range. The first shot that hit Sonny would have disabled him. Also: if you watch the scene closely, you'll see bullet holes appear, disappear and appear again on the car's body.

As Vito immediately knew and Carlo confirmed later, it was Barzini all along.
Plus what Turnbull said about the "Bonnie and Clyde" shout out.
And given that Vito had had inexplicable luck in escaping two previous assassination attempts I suppose the people on the other side wanted to make sure there were no mistakes with Sonny.

"Forty seven shots! Forty seven shots in his Sicilian hide and he's still alive!"

Well certainly in the novel Barzini had no such concerns since pistols were used.

Sonny had very high HP. They had to keep hitting him until it reached zero. It is known.

And a tight enrage timer? lol

agree. insult on top of death..
there's a line in goodfellas "they even shot tommy in the face so his family couldn't give him an open casket wake/funeral"

Whatever homage that FFC is paying, the book has Sonny's body being described as disfigured....even the mortician is shocked when he sees the body and you figure that he's seen accident victims,etc.

In the novel, the hitmen use pistols. However, one of them disfigures Sonny with a blow from his foot. The machine guns in the film were simply gratuitous.

thanks for the correction